As the month of February quickly draws to a close, many Major League Baseball teams will start their spring training in anticipation of opening day on March 26th, 2020. This is the third straight year that all 30 teams will play on the same day.
If you’re like most baseball fans, there’s no substitute for spending a day in the ballpark while you watch your favorite team play. Each baseball stadium offers a totally unique experience unto itself—so much so that true fans will often fly out to different states to watch a game at one of several stadiums.
We want to share with you a list of our seven favorite Major League Baseball stadiums. Our criteria to make this list is simple: the ballpark has to offer an amazing experience and have something unique that sets it apart from the others.
Wrigley Field
Kicking off this list is Wrigley Field, our hometown favorite. The
Chicago Cubs have been playing here since the park opened way back in 1914. The stadium is named after the chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr. and is the second-oldest ballpark in all of America.
Wrigley Field has several unique and really cool features to it. The ivy backdrop against the outfield wall was originally planted in 1937. If a ball gets completely lost inside the ivy, it’s a ground-rule double—provided that the outfielder raises his hands to indicate that he’s lost the ball. The manually operated scoreboard has not only been around since 1937, but is only one of two remaining manually operated scoreboards in baseball.
Wrigley Field has undergone renovations to make the facilities and food more inviting for fans in recent years. And the area around the park has been built up as well, providing an amazing experience before and after the game.
Fenway Park
Fenway Park is home to the
Boston Red Sox and is the oldest operating ballpark in America, opening on April 20th, 1912. Fenway has some unique history to it. It was considered illegal to play baseball on Sunday between the hours of 2 pm and 6 pm up until 1932. This was due to the highly religious locals refusing to allow a professional baseball game to be played within 1,000 feet of a church.
Even though the Green Monster seating, right-field corner seating, and various other areas have been renovated, Fenway Park still retains much of its old charm. The parking lot is ill-equipped to deal with the crowds of today, concourses are very tight, and the seats were originally designed for a much slimmer baseball fan. Regardless, any true baseball aficionado should make at least one pilgrimage to Fenway in their lifetime.
Oracle Park
For over 30 years, the
San Francisco Giants played their home games at Candlestick Park. By the time the 1990s had rolled around, the Giants were losing money by playing at Candlestick. To make matters worse, the park had a notorious fog and gale-force wind problem. Some had even proposed moving the team to Toronto, Canada.
Fortunately, private backers stepped in and funded the construction of a new stadium, named Oracle Park. It opened on April 11th, 2000 and is considered one of the most beautiful parks in all of the country. This is mostly due to its location.
It was built on a landfill that juts out into the San Francisco Bay. As such, fans who sit in the upper deck seats are treated to not only a bird’s eye view of the park, but a panoramic view of the boats out on the Pacific Ocean.
Yankee Stadium
For over 80 years, the
Yankees played at the original Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York City. At that time, the 58,000-seat stadium was hailed as a marvel of modern engineering. Over the next century, many historic sporting events took place here, including boxing matches, NFL Championship games, and even three Papal Masses.
The new Yankee Stadium was built right across East 161st Street and offered fans more modern amenities and higher seating capacity. It consists of two separate buildings: a 31,000 square feet concourse known as the Great Hall shuttles fans into the main stadium. Much of the original décor of the original Yankee Stadium was created for the new one, and that’s why we’re adding this one to the list.
PNC Park
PNC Park is home to the
Pittsburgh Pirates and is often described as the most scenic MLB baseball park in all of America. It’s easy to see why. The stadium is located on the banks of Allegheny River and provides stunning views of the downtown skyscrapers and an iconic yellow bridge.
We added PNC Park as a “must-see” stadium for many other reasons as well. You can buy a delectable Philly steak sandwich that comes with fries and coleslaw in-between two slices of fresh Italian bread. When you visit, make sure you get upper deck seating to take in the splendor and grandeur of this fantastic park.
Dodger Stadium
Chavez Ravine is a narrow and shallow L-shaped canyon located just north of Downtown Los Angeles. Since 1962, the
Dodgers have been playing here at Dodger Stadium, which sits at the bottom of the ravine. The nearby tree-lined Elysian hills and views of the San Gabriel Mountains provide the perfect backdrop for fans sitting anywhere in the stadium.
Make sure that you sit in the section of the stadium that’s serviced by
Roger Owens, aka the “Peanut Guy.” He’s worked as a peanut vendor for 62 years and is famous for his around-the-back peanut throw that will land a bag of salted or unsalted peanuts right in your hands.
Mile High Stadium
Opened in 1995, Coors Field is home to the
Colorado Rockies. Named after the famous Coors Brewery located in nearby Golden, Colorado, the stadium features peek-a-boo views of the distant Rocky Mountains. Before it was developed, the area was an old, run-down warehouse district located near the Denver railroad station. Nowadays, Coors Field sits in a revitalized district of clubs, restaurants, and other entertainment venues.
When you’re at the stadium, you might notice that most of the seats are painted green, while the ones up the upper deck’s 20th row are painted purple. This marks the exact spot in the ballpark where it’s one mile above sea level. The Rockpile seating area is one of the most popular areas due to its semi-circular shape located right above the batter’s backdrop.
The Best Major League Baseball Stadiums
We hope you’ve enjoyed our top seven list. While we’re sure there are other ones who deserve equal recognition, the above seven MLB stadiums should be on the very top of the bucket list of any serious baseball fan.
