Nationals Park

[PeteU]

That's factually incorrect. Most stadiums have three to four times the number of upper deck seats behind home plate. Check out Turner Field, Petco, Coors, Dodger Stadium, Comiskey, Cisco Field, CitiField, PNC, Comerica, Bank One, GAB, Trop, Minute Maid, Arlington, Anaheim...shall I go on?

Umm...are you sure about that?

Of that list, only Dodger Stadium has a significant amount of extra upper deck seating behind home plate thanks to the fifth level deck. Kauffman Stadium also has a large bulk of its upper deck behind home plate thanks to its tapered design.

The rest of the parks you mention pretty much have a uniform level upper deck from down the foul lines to behind home plate. Except for Tropicana Field, which actually has less upper deck seating behind home plate due to its wavy design much similar to RFK Stadium's upper deck design.

No disrespect meant to you at all; I just don't know where you are coming from here.

On a side note, if the Nationals are slick, they would say the lower amount of upper deck seats behind home plate is some sort of an homage to RFK Stadium, as that park has less upper deck seats behind homeplate as well. I'm not saying it's right, I'm just sayin', that's how they could try to justify it....

[Smirkman]

That's the whole point. There are very few of those cheap *cough* $25 seats. That level is only 5 rows deep.



That's factually incorrect. Most stadiums have three to four times the number of upper deck seats behind home plate. Check out Turner Field, Petco, Coors, Dodger Stadium, Comiskey, Cisco Field, CitiField, PNC, Comerica, Bank One, GAB, Trop, Minute Maid, Arlington, Anaheim...shall I go on?

Actually there are 10 rows behind home plate in the upper deck (except where wheelchair seating reduces it to 9).

Actually almost every stadium has LESS seating behind home plate than down the lines. Dodger and Royals (hate the newer name) Stadiums as stated are the exception. Generally it isn't as visible as it is in the new Nationals Park because the seats they previously took away were lower level or club seating. Check out Camden Yards. There are fewer rows of seats there than anywhere down the lines. It is obviously due to the placement of the Press Box just like the Nationals ballpark.

[DonDownUnder]

Now now, let us not knock the design of the new Nats Park. As always, baseball reflects our nation's history. It began as a pastime for the privilaged and only the wars (Civil and WWI primarily) resulted in the masses both playing and watching the game in great numbers.

Now we will have a new stadium that truely reflects the growing distinction and separation between the priviledged class and the masses. Should the connected have to go out on the deck of their million dollar suites and have to be surrounded by the unwashed. Of course not.

Let's be grateful that they even included 3rd decks and bleachers. Wake up and smell the cherry blossums.

[nymdan]

First installation of seats yesterday... zoom in and look at the upper deck and middle deck in right field.
http://clarkconstruction.oxblue.com/clarkhuntsmoot/

[Sean O]

Now now, let us not knock the design of the new Nats Park. As always, baseball reflects our nation's history. It began as a pastime for the privilaged and only the wars (Civil and WWI primarily) resulted in the masses both playing and watching the game in great numbers.

What's the reasoning for the hideously ugly exterior then? Reflecting our nation's fascination with truly awful architecture?

[bigtime39]

Man...that makes me sooooooo glad to be a season ticket holder...at Camden Yards!
Seriously, last week the Orioles hire Andy McPhail, this week, we're one game away from sweeping the reeling Yankee$, and now this! Everything is coming up orange and black.
This is the wrong park, at the wrong place and the wrong time. By 2010, the cheap seats will be empty every night. I'll go there when the Orioles play the Nats, to cheer for the Orioles (and I live a stones throw from this park!) but, otherwise, I'll be driving past it on my way home from Orioles games.

[bigtime39]

Making Metro Subsidy Park...er, Nationals Field, so dependent on a) rich people, and b) the Metro, is a boondoggle of massive proportions. This isn't New York, and this parks target audience isn't going to want to be stuffed into a metal tube with a bunch of strangers on their way to and from games.
Who designed this thing...Peter Angelos?

[Knick9]

Now now, let us not knock the design of the new Nats Park. As always, baseball reflects our nation's history. It began as a pastime for the privilaged and only the wars (Civil and WWI primarily) resulted in the masses both playing and watching the game in great numbers.

Now we will have a new stadium that truely reflects the growing distinction and separation between the priviledged class and the masses. Should the connected have to go out on the deck of their million dollar suites and have to be surrounded by the unwashed. Of course not.

