(Editor’s Note: Much like giving the star player one final day of rest before the playoff push, we gave our regular contributor, Tim Russell, a week off and he’s coming back fresh and with three posts for your enjoyment this final week of MLB’s regular season. He gives us his rankings of the 19 MLB ballparks he’s visited in person.)
Here’s the third and final installment in Tim’s series of ballpark rankings. Check out his entire series at the links below.
While these rankings are subjective, let’s keep in mind, it’s never a bad thing to be at a ballpark. Just some more than others.
#6 – T-Mobile Park home of the Seattle Mariners
- Food and Beverage: 4. Decent food options with a strong Asian influence. Edgar’s Cantina offers toasted grasshoppers. Bonus points for offering a value menu.
- Atmosphere: 4.5. Can be a fun atmosphere. Fans can really get into the game.
- Neighborhood: 3. Not much around the stadium, mostly commercial type businesses, but downtown isn’t far. Take a visit to Pike Place Market or visit the original Starbucks.
- Fans: 3.5. Fans are fun to be around and are friendly, even in other team’s jerseys.
- Accessibility: 4. Light rail option available. It can get packed close to game time and leaving the game.
- Seating/Sight Lines: 4. Good sight lines. Some seats are a little far from the action.
- Panoramic View: 3.5. Hard to have a view when there is a roof covering. The roof is usually open though, so you might get a peek of downtown in the distance.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 4. Get your picture taken with a statue of Seattle Hall of Fame announcer Dave Niehaus, who is famous for his grand slam call, “Get out the rye bread and mustard, grandma. It’s a grand salami.”
- Final Score: 30.5/40.
- Final Thoughts: Even if the roof is closed, take a jacket. The roof is just a cover that slides over the playing area. You are still exposed to the elements somewhat.
#5 – Comerica Park home of the Detroit Tigers
- Food and beverage: 3. Being this is the home ballpark, I haven’t indulged as much as in other ballparks, since I usually eat before I go. But food options around the ballpark, as well as good options inside, help this score.
- Atmosphere: 4.5. Maybe it’s a little bias, since it is the home park, but even in tough seasons, the atmosphere is fun.
- Neighborhood: 3.5. The one question I always get is about safety around the park. Maybe it’s more of Detroit getting a bad rap. But the area is quite safe and there are very good restaurants and bars around for before or after the game.
- Fans: 4. Fans are great here, especially those that come out to support the team. I lowered the score to account for empty stands when the team is faltering.
- Accessibility: 3.5. Being close to freeways helps raise the score, but a limited number of exits can create some delays
- Seating/Sight Lines: 4. Even upper deck seats offer a decent view of the game.
- Panoramic View: 4.5. View of downtown makes it worthwhile.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 4.5. Giant scoreboard with huge Tigers on top. What’s not to like?
- Total Score: 31.5/40.
- Final Thoughts: I may be slightly biased, but Comerica is one of the nicer stadiums in the league. It is under-rated. I consistently hear that from first-time visitors when they visit.
#4 – Camden Yards home of the Baltimore Orioles
- Food and Beverage: 4.5. Good food options with Jimmy’s Seafood (crab cake egg rolls) and Boog’s BBQ.
- Atmosphere: 4.5. Fun atmosphere, especially if the Orioles are winners.
- Neighborhood: 3. Sections of Baltimore can be a little rough, but the ballpark area (Pickles Pub) along with the Inner Harbor and Fells Point are fun areas. Babe Ruth’s Birthplace is a short walk from the park.
- Fans: 4. Fans are welcoming to all fans of different teams.
- Accessibility: 4. Light rail and MARC trains help move people around. Ample parking is a short walk to the football stadium.
- Seating/Sight Lines: 3. Seats are a little small. Some are not always oriented directly toward home plate.
- Panoramic Views: 5. You can’t go wrong with a view of the B and O Warehouse.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 4. Statues of past greats, including Cal Ripken Jr. and Earl Weaver are in left-center field. When on Eutaw Street in the park, look down for markers signifying the landing spot of each home run that has hit the street.
- Final Score: 32/40.
- Final Thoughts: Obviously, this is one of my favorite parks, since I have it rated so high. The view of the warehouse in right is great and Eutaw Street can be wall-to-wall people.
#3 – Fenway Park home of the Boston Red Sox
- Food and Beverage: 3. Food outside is probably better with the street vendors, especially with the Sausage Guy on Lansdowne. This year, the fans have stooped to bringing their own ketchup, due to the switch to a sugar-free, gluten-free version.
- Atmosphere: 5. You can’t beat the atmosphere here. The history is awesome, even if you’re just walking through.
- Neighborhood: 4.5. Get there early and soak in the fans walking around the stadium.
- Fans: 4.5. Dedicated fans who know the game.
- Accessibility: 3. Parking can be a little rough, but they do have the “T” subway line, allowing you to park further away.
- Seating/Sight Lines: 2.5. Might be the worst sight lines in the majors. If you’re down the lines in right or left field, you are likely facing center field and have to turn your head to see home plate.
- Panoramic View: 4.5. Lots of iconic sights, including the Citgo sign over the Green Monster.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 5. The Green Monster. All that needs to be said. There are other electronic scoreboards that offer more statistics, but it’s cool seeing the Monster in person.
