My Favorite Stadiums

If you all haven't noticed yet, I'm looking to get into stadium operations as a career. If I could draw anything other than a stick figure doing pull ups I would have enjoyed being a ballpark architect, but that just wasn't in the cards. The Stadium Ops team ensures that the field is safe and clean for the guests and most importantly, they can have a good time watching the game. A few of my housemates and good friends are not baseball fans, but are still willing to go to the games for the atmosphere and the hot dog (if you turn down a ballpark hot dog, we need to have a word). That's what my job would be: safe, clean, fun for all levels of fans.

While you're stopping by and talking stadiums with me, I thought I'd share some of my favorite stadiums, both past and present. 

Past

Getting really old with this one. The Palace of the Fans in Cincinnati was used only from 1902-1911 but is one of the coolest looking stadiums if you're into Greek architecture. Behind home plate there is a parthenon-style grandstand and extending down the foul lines are bleachers/seats with an overhang supported by (get this) Greek style columns. It is so incredibly innovative but at the same time, it leaves me scratching my head because the sight lines must have been pretty poor for at least a third of the fans. Some of the complaints of the retro stadiums was the huge support beams that stick up right in the middle of the crowd, obstructing the view for certain fans. These pillars are at the forefront of every section, minimizing the vision for a number of folks. It explains why it wasn't around for that long, which is unfortunate, because I think it just looked so darn cool. Another major problem was that centerfield was 510 feet. Eat your vegetables, hitters.

Another great stadium of the past was Ebbets Field. Aside from its massive historical implications (Jackie Robinson, etc), the overlay of this field looks like a square that someone stepped on and they had to make a field out of the acreage. The right field wall is straight as an arrow with no stands anywhere near it, but as it extends towards relatively shallow centerfield, fans surround the field from two stories above; a double-decker format surrounds the field all the way around until it meets back at the right field foul pole. Ebbets is a pretty small field, only extending to 396' in center and 297' in right! I'm a sucker for stadiums with a simple, double-decker construction like this. It makes the stadium look absolutely tiny and could be particularly intimidating for opposing players. When you stare down the pitcher, rather than seeing fountains or a grove or a wall like today, you see thousands of fans, cheering their heads off for their team. Just imagine how much the crowd's noise bounces off of each other rather than dissipating into the open air of most stadiums today. I think it would be so much easier for a fan to be involved when they have nothing to look at but the field. 

As small and intimate Ebbets Field was, Tiger Stadium is as big as spacious. Extending a massive 440' feet to centerfield, 340' to left and 365' to the power alleys. Right field offered a shorter porch, only extending 325' but the second deck spilled over the field about 10 feet and swallowed a number of home runs that normally would have been caught easily at the warning track. Tiger Stadium is like Ebbets Field because of the double decker construction, but it wraps 360 degrees around the stadium. If you were to stand at the pitcher's mound and look up, there would be fans in every direction. And even above that, the lights extended above the famous roof, imposing their power on the game. Unfortunately, it was torn down in the early 2000's and though I did get to see a few games there, I am too young to remember how truly amazing it was. Though it was beat up, decrepit, and basically falling apart more and more every second, it was a special place, with the flag pole in play, the tiny press box, and the huge playing space with the roof towering into the sky. I really wish I could go to a game there knowing what I know now. 

Now for current stadiums (I won't go as in depth). I've only been to a handful of stadiums (Comerica, GABP, Progressive, and Wrigley Field), but have had a fun time at all of them (well of course I have, it's a baseball game). But as far as looks go, these are my favorites:
1) Safeco Field. The roof is such a cool design and despite its size, manages to fit in nicely to the rest of the design. 
2) PNC Park. This is a bandwagon selection, honestly, but you can't beat that backdrop. Tigers broadcaster Mario Impemba tweeted this

picture during the 2013 season and I knew that PNC is a special place.
3) Kauffman Stadium. My favorite attribute of this one is the curved upper deck. It's a unique, almost collegiate feel that most parks don't employ for the sake of symmetry. That along with the fountains and greenery out in center make it a very scenic place for a game.

4) Coors Field. Aside from baseballs flying out of the stadium every game, this is an awesome place. The construction on the outside is boxier and more regimented, giving it a retro feel like some of the older parks that had a square concourse surrounding the diamond. Also, the main entrance behind home plate is rounded off much like the aforementioned Ebbets Field.

This offseason, the Rockies added a party deck in right field to enhance the baseball experience. Combine the new construction with an older design and it makes for a great view: 

Honorable mentions include Wrigley Field and Yankee Stadium. Though I've never been to Yankee Stadium, a friend sent me this from right field last summer. It's an awesome view of the House That Jeter built (the first Yankee Stadium was the House That Ruth built). Fun fact: the first Yankee Stadium, built in 1923, was the first stadium to be called a 'stadium' and have 5 decks. 

Thanks for reading, folks! I've included a few links below this (I tweeted them while writing this) of a few helpful ballpark resources. 

http://www.andrewclem.com/Baseball/Stadium_lists.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g7N4uCpdko

Also, follow MLB Cathedrals (@MLBcathedrals) on Twitter for awesome historical pictures of stadiums!