Ballparks, Old and New
Recently, I went for my first visit to the new Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Say what you will about the excess of the Yankees, but it’s really quite a lovely stadium. It’s the kind of stadium that you would build if you wanted to remain true to the old structure, but with modern amenities and an endless budget.
And yet, there’s something about seeing the old Yankee Stadium, a hollow shell of its former self, that leaves me saddened for the parks of the past. These new “classic” parks are nice, but they can’t hold a candle to Fenway or my beloved Wrigley Field for sheer atmosphere.
No ballpark has more character than Wrigley, with its ivy-covered brick wall.
Even though the new Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia is lovely — dramatically better than the nondescript concrete donut that was The Vet – a lifetime of season tickets left me with a soft spot for its sights, smells… hell, even its Astroturf. I miss those horrible chocolate brown seats that burned the backs of my legs at every day game. I miss Cheryl selling peanuts. I miss the guy who shouted, “Everybody hits, woo-hoo!”
But what I miss, more than anything, was the accessibility of the old ballparks. Fenway and Wrigley aren’t awash in luxury boxes, seat licenses and empty premium seats like the new Yankee Stadium is. They’re parks for the fans. And no rebuilt park, with fancy concessions and corporate seating, will ever capture that feeling.
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