Oriole Park at Camden Yards , commonly known as Camden Yards, is a baseball stadium in Baltimore , Maryland . It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball 's Baltimore Orioles , and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early 2000s. It was completed in 1992 to replace Memorial Stadium . The stadium is in downtown Baltimore , a few blocks west of the Inner Harbor in the Camden Yards Sports Complex .
183-517: Since its opening, Oriole Park has been widely hailed as one of the best stadiums in baseball and credited with starting a wave of neotraditional ballparks after the cookie-cutter stadiums of the mid to late 20th century. Since construction on Oriole Park began in 1989, taxpayers have shouldered at least $ 1.3 billion of the stadium's costs. In 2023, the Orioles asked taxpayers to pay an additional $ 600 million for stadium renovations. Prior to Camden Yards,
366-578: A 2-game exhibition series at Wukesong Stadium in Beijing, China, which would later be the baseball venue for the 2008 Summer Olympics . The series marked MLB's first games played in China. The first game ended in a 3–3 tie, and the second ended in a 6–3 win for the Dodgers. On March 29, as part of the 50th anniversary of the Dodgers' relocation from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the Dodgers hosted an exhibition game against
549-691: A college baseball stadium, now sitting on its former site. Most other inflatable domes, such as the Hoosier Dome and Pontiac Silverdome , were football-only stadiums, although both stadiums hosted basketball; the later-RCA Dome hosted the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament many times and hosted the Final Four multiple times while the Silverdome was the home arena for the Detroit Pistons for most of
732-479: A compromise was reached and it was decided that both names were to be used, resulting in the stadium’s long name. The first contest at Oriole Park at Camden Yards was a 5–3 preseason exhibition win over the New York Mets before 31,286 on April 3, 1992. The ballpark officially opened three days later on April 6 with Rick Sutcliffe pitching a complete game shutout in a season-opening 2–0 victory over
915-501: A decidedly pro-Cubs crowd in a series where Houston was officially designated as the home team. Adding to the controversy from the Houston perspective was the fact that Turner Field in Atlanta had been suggested by the players' union as a potential neutral site. This would mark the second time in as many years that a series was moved to neutral Miller Park due to weather, as a series between
1098-591: A few years). Wrigley Field , while originally built for baseball, also hosted the Chicago Bears , Comiskey Park hosted the Chicago Cardinals , and Tiger Stadium hosted the Detroit Lions . Later venues such as Cleveland Stadium , Milwaukee County Stadium and Baltimore Memorial Stadium were all built to accommodate both baseball and football. In 1920s New England, outdoor wood-track velodromes such as
1281-413: A fly ball to right field that bounced off the top of the fence and back onto the field of play. The umpires on the field ruled a live ball , and Pence was credited with a double . Houston manager Cecil Cooper argued the ball bounced beyond the fence before bouncing back onto the field and was therefore a home run. After a discussion among the umpires, crew chief Tim Welke allowed the review and reviewed
1464-728: A future MLB team by adding a third deck to the Mezzanine roof. It ultimately served as a temporary home to the Toronto Blue Jays of MLB in 2020 and 2021, when they were displaced by the COVID-19 pandemic after the government of Canada denied them permission to play at Rogers Centre . During the 1990s and 2000s, most of the multipurpose stadiums used for MLB in the United States were replaced by "retro-style" ballparks. These parks were built in two varieties: "retro-classic" parks, which combine
1647-486: A game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Once he reached base, Molina was replaced by pinch runner Emmanuel Burriss, while Umpires conferred on whether the ball had actually hit the roof and bounced back, which would make it a home run. After a replay review, the umpires reversed their call, awarding Molina the home run. Giants manager Bruce Bochy then attempted to retract Burriss from the game, and put back Molina, under
1830-546: A glimpse of the Bromo Seltzer Tower 's crenellated top just to the right of the new Hilton Baltimore Convention Center hotel ... something's drastically different at Oriole Park this year ... the sweeping view of downtown Baltimore that fans have enjoyed for the past 16 seasons has changed considerably." Sportswriter Peter Schmuck complained, "the big, antiseptic convention hotel ... looms over Camden Yards ... [and] has blocked out
