Ballpark Quirks

Minute Maid Park
Image via Wikipedia

Even if you’re not really a baseball fan, you can still get caught up in the fever every time the sport is in season. Once you decide to join the diehard fans in their enthusiasm over the sport of baseball, there is no turning back. The sport itself is exciting, but its traditions and endearing quirks will get you hooked. For instance, did you know that the ground rules in Major League Baseball differ from ballpark to ballpark, thanks to their different unique features and varying dimensions? Even the best ballparks in baseball have their peculiarities.

Nevertheless, these so-called ballpark quirks make watching the game live at the venue even more fun. Some of the most interesting places are listed below:

  • Before Miller Park, there was the old Milwaukee County Stadium. In the old venue, Bernie Brewer, the mascot, would go down a long slide into a gigantic mug. The Miller Park variation has Bernie sliding down into a platform which Kalahari Resorts has in recent years turned into a splash zone. Fans sitting nearby get sprayed with water as soon as Bernie hits the platform.
  • Tropicana Field, or “The Trop”, has those infamous catwalks (they support the ballpark dome) that are such a nuisance that they had to make some very specific rules to accommodate their possible influence on the game.
  • The old Metrodome had a white ceiling where many baseballs were lost as it would blend in with the Teflon roof.
  • Shea Stadium used to have a huge apple pop up after every homerun. The homerun apple was replaced by a sleeker new version at their new ballpark Citi Field.
  • Other unique ballpark quirks are: the Chase Field swimming pool, the Minute Maid Park hillock, Fenway Park’s Pesky’s Pole and AT&T’s McCovey Cove. One thing is clear: going to the ballpark has much more to offer than the game being played on the field.
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2 thoughts on “Ballpark Quirks”

  1. Base ball is a nice game. It is nice to read such an article on ball parks. Thanks for sharing.

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  2. I love the unique quirks of each ball park. I have been to about 10 different Major League Stadiums. I hope the eventually make it to each ball park. I’m going to Wrigley Field the 18th and I love the old throwback stadiums, but I also love the new modern ballparks as well. They each add different elements to the game. Thanks for the article.

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