Stadium Report Cards: NewBridge Bank Park

I just got back today, and here is just one of the couple posts to share!


Team: Greensboro Grasshoppers
Location: Greensboro, NC
League: South Atlantic League(Northern)
Built: 2005
Capacity: 7,499
My event: Regular season game, vs Hickory Crawdads

1. Outdoor Design

A simple brick layout all the way around, but nothing crazy.
6/10

2. Indoor Design

It was kind of simple, and a lot like the park in Clearwater. There was a bar in the left field corner, and also a berm. A playground was located in right field. Also the view was nice.
7/10

3. Prices
Pretty basic, cheap to get in for certain seats. The night we went, hot dogs and drinks were just a dollar. That happens every Monday
8/10

4. Food
Simple ballpark food, nothing crazy.
6/10

5. Staff
Staff was pretty cool and nice. The guy that ran the games defiantly got the crowd into it.
6/10

6. Cleanliness
No complaints, pretty clean as a whole.
7/10

7. Parking
The parking was really close. There were entrances and exits right there. It was easy to get out once the Grasshoppers lost.
8/10

8. Atmosphere
The guy that did the little games with the crowd got everyone into the game. It was a lot of fun to go to and watch the games.
7/10

9. Playing Surface.
Real nice checker pattern, and the infield was sweet.
7/10

10. Scoreboard

I thought it was clean and good for a minor league park. It was pretty funny cause they'd try to get into the other player's head's. When a Cradads player's name was Jared, BAM Jared from Subway would be their picture. They also got a player named west(Adam West), and the last name Prince(Prince, obviously.
8/10

70/100 is a good score. Right in the middle. I have a few more posts to make!

Fun News

I'm going on a little road trip this weekend, so no new posts.

HOW EVA. I'm visiting 3+ baseball games at new parks. I have my camera! See you followers later.

COMMENT

Dubai Sports City

Or, otherwise known as the coolest thing ever.


One day in Dubai, they got bored and decided to build the coolest thing ever. A 50 million square foot development named Dubai Sports City. The area will have a cricket stadium, an athletics stadium, field hockey fields, indoor stadium, and an 18 hole golf course designed by Earnie Els. On top of that, a huge mall, and apartments. Here is a model.


But, just watch the video. It is mind blowing.

Silver State Arena

In Las Vegas, there are plans down to build a new arena to maybe draw a sports team there. The project is called the Silver State Arena, and would be located where the closed Wet 'n' Wild is. What they're saying is that it would bring 10,000 new jobs to Nevada which would help a lot. The stadium would be 844,306 square feet, and would hold up to 23,014 for basketball games. Here is an aerial view of the model.

Some teams that could possibly move there are the Sacramento Kings, or maybe a hockey team down on their luck. The Kings' had the second lowest attendance in the NBA last season, and the owners of the team own a hotel in Las Vegas already. Several years ago, the NBA's All-Star Game was hosted at the UNLV basketball arena. I think that if this does get built, some team would be loured there. Plus, the video board is 360 degrees.

Thoughts? I think it'd be very cool. Here is the site for the plans.

Stadium Report Cards: Rogers Centre

Our good friend Bmac recently went up to Toronto for vacation. I saw he posted some pics at a Jays game. So I asked if he wanted to do a report card on the Rogers Centre


Team: Toronto Blue Jays
Location: Toronto, ON
League: Major League Baseball(AL)
Built: 1989
Capacity: 49,539
My event: Regular season game, vs Boston Red Sox

1. Outdoor Design

It has a modern look to it, but does not fit in with the way most ballparks do. The roof looks cool when it is open, but kind of awkward when it is closed. It looks really cool next to the CN Tower.
6/10

2. Indoor Design

Other than the hotel and scoreboard in center field, nothing really stands out. It is all just circular patterned seating. Also, the roof design does not look too great from inside.
5/10

3. Prices
Everything is a little more expensive in Toronto to begin with. The Rogers Centre is no exception. Most of the souvenirs, for example, were about $3-4 more than most of the other MLB Stadiums I have been to.
5/10