2013-419: A home run in the top of the ninth inning with two outs remaining. Tampa Bay catcher Dioner Navarro and manager Joe Maddon initially protested in order to reverse the call as it appeared to be foul. Television replays showed the ball hit Tropicana Field's D-Ring catwalk on the foul side of the attached yellow post; however, the ball was still in fair territory when it left the playing field (passing over
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#17328519770232196-409: A modern baseball field—a reduction in dimensions as one moves from left field toward center field. The left-center field dimension marked to the immediate left of the bullpens is 398 feet, while the left-center field dimension marked on the bullpens' wall is 376 feet. This creates a hypothetical scenario in which a batter could hit a longer non-home run to left field than home run to left-center field, if
2379-417: A movable natural grass surface for soccer, and the other a synthetic turf surface for gridiron. To accommodate the different sight lines preferred for each sport, the soccer surface is positioned several feet above the gridiron, so that the seats are closer to the field in its soccer configuration and elevated above the sidelines and coaches in its gridiron configuration. The idea of a sharp difference between
2562-585: A multi-purpose stadium is that a singular infrastructure and piece of real estate can support both teams in terms of transportation and playing area, while money (often public funds) that would have been spent to support infrastructure for two stadiums can be spent elsewhere. Also playing into the advent of the multipurpose stadium was Americans' growing use of automobiles, which required professional sports stadiums surrounded by parking: most cities lacked affordable space for such stadiums near their city centers, so multi-purpose stadiums were typically built farther from
2745-465: A multipurpose stadium and a single-sport stadium is less important outside of North America, since in most countries stadiums that are constructed with football in mind are easily able to accommodate rugby , track and field, and other popular sports, which tend to have a similarly sized playing field. For example, any large stadium in most of Latin America, part of Asia, most of Africa, or continental Europe
2928-891: A national Sunday afternoon Game of the Week format (though some games have involved the Braves). In addition, the Time Warner -owned cable channel also carried the one-game AL Central playoff between the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago White Sox on September 30 as well as the entire League Division Series and the American League Championship Series this season, with TNT possibly carrying some games when there are time conflicts. Disney -owned ESPN continued to televise games on Sunday nights , Wednesday nights , and (through
3111-472: A new contract offer. The Coliseum, home to the Oakland Athletics since their 1968 relocation from Kansas City , reverted to its old name after 10 years, during which it was originally known as Network Associates Coliseum, then McAfee Coliseum when the company changed its name in 2004. The A's played their last home series after the stadium reverted its name. As a consequence of Hurricane Ike damaging
3294-447: A potential MLB expansion franchise, opened. Pilot Field replaced the long-obsolete War Memorial Stadium , which had been designed mainly for football, and hosted the NFL's Buffalo Bills ; but it had been (awkwardly) fit for baseball after the city's baseball park, Offermann Stadium , was condemned and torn down in 1960 to build a high school in its place . Pilot Field was also designed to host
3477-530: A press box in the upper tier on the third-base line oriented specifically for football, along with space beyond right field for a movable grandstand to accommodate an additional 13,000 fans for a future pro football franchise. This additional grandstand was indeed added to Anaheim Stadium in 1980 to accommodate the Los Angeles Rams' move from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum . Anaheim Stadium
3660-508: A quarter-century trend of multi-purpose stadiums in which baseball and football teams shared the same stadium. Although intended to cut costs, the fundamentally different sizes and shapes of baseball and football fields made this concept fundamentally inadequate for either sport. By the 2012 season, all but two teams played in baseball-only parks. Retro-classic parks include: Retro-modern parks include: LoanDepot Park in Miami (opened in 2012),
3843-531: A rectangular field, while baseball is played on a diamond with a large outfield. Since Canadian football fields are larger than American ones , the design specifications for Canadian facilities are somewhat less demanding. The particular design to accommodate both is usually an oval, although some later designs use an octorad . While building stadiums in this way means that sports teams and governments can share costs, it also presents some challenges. In North America, multipurpose stadiums were primarily built during
