Hardest homer stadium

[Tyrus4189Cobb]

which stadium do you think was the hardest to hit a homer in?

what about current stadiums?

I think the hardest present stadium is Minute Maid Park. I'm still deciding on which stadium is the hardest all-time.

[Sean O]

I assume you don't mean inside-the-park home runs. The answer is the Original Braves Field (thanks Clem):



edit:
Minute Maid!? You can bunt homer into the Crawford Boxes.

For 2006, it was:
Petco
Safeco
Dolphin
Yankee
Shea

Petco has been the hardest since it opened.

[Williamsburg2599]

As for current parks, PetCo is pretty tough.

[hellborn]

I thought that Griffith Stadium in DC was supposed to be the toughest HR park of all time, or the closest. Immense distances to LF...shorter down the line in RF, but the wall was 30 feet high and angled very sharply away from home plate.
Did Sean O select Braves Field based on historical ballpark HR factors?

[dkane739]

Probably Petco. With it's long power alleys and when the sea air settles at night, it's is quite the pitchers friend.

[Elvis]

I thought that Griffith Stadium in DC was supposed to be the toughest HR park of all time, or the closest. Immense distances to LF...shorter down the line in RF, but the wall was 30 feet high and angled very sharply away from home plate.
Did Sean O select Braves Field based on historical ballpark HR factors?

Home run totals for Braves Field's first 9 seasons:

1915: 0
1916: 0
1917: 0
1918: 0
1919: 0
1920: 0
1921: 0
1922: 0
1923: 0

[Tyrus4189Cobb]

I think that straight to center, the Polo Grounds is the hardest baalpark. But otherwise I go with Griffith.

[Astros]

Keep in mind that the 315' mark in LF at Minute Maid Park is the measurment of the chalk line. The Crawford Boxes sit 19 1/2 feet above that so you have to hit the ball further than that.

There is one area towards the left-center area of the Crawford Boxes that does allow for a shorter home run than in some ballparks.

The left-center power alley is 362' but it is a 25' wall.

The left side of dead center is 404'.

The base of Tal's Hill is approximately 420' from home plate. The hill goes up to peak about 7' off the field, which leaves about 3' of wall above.

The right-center power alley is a standard 373' with a 10 foot wall.

The right field wall is only 7 feet tall and is a standard 326' down the line. Most homers hit here would easily clear a 10 foot wall.

The shortest Astros home run hit at Minute Maid Park in 2006 was 335 feet. Chris Burke and Preston Wilson each had one.

The Astrodome was also a very difficult place to hit a homer, especially in the early days when you had to not only clear the 12 foot fence that was 340 feet down the lines, but actually had to hit the ball into the second tier of seating (which technically is the 4th level orange seats). In the early 70s the wall was brought in and kept that way for most of the remaining years.

In addition everyone knows Yankee Stadium's death valley was tough in it's early years.

[Richmond Hill Phoenix]

I think that straight to center, the Polo Grounds is the hardest baalpark. But otherwise I go with Griffith.

I think that I would be forced to go with the Huntington Avenue Grounds in this case. In 1908, it was 635 ft. to CF.

[Williamsburg2599]

I think that I would be forced to go with the Huntington Avenue Grounds in this case. In 1908, it was 635 ft. to CF.

And a lot of 1800's parks didn't even have OF walls. Pretty hard to hit one out there.

[mwb]

It's strange that when Enron/MM opened, the ball seemed to fly out of there on a regular basis. Now, it considered a difficult HR park.

[dasher troy]

Petco in San Diego appears to be a Black Hole for homers. Jake Peavy may win 18 a year because of it.

[NJMetfan4life]

All time I'd say The Polo Grounds. Current Shea with the 408 CF wall

[StanTheMan]

The answer is NOT the Polo Grounds... not even close. The PG had the highest frequency of Home Runs of ANY BALL PARK ever, until Coors Field.

But the PG Home Runs were almost all hit down the line, or at least closer to the foul poles than the traditional "power alley."

But Center Field was another thing all-together. Only four men ever hit a HR to the Center Filed Bleachers at the Polo Grounds.

Joe Adcock
Lou Brock and Hank Aaron on consecutive days in June 1962
and Luke Easter in a Negro League game.

A shot down the left field line, showing just how close the foul poles really were.....

Down the Line.jpg


And a nice diagram of Willie Mays "The Catch" which shows just how far Center Field Really was. The clubhouse wall was 483 feet from home plate, and was NEVER hit by a batted ball.


The Catch Diagram.jpg

[StanTheMan]

Down the Line again.... I could have hit one out down the line (about 251 feet to the upper deck overhang in left) but if you had asked me to hit one to center, I would have to swing as hard as I could... walk out to center where the ball had landed and stopped rolling, then toss it up and hit it again. I could go yard then!

PG Down the Line.jpg Polo_Grounds_LF_overhang.jpg

Here is a shot from the center field wall (clubhouse steps) looking back towards home plate... it is a LOOOOOONG way!

PG Koufax.jpg

[Ubiquitous]

Braves was designed for a different kinf of homer. It was designed for the inside the park home run.

[nymdan]

Petco has been the hardest since it opened.

Yep, more than 400 feet to the gaps will do that.

As I mentioned in another thread, I'm really interested to see how Citi Field will play, with distances of 379 to LC and 383 to RC. What I like about Shea is that while it's most certainly a pitchers' park, the dimensions are fair. There are definitely no cheap home runs, but if a player gets a hold of one, it'll go out. As opposed to a place like Petco that's a pitchers' park because a 400 foot shot to right center is an out.