- Final Score: 32/40.
- Final Thoughts: Remember, I didn’t see a game here due to rain. But I was in the stadium and got a sense of the park. And it just makes me want to go back soon to see an actual game.
#2 – PNC Park home of the Pittsburgh Pirates
- Food and Beverage: 4. Primanti Brothers sandwiches, pierogis, and Manny Sanguillen’s barbecue are the highlights here. Manny might even be at his stand to sign autographs.
- Atmosphere: 5. Fun atmosphere, even though the Pirates aren’t always competitve.
- Neighborhood: 4. Ballpark is really incorporated into the downtown area.
- Fans: 3.5. Good, dedicated fans that are vocal about Pirate ownership.
- Accessibility: 3.5. Fairly easy to drive to and find parking. Lots of hills.
- Seating/Sight Lines: 4. Really good sight lines, although there is an area in left field you lose sight of the field due to having to walk behind the club area.
- Panoramic View: 5. This may be the best view in all of baseball with the Clemente Bridge in the background.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 3.5. Take a walk around the outside of the stadium, looking for the four statues of past greats, including Roberto Clemente.
- Final Score: 32.5/40.
- Final Thoughts: Fun ballpark with a great view. You can usually find good seats at a decent price.
#1 – Petco Park home of the San Diego Padres
- Food and Beverage: 4. Decent food inside, but better options outside.
- Atmosphere: 5. Fun atmosphere. Fans are into the game and their mascot, The Swinging Friar, gets around the park.
- Neighborhood: 4.5. The Gaslamp Quarter in downtown San Diego is hopping with a lot of bars and restaurants. Lola’s is a wonderful place for Mexican close to the ballpark.
- Fans: 4. Good, knowledgeable fans that make you feel welcome.
- Accessibility: 4. Fairly walkable area from most areas of downtown. Light rail helps move people around as well.
- Seating/Sight Lines: 4. Most of the seats are oriented to face the home plate area.
- Panoramic View: 5. Great view of Gallagher Park out in center field. It includes a mini-ballpark for the kids and a statue of Padre great Tony Gwynn. Bring a blanket to sit on the grassy picnic area.
- Scoreboard/Entertainment: 4. The Padres Hall of Fame is a must visit. Gallagher Park in center field gives a nice park-like atmosphere.
- Final Score: 34/40.
- Final Thoughts: Not surprising that this park is No. 1. It is on the top of a lot of lists. The Western Metal Supply Company building in left field helps with the aesthetics as well. Padres Hall of Fame is a must see.
Retired Parks
There are four retired parks that I have been to. I didn’t include them in the rankings, since they are not part of the current 30.
Those stadiums are: Detroit’s Tiger Stadium, Houston’s Astrodome, Texas’ Globe Life Field, and Atlanta’s Turner Field.
What can I say about Tiger Stadium? It’s where I saw my first game with my dad and brother. I don’t remember who played or when it was, but there are still plenty of memories of the park from other games.
I went to the Astrodome on a work assignment. I was visiting my sister in the Houston area and former Eastern Michigan University coach Terry Collins was the manager of the Astros, so I was able to get a credential to interview Collins and attend the game. It was at least 25 years ago now, so there’s not a lot I remember about the experience.
Globe Life Field is the old Texas stadium. It has replicas of Tiger Stadium’s right field stands and Yankee Stadium’s center field. I was able to visit while attending the wedding of my friend’s daughter.
And finally, Turner Field holds a special place in my heart. It was one of the last stadiums I got to visit with my brother. The stadium was closed in October 2016 and he passed just over a year later. Our visit was the final game at the stadium before the Braves moved to their current home, Truist Park. Everyone attending the game was given small vials of infield dirt, along with a commemorative ticket.
It was also the second game that season that I saw Detroit’s Justin Verlander lose, 1-0.
At that point, we started attending more minor league games as well.
Currently, I’ve been to a total of 48 ballparks, which includes the 19 current Major League stadiums.
I have two big trips left to get to 30. The west coast and a Florida, Atlanta, Texas swing. I should be able to do both on a baseball trip, one each of the next two summers. I will have to find a way to get to Toronto as well.
Really, though, the chase never ends.
Previous Installments of the Great Ballpark Chase by Tim Russell
- The Overview, August 10, 2022
- Rocky Mountain High, August 17, 2022
- Back to School Time, August 24, 2022
- On Target, August 31, 2022
- Milwaukee’s Best, September 7, 2022
- Guaranteed Fun, September 14, 2022
- Busch!, September 21, 2022
- Sidetrip!, September 28, 2022
- Fountains & Waterfalls, October 5, 2022
- That’s a Wrap, October 12, 2022
- Fenway Sizzle, Then Fizzle, July 24, 2023
- Taking a Bite Out of the Big Apple, July 31, 2023
- Hall of Dreams, August 7, 2023
- Citizens of Philadelphia, August 14, 2023
- National Treasure, August 21, 2023
- Yankee Doodle, August 28, 2023
- Birds of a Feather, September 4, 2023
- A Moment of Silence, September 11, 2023
- Rank’em Part 1, September 25, 2023
- Rank’em Part 2, September 27, 2023