New Stadiums in New York Disappoint
June 2, 2010 · Leslie Monteiro · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
New York baseball teams opened up their new palaces last year, Citi Field and the new Yankee Stadium.
After watching games at both stadiums, let’s just say both stadiums left a lot to be desired.
They had zero charm.
There was nothing interesting about either ballpark.
This author visited Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Sitting in the terrace seats, it was hard to see anything on the field.
It was hard to figure out if David Huff was hit or not. It took four minutes to figure out it happened thanks to the jumbotron pointing it out.
Then, it was a struggle to find out if the ball was foul or fair whenever a Yankee or an Indian hit the ball. It was confusing trying to see if the ball was caught or not.
If that wasn’t bad enough, it was hard to hear anything from that jumbotron. It was like hearing something from the subway speakers.
That’s not meant to be a compliment.
If anyone watched a Saturday Night Live skit years ago, the show made fun of MTA workers talking at a subway booth. In that skit, straphangers couldn’t understand a word that was said.
That’s what it’s like at the Bronx.
It was hard to see a difference from the old stadium to a new stadium when it comes to determining the newness of the stadium.
The only thing that stands out is more seats and more advertising. In other words, it’s the same old stadium.
If there is a difference, it comes in the locker room. The Yankees have better facilities in the locker room. The visitors receive nothing.
Is that what a stadium should be? The purpose of a new stadium is to make it attractive for the fans, not just the players. Only thing interesting about the place is the food.
The food is better than it was at the old stadium, but then again, it should be expected. Most new stadiums offer better ballpark food. It’s about time the Yankees kept up with the other teams.
Other than that, the stadium offers nothing. It’s great to go to the rotunda and look at the banners of great players. Still, other things should be visible.
Where are the flags of the championship years? Where are the banners? How come Monument Park is hard to see?
There’s so much wrong about the place. It could have been better. For one thing, there should have been a retractable roof. In this day and age, most parks have one.
Second of all, it would have been nice if fans could see the game well from all sorts of angles, not just sitting in the front.
Finally, it would be nice if the place was aesthetically pleasing.
Certain parks have special spots. At Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the place features warehouse. At PNC Park and AT&T Park, the stadium is right by the river. At Citizens Bank Park, there are gardens and buildings that surround the place. At Comerica Park, there are amusement rides over the place.
Yankee Stadium does not have those things.
Citi Field isn’t any better.
It’s bad enough the place is hard to hit in, but it’s terrible that the place has nothing exciting to watch.
That place is more known for its food court. That’s it. Other than that, it’s nothing to see.
The seats are terrible. It’s hard to watch a game from any angle.
It took public criticism for the Mets to realize they needed to honor their past. When they opened up the stadium, they honored mainly most of the people from the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Finally, they created a museum to honor the Mets’ greats this season.
Still, it’s hard to see where the Mets’ pennants are. The murals are in the middle of nowhere when it comes to honoring the players.
The Mets, at least, put banners of all their best players outside the stadium. But it would have been better at inside the stadium.
Citi Field looks like a haunted place when a fan goes inside. There are no lights whatsoever.
Both teams studied other teams’ ballparks for the last few years. Even after all of that, it’s remarkable that those guys did not create parks that would capture the fans’ imaginations.
For all the criticism the old Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium received, those stadiums were much better than the new places. At least, there was history at both places.
Fans enjoyed being there. It felt like home. It was comfortable. It was just about the game. It was simple.
With the new places, it’s for the rich folks more than anything. Those people fork up money to get all the good things. That’s not fair.
Shouldn’t a stadium be for all types of people to enjoy? It’s not the case in Flushing and in the Bronx.
Hard to believe, but the old stadiums are missed.
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