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#17328519770234026-416: A rectangular playing field, but cricket and Australian-rules fields are rounded, while baseball is played on a diamond. This makes them much harder to accommodate within a rectangular-shaped stadium. Likewise, accommodating athletics, such as for a Summer Olympics, means constructing a curved 400-m track around the infield. This often means the sports simply find it easier to be played in separate stadiums. In
4209-523: A shortstop will be moved and used as part of the Oriole Park Exhibit for the ballpark's 30th anniversary celebration. The stadium planners incorporated the warehouse into the architecture of the ballpark experience rather than demolish or truncate it. The floors of the warehouse contain offices, service spaces, and a private club. The warehouse has never been hit by a legal home run during regulation play. However, several players have reportedly struck
4392-473: A temporary wall. The Oakland Coliseum uses a configuration such that its football sideline runs along a line drawn from first base to third base (the former Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium also used this configuration). This was done presumably to make the same coveted seats behind home plate at a baseball game also coveted 50-yard line seats at a football game, and also so the stadium would need only one press box . Different stadiums have different angles between
4575-470: A ticket in order to walk on the part of Eutaw Street adjacent to the stadium; however, on non-game days the street is open to all, while access to the stadium is gated. Sections 90–98, called Eutaw Street palace, are located not in the stadium, but adjacent to Eutaw Street, with the seats descending toward the outfield below. If a game sells out, fans may purchase reduced-price " standing-room only " tickets, which entitle them to enter Eutaw Street and watch
4758-510: A trend in the construction of more traditional, fan-friendly ballparks in downtown locations across the U.S. After the 2008 season , a new HD video display and scoreboard were installed below the right field flag court, a standing-room area between the warehouse and the right field wall. A new, high fidelity sound reinforcement system was added around the ballpark in 2009 . The Orioles made numerous improvements to their home ballpark and to their spring training facility, Ed Smith Stadium , before
4941-783: A venue for Major League Baseball or the Summer Olympics and felt no need to replace their smaller, open-air stadiums used mostly for Canadian football. For example, Calgary 's open-air McMahon Stadium dates from 1960 and has been used only for Canadian football,and later was chosen to host the 1988 Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremonies, and an outdoor ice hockey event (the 2011 Heritage Classic ). Similar situations hold in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Hamilton, and Regina. No large stadiums of any kind are in cities such as Quebec City, London, or Saskatoon, or in Atlantic Canada ; in those places (with
5124-475: A wall shorter than 8 feet in left and had the shortest wall in left-center field of any venue. The new left-field wall is tied for the sixth-tallest in the majors. The new dimensions to straight away left (384 feet (117 m)) and left-center (398 feet (121 m)) make Oriole Park's left field the most spacious in the American League. However, the salient created by the bullpens results in an unusual sight on
5307-537: A way that it could be converted to a new baseball stadium, and ACOG paid for the conversion. Despite being considered controversial at the time, the International Olympic Committee considered the action innovative, due to the fact that there were no local needs for another stadium with a capacity for more than 70.000, given the existence of the Georgia Dome which was completed in 1992. Furthermore,
5490-531: Is 49,828, set on July 9, 2005 against the Boston Red Sox . On April 9, 2019, the low-attendance mark was set, when just 6,585 fans watched the Orioles play the Oakland Athletics . On April 29, 2015 , Camden Yards was practically empty after the riots in Baltimore over Freddie Gray . Only two scouts, one scoreboard display operator, the play-by-play commentators for the teams' radio and television networks, and
5673-525: Is a type of stadium designed to be easily used for multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a design philosophy that stresses multifunctionality over speciality. It is used most commonly in Canada and the United States, where the two most popular outdoor team sports— Canadian football or American football and baseball —require radically different facilities. Football uses