4. Food
The food selection was very good. They had the regular ballpark classics, as well some more interesting stuff. The Muddy York Market and Roundhouse Carvery and Bar were pretty unique for a baseball stadium. They both had some interesting food.
8/10

5. Staff
There were no issues, and everyone was very nice. Nobody really went out of their way to help you though, compared to other stadiums.
6/10

6. Cleanliness
Everything was extremely well-kept and clean. The entire city was, and the Rogers Centre looked great.
10/10

7. Parking
We didn’t need to park, as we walked from our hotel. Most people around the stadium were also walking to the game. I didn’t see any parking garages nearby, though.
4/10

8. Atmosphere
On the one hand, there was not a whole lot of support for the Jays until towards the end of the game. It wasn’t exactly a dead atmosphere though. Everyone was in a good mood, too, even though the Blue Jays lost.
6/10

9. Playing Surface.
It looked great for being indoors. It was just panels of grass though.
6/10

10. Scoreboard

The Rogers Centre scoreboard is pretty good. It is a great size, and has very good quality. The graphics were nice.
9/10

65/100 sounds about right.

Visit bmac's blog at... http://bmac25blog.blogspot.com/

Stadium Report Cards: Dunedin Stadium

Team: Dunedin Blue Jays
Location: Dunedin, FL
League: Florida State League(North)
Built: 1990
Capacity: 5,510
My event: Regular season game, vs Ft. Myers Miracle

1. Outdoor Design
Above shows it all, it's just kind of an older minor league park all the way around.
5/10

2. Indoor Design

Pretty much the same from the inside. Just kind of basic, but thats all you really need. The building you see is a hotel for players, and that I thought was cool
5/10

3. Prices
Not bad really, 6 dollars can let you sit anywhere your heart desired.
7/10

4. Food
The food here is really good, it I think. They have a long list of food with lots of variety.
8/10

5. Staff
The staff was pretty cool too. They were nice when we talked, and one of my buddies got asked to do a contest. Shout out to Astrobull from the boards, who I met there. He works in the press box.
8/10

6. Cleanliness
Fairly clean, not like SUPERSUPER clean, but not dirty.
6/10

7. Parking
There was a smaller lot right infront of the stadium, where I parked. Not far away, and free.
7/10

8. Atmosphere


As you can see from the pictures, not a lot of people show up to regular games. They host spring training games, where it is filled, but that only lasts a month.
4/10

9. Playing Surface.
I actually think the surface is really good. It seems well maintained.
8/10

10. Scoreboard

Again, really basic. It showed the box score, and stats. Nothing special though.
3/10

61 out of 100 is the score, and happens to be one of the lowest. I think the thing is that with Clearwater having a team close by, with fancy logos, and a newer stadium, that draws most fans in the area. If they rebranded with a non MLB name, and maybe did something to the stadium the score would defiantly improve.

Stadium Lists: Oldest MLB Stadiums

Bringing this back for now, just trying to change up the posting here. I thought this topic would be neat, because there are 2 REALLY old stadiums, 4 stadiums from the 60s and 70s, then the rest are fairly new.

#10
US Cellular Field
Chicago, IL
1991


#9
Tropicana Field
St. Petersburg, FL
1990


#8
Rodgers Centre
Toronto, ON
1989


#7
Sun Life Stadium
Miami Gardens, FL
1987


#6
Kauffman Stadium
Kansas City, MO
1973

*Note, they upgraded the stadium after the 2008 season

#5
Oakland Coliseum
Oakland, CA
1966


#4
Angels Stadium
Anaheim, CA
1966


#3
Dodgers Stadium
Los Angeles, CA
1962


#2
Wrigley Field
Chicago, IL
1914


#1
Fenway Park
Boston, MA
1912


So there it is. The Marlins are getting a new ballpark for the 2012 season, while the Rays are looking for a place to put one. Boston got the 1999 MLB All-Star game, because they thought that Fenway would be replaced any day now, but it has survived 10 more years.