Ranking the best ballparks in baseball
Last week, Sports Illustrated's national baseball writers listed out their favorite ballparks, which revealed some heavy favorites: Oracle Park in San Francisco, Camden Yards in Baltimore, Fenway Park, Wrigley Field ... zzzzzzz.
Will our lists be better? Well, there is no "right" or "wrong," here, but take a look.
Brett Ballantini
1. PNC Park: It has almost a minor-league feel with its intimacy. I don't go to a ballpark to look at views of mountains or sunsets, so the downtown vista, with Clemente Bridge, is simply perfect.
2. Target Field: A surprisingly close second to PNC, in my book. Target is a masterful stadium, also nestled downtown with terrific backdrops. I have no idea why not a single national SI writer chose Target Field in their top five.
3. Petco Park: There's a trend here with me, the intimate (seeming), almost minor league vibe of my favorites. Took the cleverness of the Camden Yards design and improved it, if only because it's in San Diego and not Baltimore.
4. Camden Yards: Hat-tip to the original "retro" ballpark. Several parks seem to now do it "better," but aside from the clunky mouthful of a name that I'm purposely avoiding here, it's still a brilliant ballpark.
5. Comerica Park: I'm surprised this one squeezed on here. I like Safeco in Seattle and Coors in Denver, even Citizens Bank in Philadelphia, but there's enough that's unique about Detroit's downtown ballpark to squeeze it in here.
Scott Reichard
1. Petco Park: The park is amazing. I love the old building in left field the park is built around. The city skyline looks great behind it, and San Diego is my favorite city of the bunch, which pushes the park to No. 1 on my list.
2. PNC Park: I love Pittsburgh in general; it's where my dad is from, and I still have family there. The park, with the Pittsburgh skyline behind it, is gorgeous.
3. Camden Yards: I really enjoyed seeing the White Sox play in Baltimore. Though it was the original of the "retro park" designs, it's still one of the best of them. They also have the second-best food of any park I've been to.
4. Progressive Field: I really liked walking from the street into the left-field area. The skyline in the background is nice, despite Cleveland being an unimpressive city.
5. Kaufman Stadium: The fountains really are a nice touch. The food is pretty good. Plus, they have a great tailgating parking lot.
Jim Turvey
1. PNC Park: Everyone knows about the view, but that doesn't make it any less special. Does knowing that Waimea Bay is the most gorgeous spot in the world make it any less beautiful, should one ever be able to make it there? No! PNC Park is the Waimea Bay of baseball parks.
2. Camden Yards: Nice is an underrated word, and it can be used perfectly to describe what is the "nicest" ballpark in baseball. The surrounding area is awesome, and the atmosphere just feels like baseball. Add in a gorgeous backdrop of its own, and Camden is a keeper.
3. Kauffman Stadium: Division rivals, yes, but the Water Spectacular in center field is my single favorite part of any baseball stadium. And the big screen in center makes following the action as easy as if you're at home, but combined with all the sights, sounds, and smells of actually being at the ballpark.
Joe Resis
1. Nayoga Dome: As far as amenities go, it is tough to top the Nagoya Dome in Nayoga, Japan, home of the Chunichi Dragons. As baseball season has yet to arrive in North America, many folks, myself included, find themselves longing for the smell of grilled onions. This scent, along with others that remind us of the ballpark, is a powerful one ... but have you eaten at the Nagoya Dome? Of the stadiums I've visited, between the variety of options available and the quality of said options, the Nagoya Dome takes the cake by a mile in terms of culinary options. Have you eaten at a sit-down restaurant at a baseball game? Well, when you're in Nagoya, you can cross this one off your bucket list.
In addition to the food, the other aspect that jumps out at me is the environment, specifically the fans. I have been to one game there, and it was a Wednesday night in September 2016, when the Dragons had virtually no chance of making the playoffs. Normally, in this situation, fans would not be as enthusiastic, but this was certainly not the case. Granted, it was a tight game, but fans were eager about the outcomes of at-bats, especially in the latter portion of the game, meaning few left early to beat the traffic. Finally, the cheering sections that are found in the Nagoya Dome are staples of every NPB stadium, but these are still worth noting.
I have not attended games at any other NPB stadium, so I cannot judge how they compare to the Nagoya Dome. But there is no doubt that those cheering sections, which play and sing different songs for each player, did an excellent job of improving the atmosphere.
Kevin Kaufmann
Oracle Park: Absolutely loved it. Garlic fries are legit. Oh, and take a sweater.
James Fox
1. PNC Park
2. Coors Field