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5856-538: Is capable of hosting baseball but has been primarily a football venue. Rogers Centre was built to accommodate baseball (MLB's Toronto Blue Jays play there), but was a football venue until the CFL's Toronto Argonauts moved to BMO Field after the 2015 CFL season . Montreal's Olympic Stadium was built primarily for a multisport event (the 1976 Summer Olympics ), during which it hosted the athletics , equestrian , football . Latterly, it hosted professional team sports: it became
6039-447: Is eight, set in 2008. Major League Baseball's official website, MLB.com, publishes an updated list of Eutaw Street landings on the Orioles webpage. The Orioles celebrated the ballpark's 20th anniversary during the 2012 season and launched the website CamdenYards20.com as part of the celebration. Historically, Oriole Park at Camden Yards is one of several venues that have carried the "Oriole Park" name for various Baltimore franchises over
6222-598: Is harder than the grass and is also a significant injury risk. Baseball purists disliked artificial turf, though the Cincinnati Reds took advantage of this on Riverfront Stadium 's artificial turf: on offense by recruiting players who combined power and speed and encouraging line drive hitting that could produce doubles, triples, and high-bouncing infield hits; while for defense the fast surface and virtually dirtless infield rewarded range and quickness by both outfielders and infielders, like shortstop Dave Concepción , who used
6405-574: Is likely to be used mostly for association football. The majority of the largest stadiums in the world were built for either association football or American football. The regions where other outdoor sports can draw numbers comparable to association football or American football are limited. They include baseball in Japan and the Spanish Caribbean ; cricket in United Kingdom,South Africa, Australia,
6588-703: Is the only major outdoor team sport in many countries; in many other countries, association football and rugby can easily coexist with limited venue conversion required beyond goalpost changes and line markings. In Australia, many sports grounds are suited to both Australian rules football and cricket , as Australian Rules fields and laws are laid out on cricket ovals. In some cases, such as at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Docklands Stadium in Melbourne, and National Stadium, in Singapore , stadiums are designed to be converted between
6771-592: The 1956 Summer Olympics at the Melbourne Cricket Ground . The Washington Nationals began the domestic portion of the 2008 season in their new US$ 611 million home, Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., with a nationally telecast ESPN Sunday Night Baseball game (in a rare one-game series) against the Atlanta Braves on March 30 in the first official baseball game stateside. President Bush threw out
6954-538: The 1983 Summer Universiade . In Canada, several large multisport stadiums were built during this style's heyday. However, unlike in the United States, an NFL team has never been based primarily in Canada (though the Buffalo Bills played some home games in Toronto between 2008 and 2013) and only two MLB teams have been based there. So, teams from these leagues have not been the major impetus behind stadium construction (with
7137-552: The 2006 FIFA World Cup . A different take on the multipurpose concept can be seen in the Saitama Super Arena in Japan and Paris La Défense Arena in the inner suburbs of Paris. Both venues are similar to JMA Wireless Dome in that they are fully enclosed stadiums (though with fixed roofs instead of the Dome's original air-supported roof) that can accommodate field and indoor court sports. However, they differ from JMA Wireless Dome in
7320-631: The 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox defeating the Oakland Athletics at the Tokyo Dome 6–5 (in 10 innings) in the first game of a two-game series, and ended on September 30 with the host Chicago White Sox defeating the Minnesota Twins in a one-game playoff to win the AL Central . The Civil Rights Game , an exhibition, in Memphis, Tennessee , took place March 29 when the New York Mets beat
7503-587: The All-Star Game , the National League Championship Series , and the World Series . The Game of the Week was expanded in 2007, as for the first time FOX was allowed to air Saturday games for all 26 weeks of the season, marking the first time since 1989, when NBC ended their iconic run of televising America's Pastime on a weekly basis, that a network covered games on a week to week basis for
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7686-770: The Anglophone Caribbean , and the Indian subcontinent ; rugby (union or league) in Wales, England, Ireland, South Africa, New Zealand, Fiji, the country of Georgia, and parts of Australia and France; Australian rules football in Australia; bandy in Russia and Scandinavia; and Gaelic games in Ireland. However, even in these areas, the amount of compromise needed to accommodate multiple sports varies considerably. Most outdoor team sports require