But with dimensions of 379 and 383 to the gaps at Citi Field (as opposed to 371 at Shea), I can envision a lot of fly balls to the warning track.

[placount]

thats a good thing, at the current rate if arod played in the nl central or philly hed hit 70 every year

[Elvis]

Yep, more than 400 feet to the gaps will do that.

As I mentioned in another thread, I'm really interested to see how Citi Field will play, with distances of 379 to LC and 383 to RC. What I like about Shea is that while it's most certainly a pitchers' park, the dimensions are fair. There are definitely no cheap home runs, but if a player gets a hold of one, it'll go out. As opposed to a place like Petco that's a pitchers' park because a 400 foot shot to right center is an out.

But with dimensions of 379 and 383 to the gaps at Citi Field (as opposed to 371 at Shea), I can envision a lot of fly balls to the warning track.

The problem is that the "gaps" could be interpreted anywhere from shallow to deep. Only a handful of parks use the geometric midpoint as a measurement. As has been shown in most ballparks, there is no consistent placement of these measurements, and what's worse, many aren't even accurate. Dodger stadium this season moved its "375" marker about 20 feet closer to the foul line to accommodate the new scoreboards. No one seems to care that they were either not accurate before or are so now.

So the new Citifield may say 379 and 383, but you have no idea if that's the same placements that the 371 markers are at Shea.

Take a look at this. The true gap at RFK should be in between the Southwest Airlines sign and the Bud Light sign, but look where they place the "gap" measurement--too close to the foul line.



The "gaps" read 380, but the TRUE gaps (45 degrees from the foul line) are around 392 ft.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

The answer is NOT the Polo Grounds... not even close. The PG had the highest frequency of Home Runs of ANY BALL PARK ever, until Coors Field.

But the PG Home Runs were almost all hit down the line, or at least closer to the foul poles than the traditional "power alley."

But Center Field was another thing all-together. Only four men ever hit a HR to the Center Filed Bleachers at the Polo Grounds.

Joe Adcock
Lou Brock and Hank Aaron on consecutive days in June 1962
and Luke Easter in a Negro League game.

A shot down the left field line, showing just how close the foul poles really were.....

Down the Line.jpg


And a nice diagram of Willie Mays "The Catch" which shows just how far Center Field Really was. The clubhouse wall was 483 feet from home plate, and was NEVER hit by a batted ball.


The Catch Diagram.jpg

Yes the polo grounds was a great stadium for homeruns. they called them chinese homeruns. does anyone know how far it was to the clubhouse from homeplate. answer 505ft.

[nymdan]

The problem is that the "gaps" could be interpreted anywhere from shallow to deep. Only a handful of parks use the geometric midpoint as a measurement. As has been shown in most ballparks, there is no consistent placement of these measurements, and what's worse, many aren't even accurate. Dodger stadium this season moved its "375" marker about 20 feet closer to the foul line to accommodate the new scoreboards. No one seems to care that they were either not accurate before or are so now.

So the new Citifield may say 379 and 383, but you have no idea if that's the same placements that the 371 markers are at Shea.

That's interesting, I never stopped to think about that. And Shea used to also have the 391 marking between 371 and center, so I guess it would be impossible to tell from that.

The best indicator of the field sizes would be this image:


But there are so many lines there, it's hard to tell what's what.

[Elvis]

That's interesting, I never stopped to think about that. And Shea used to also have the 391 marking between 371 and center, so I guess it would be impossible to tell from that.

But there are so many lines there, it's hard to tell what's what.

If that diagram is accurate, you have a launching pad on your hands. Look at the left field wall--it runs along the WARNING TRACK of Shea, and the right field section is way closer than Shea too. The only place it's deeper is the deep RF section by the bullpens. The entire LF section is closer than Shea as is most of RF. Folks, we have yet another bandbox coming to MLB.

The trend lately is to cut the outfield fences straight in from the foul lines instead of angling them out gently. This Citifield could easily be worse than CBP.

[Ubiquitous]

If you want to find the true distances you can do a google map search nowadays and find true distances. Of course that doesn't help for the old stadiums but the ones still standing it should do.

[nymdan]

If that diagram is accurate, you have a launching pad on your hands. Look at the left field wall--it runs along the WARNING TRACK of Shea, and the right field section is way closer than Shea too. The only place it's deeper is the deep RF section by the bullpens. The entire LF section is closer than Shea as is most of RF. Folks, we have yet another bandbox coming to MLB.

The trend lately is to cut the outfield fences straight in from the foul lines instead of angling them out gently. This Citifield could easily be worse than CBP.

The right field section there is the second deck that hangs out 12 feet over the playing field... the lower deck fence will be a continuation of that line further back to the left. So the RF wall is not as short as it looks. But it does look like it will be easier to hit one out to left, like you said.

As far as Citi being a bandbox, I don't think that will be the case. The dimensions of CBP aren't necessarily what makes it as much of a hitters' park as it is. Supposedly it's the wind from the open air design, with the wind blowing in from the outside of the stadium creating a sort of wind tunnel that makes the ball carry.





Citi Field will be enclosed, so that won't happen there.

I don't think it will be a bandbox, but looking at this diagram, it probably will be less of a pitchers' park than Shea.

[placount]

Yes the polo grounds was a great stadium for homeruns. they called them chinese homeruns. does anyone know how far it was to the clubhouse from homeplate. answer 505ft.

you gotta give me time to guess man.