Let's be grateful that they even included 3rd decks and bleachers. Wake up and smell the cherry blossums.

You are basically trying to deflect any criticism that this ballpark will get. You're kind of going off topic with that post. I think this new ballpark will be ugly, just flat out ugly. HOK really did swell this time, didn't they?

No, they didn't, and I beg for some other company to start making ballparks because HOK is washed up with thier ideas. I don't like the argument, "if it's in New York, DC, or some big city, it must a great ballpark." There's just no logic in that. Yankee Stadium II is going to be hype and a disappointment. New Nats ballpark? I've said it for while now, the exterior just looks like a post office-like building.

[nymdan]

You are basically trying to deflect any criticism that this ballpark will get. You're kind of going off topic with that post. I think this new ballpark will be ugly, just flat out ugly. HOK really did swell this time, didn't they?

No, they didn't, and I beg for some other company to start making ballparks because HOK is washed up with thier ideas. I don't like the argument, "if it's in New York, DC, or some big city, it must a great ballpark." There's just no logic in that. Yankee Stadium II is going to be hype and a disappointment. New Nats ballpark? I've said it for while now, the exterior just looks like a post office-like building.

I took DonDownUnder's post as sarcasm, you don't think it was?

[Elvis]

Let's be grateful that they even included 3rd decks and bleachers. Wake up and smell the cherry blossums.

I think if you charge $35 for a bleacher seat, (As the Nats will in this new stadium) you out to be run out of town on a rail. At least the Dodgers $30 RF bleachers include an all-you-can-eat menu.

[DonDownUnder]

Nats Park

NYMFAN got it right, I was just being sarcastic. That form of humor really doesn't play well the 10th time you read it, does it? Sorry all.

Hey, I'm just a fan. I will no doubt drive the 300 mile round trip from southeast Virginia up to DC at least 2 or 3 times a year; impose on a friend for the use of a guest room; and take in a series at the new stadium. There will be seats in the $10 to $20 range and I'm sure I will enjoy the newness of the stadium.

I drove from northern Virginia many times over to Camden Yards to watch the O's and enjoy that great park. But that often ment leaving work by 4PM and getting home well after midnight, and as Peter Angelos attitude towards DC area fans became more and more obnoxious, I quickly lost all interest in rooting for a Baltimore team. Hell, I was still just waiting for my Senators to return.

As for the exterior of the new stadium looking like other Washington public buildings, isn't that the idea? It's the inside of the park, the closeness to the action, the demensions of the field that make a park special (or NOT) to me.

Has anyone read what the expected distances to the fences are predicted to be? Will there be a cheapie bandbox in leftfield for cheapie homers like at Camden? Ooops, sarcasm again.

[nymdan]

NYMFAN got it right, I was just being sarcastic. That form of humor really doesn't play well the 10th time you read it, does it? Sorry all.

Hey, I'm just a fan. I will no doubt drive the 300 mile round trip from southeast Virginia up to DC at least 2 or 3 times a year; impose on a friend for the use of a guest room; and take in a series at the new stadium. There will be seats in the $10 to $20 range and I'm sure I will enjoy the newness of the stadium.

I drove from northern Virginia many times over to Camden Yards to watch the O's and enjoy that great park. But that often ment leaving work by 4PM and getting home well after midnight, and as Peter Angelos attitude towards DC area fans became more and more obnoxious, I quickly lost all interest in rooting for a Baltimore team. Hell, I was still just waiting for my Senators to return.

As for the exterior of the new stadium looking like other Washington public buildings, isn't that the idea? It's the inside of the park, the closeness to the action, the demensions of the field that make a park special (or NOT) to me.

Has anyone read what the expected distances to the fences are predicted to be? Will there be a cheapie bandbox in leftfield for cheapie homers like at Camden? Ooops, sarcasm again.

In this rendering, LF is 336, RF is 335. It looks like center is 404 and left center is 377, but those are sort of hard to make out.

http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/...b_1024x663.jpg

[Elvis]

In this rendering, LF is 336, RF is 335. It looks like center is 404 and left center is 377, but those are sort of hard to make out.

http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/...b_1024x663.jpg

http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/...rk/general.jsp

[nymdan]

http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/...rk/general.jsp

Nice to see I was straining my eyes for nothing.

[wvkeeper]

Wow talk about a Pitcher's Park!!! Glad to see it will not be a bandbox.