7869-658: The Arup Group cited history to show that a rarely-used athletics track does not work for association football, as these multi-purpose stadiums substantially lengthen the viewing distance for spectators, as compared to football-specific stadiums. Notable unsuccessful past examples, of football matches played within athletics stadiums, include the former Stadio delle Alpi and the Munich Olympic Stadium , with both Juventus and Bayern Munich moving to new stadiums less than 40 years after inheriting them. The delle Alpi's design
8052-490: The Atlanta Braves had already been exploring opportunities for a new venue to replace the outdated Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium . The southwest corner of the Olympic Stadium was built to accommodate the future baseball infield and seating. This is observable in aerial views and plans of the stadium in its Olympic configuration, where the temporary seats are not placed next to the oval running track. The southwest part of
8235-465: The Boston Red Sox at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , the Dodgers' home stadium from 1958 to 1961. Proceeds from the game were donated to the Dodgers' official charity, ThinkCure. The game saw a sellout crowd of 115,300, which broke the Guinness World Record for the largest crowd to ever attend a baseball game. The previous record was an estimated 114,000 for a baseball demonstration during
8418-668: The Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte , where they spent $ 20 million to rebuild its main stadium. The site of Progress Energy Park was connected to plans to build a new retractable roof stadium for the Rays to replace the fixed-dome Tropicana Field , but was eventually withdrawn from consideration by team ownership in favor of a more thorough study. On March 15 and 16, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres played
8601-751: The Chicago White Sox , 3–2. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays shortened their name to Tampa Bay Rays . The All-Star Game was played on July 15 at the Old Yankee Stadium in The Bronx , New York City, with the AL winning 4 to 3 in 15 innings. The Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series 4 games to 1 over the Tampa Bay Rays . This was Philadelphia's second championship, and also the first World Series appearance for
8784-460: The Cincinnati Bengals . This game was moved to September 6 as part of a day/night doubleheader . However, the remnants of Hurricane Hanna called off the afternoon game, and because both teams were not in the pennant races, the game was not made up, in spite of the fact that both teams still had two common off days. In another weather-related note involving a team playing in an indoor venue,
8967-507: The Cleveland Indians before a sellout crowd of 44,568. Chris Hoiles drove in the first official run at Camden Yards with a ground-rule double that scored Sam Horn in the fifth inning. Camden Yards hosted the 1993 MLB All-Star Game . On June 18, 1994, an escalator accident injured 43 people; one of the stadium's multiple-story escalators, overcrowded with fans heading to their upper-deck seats, jerked backward, throwing passengers to
9150-512: The Coppa Italia home match against Sampdoria in the 2001–02 season, while in the 2005–06 season, the average attendance was 35,880. Manchester City Council wished to avoid creating a white elephant , so to give the stadium long-term financial viability, extensive work was carried out to convert the City of Manchester Stadium from a track and field arena to a football stadium. The old Estádio da Luz
9333-641: The DC United soccer club moved out, and its demolition began in 2022. Thus, only the Oakland Coliseum remains in use, while the Athletics are now the sole tenants of the Oakland Coliseum after the Raiders relocated to Las Vegas in 2020 . However, in 2023, the A's announced their own intentions of moving to Las Vegas . The Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome was unusual as one of the few air-supported dome stadiums that
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#17328519770239516-576: The East Hartford Velodrome and Providence's Cycledrome could, with some compromises, fit an American football field in their infields: early NFL franchises in each city (the Hartford Blues and Providence Steam Roller , respectively) used the velodromes as their home stadiums. In the 1960s, multipurpose stadiums began replacing their baseball-only and football-only predecessors, now known as "classics" or "jewel box" parks. The advantage of
9699-538: The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), and the rules of each game are mapped onto the same dimensions—although some pitches in areas where hurling is the dominant code have longer pitches slightly more suited to faster, longer passes in the hurling game. When the Aviva was being rebuilt, Croke Park stepped in as home for the national teams in both soccer and rugby union, a decision of significant political weight in
