The year 2001 saw two new ballparks open in the Majors, and two more introduce significant changes. In the Minors, a true construction boom continues.
NEW BALLPARK RECAP FOR 2001
By Joe Mock
The patience of baseball fans in Pittsburgh and Milwaukee was rewarded in
2001, when PNC Park and Miller Park opened to rave reviews.
Note that no new ballpark wants to be known as a "Stadium" any more. From
1999 through 2001, five MLB teams opened new facilities. Four of the new
facilities had "Park" in their names, while the other two were known as "Fields."
And even though Milwaukee's and Pittsburgh's new revenue-generating machines
are both called "Parks," the two couldn't be more dissimilar. PNC Park, the
Pirates' new home, was built with only two seating decks - the first new
Major League stadium in half a century with fewer than three decks - making
it sleek and fairly low to the ground. PNC is situated along the north bank
of the Allegheny River, a lovely setting. Also, the bustling downtown "Triangle"
area is directly across the river, providing PNC with a simply spectacular
view, as well as proximity to all of the shopping, hotels and restaurants
of a thriving metropolis.
The Brewers' Miller Park, on the other hand, was built in the parking lots
of now-demolished County Stadium. Since the old park wasn't near downtown,
the new one certainly isn't either - putting it a long way from any nightlife
or a scenic skyline. In fact, what the fans inside the stadium get to see
when they look out through the glass panels in the outfield lacks any scenic
qualities at all.
Milwaukee's new stadium was built with four seating decks, not two
like Pittsburgh's . . . but that doesn't begin to tell the story of the height
difference of the two. Easily the most distinctive feature of Miller Park
is its retractable roof. And it is a massive apparatus, indeed, as the seven
panels weigh a combined 12,000 tons! Needless to say, the exterior silhouette
of the Majors' two new stadiums couldn't be more different.
Miller's accomplishments
In defense of Miller Park, it accomplished some very important goals for
the Brewers - in fact, its accomplishments were probably more critical to
Milwaukee's team than PNC Park was for the Pirates. First, Miller Park's
roof allowed patrons to watch the game in comfort during the chilly weather
early in the season. As a matter of fact, when the first pitch was thrown
in the park's regular-season debut on April 6, 2001, it was 43 degrees outside.
With the roof panels closed, the fans on the inside were quite comfortable.
=20 Second, the new stadium prompted an attendance boom. In fact, the Brewers'
enjoyed the largest one-year jump in attendance in the history of Major League
Baseball, as 78% more fans bought tickets in Miller Park's first year than
in County Stadium's last year.
Third, spurred largely (but not entirely) by the bump in ticket purchases,
the team's revenues surged upward - which had the unintended consequence
of making it more difficult for the sport's esteemed (yeah, right) commissioner
to try to convince Congress and everyone else that all of the teams are going
broke.
And the winner is ...
In comparing PNC Park and Miller Park as baseball facilities (and not revenue
generators), though, I easily gave the nod to the Pirates' new home. That's
why PNC Park was awarded with the Best New Major League Park plaque
by my BASEBALLPARKS.COM Web site for 2001.
Ch-ch-changes
Everyone keeps telling the White Sox that their stadium, only a decade old,
doesn't come close to measuring up to the other new facilities in the Majors.
Well, the team spent $8 million on renovations to New Comiskey Park
prior to the 2001 season, including adding additional bleachers, reducing
the distance down the foul lines and shortening the outfield wall.
The changes in Cincinnati were far more noticeable, though. Because the Reds'
new ballpark, set to open in 2003, was going to be located so close to the
outfield of the current stadium, the city tore down much of the outfield
structure to make way for the construction of the new facility - making
Cinergy Field into something that resembles Shea Stadium. For the
first time ever, Reds fans can actually see the Ohio River while watching
a baseball game, which is why the stadium was named Riverfront in the first
place when it first opened back in 1970. And the Astroturf that had helped
make the place look so modern back then was replaced with honest-to-goodness
Kentucky blue grass for 2001.
No fewer than five new ballparks opened in the affiliated Minors in 2001,
and two other teams moved into heavily renovated facilities.
To me, the nicest of the six brand-new parks was KeySpan Park, the
home of the Brooklyn Cyclones of the NY-Penn League. It has a lot going for
it: its location along the boardwalk in the Coney Island section of town;
its proximity to a colorful amusement park a block away; its own amusement-park
theme in its design and its superior lighting touches. That's why it was
awarded BASEBALLPARKS.COM's Best New Minor League Park for 2001.
In my mind, a close second was Staten Island's new facility. The name of
the ballpark is a mouthful: Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George.
While HOK's architectural design is certainly both very professional and
impressive, it's the view that had everyone talking. Situated right on the
water on the northern edge of Staten Island, fans could gaze across the harbor
at the Statue of Liberty, lower Manhattan and Brooklyn - all the while watching
the Staten Island Ferry chug into and out of its station a block from the
park.
Both Lakewood, New Jersey and Lexington, Kentucky made their debuts in the
South Atlantic League in 2001 in brand-new ballparks - although a cursory
glance at a map tells you that neither city is in the South Atlantic part
of the U.S.! As seems to be the trend, both stadiums carry corporate-sponsorship
names: GPU Energy Park in Lakewood and Applebee's Park in
Lexington. Both are very modern structures with lots of the amenities that
fans enjoy.
Two teams in the Rookie-level Pioneer League were supposed to make their
debuts in new cities in brand-new stadiums in 2001 - but only one did. That
team was the Angels of Provo, Utah, who played in the newly constructed
Miller Park on the campus of Brigham Young University. Unlike in
Milwaukee, the "Miller" being referenced here is not a pilsner, but instead
is an individual who donated a lot of money to the university. This ballpark,
right at the foot of a huge mountain, is gorgeous. The team that was
supposed to play in a new park, but didn't, was the Casper, Wyoming
Rockies. Construction delays kept pushing back the opening of new Mike Lansing
Field, until time - and the season - ran out. They will open in their new
park in 2002.
Not new, but almost
The Albuquerque Dukes, long-time members of the AAA Pacific Coast League,
moved out of New Mexico and into Oregon in 2001. The city of Portland poured
$37 million worth of renovations into 75-year-old Civic Stadium for the team.
The facility had to take on a corporate name, of course, and is now
known as PGE Park.
And Wilmington, North Carolina welcomed pro baseball back to town in 2001.
The Waves of the South Atlantic League (and Wilmington really is located
in the South Atlantic region!) played on the campus of UNC-Wilmington at
Brooks Field, spruced up to accommodate the new pro team. This college
field is just a temporary stop until the team and city can get together on
constructing a new park, probably in or near downtown.