9882-561: The Houston area, two games between the Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs were relocated to Miller Park in Milwaukee . Although Milwaukee was picked as a "neutral" site whose retractable roof would ensure the game would be played in the event of inclement weather, Miller Park's location 90 miles (140 km) from Chicago – and well over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from Houston – resulted in
10065-500: The Kingdome in 1976. Eight of these eleven stadiums have been since demolished, with Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium demolished in 1997, the Kingdome in 2000, Three Rivers Stadium in 2001, Riverfront Stadium in 2002, Veterans Stadium in 2004, Busch Memorial Stadium in 2005, Shea Stadium in 2009, and San Diego Stadium in 2021. Furthermore, the Astrodome has been vacant since 2008 due to its failure to meet current fire and building code requirements. RFK Stadium has been vacant since 2017 when
10248-449: The Pittsburgh Pirates was called due to heavy flooding in the Houston area. Two of the games were played at Miller Park in Milwaukee on September 14 and 15, the remaining game was canceled outright, one of three games that would be outright canceled, the first being the Oakland Athletics scheduled to play the Orioles on September 7; however, the game was switched due to a conflict with the Baltimore Ravens ' NFL season opener against
10431-400: The Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians was relocated there one year earlier as a consequence of snow storms in northern Ohio. During last season, especially the ALCS , several plays were deemed to be considered controversial on whether or not balls were ruled home runs. During a game in the annual interleague Subway Series between the Mets and the Yankees at Yankee Stadium, a home run
10614-458: The Seattle Mariners , who accomplished the 465-foot hit as part of the 1993 Home Run Derby. The June 29, 2012 game against the Cleveland Indians was only the second time multiple home runs have landed on Eutaw Street in a single game. The first occurrence was during the April 11, 1997 game against the Texas Rangers when Rafael Palmeiro hit two home runs which landed on Eutaw Street. The single season record for home runs landing on Eutaw Street
10797-411: The Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Tampa Bay Rays had either postponed or canceled a home game on a Sunday in September of a presidential election year three consecutive times due to hurricanes. The streak started on September 17, 2000, and continued on September 5 and 26, 2004. The streak ended when the Rays played their game against the Minnesota Twins as scheduled on September 21, 2008. They played at home on
10980-480: The World Umpires Association , the umpires union, agreed to start reviews based only on whether or not a ball that is ruled a home run was fair or foul, or whether or not balls that clear walls are home runs according to each team's ground rules. This practice started August 28. The first official use of the Instant Replay system occurred on Wednesday, September 3 in a game between the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field , when Alex Rodriguez hit
11163-399: The foul pole ) and was therefore a home run. Umpire crew chief Charlie Reliford agreed to the review and after a delay of 2 minutes and 15 seconds, the ruling on the field was upheld and remained a home run. Replay made its National League debut on September 9 at Minute Maid Park in a game between the Houston Astros and Pittsburgh Pirates . Houston right fielder Hunter Pence hit
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#173285197702311346-413: The soccer-specific stadium movement. As of 2020 , 18 of Major League Soccer 's 26 clubs play in their own, soccer-specific stadiums, and two of the exceptions ( FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC ) are currently building their own soccer-specific stadiums. In addition, three of the four teams that will join MLS in 2021 and 2022 plan to open soccer-specific stadiums in time for their MLS debuts. Scheduling
11529-637: The 1960s and 1970s as shared home stadiums for Major League Baseball and National Football League or Canadian Football League teams. Some stadiums were renovated to allow multipurpose configurations during the 1980s. This type of stadium is associated with an era of suburbanization , in which many sports teams followed their fans out of large cities into areas with cheaper, more plentiful land. They were usually built near highways and had large parking lots , but were rarely connected to public transit . As multipurpose stadiums were rarely ideal for both sports usually housed in them, they had fallen out of favor by
11712-451: The 1980s. The Carrier Dome was another such air-supported, multipurpose stadium; it was built to accommodate outdoor sports such as football and indoor sports such as basketball. The Carrier Dome, since renamed JMA Wireless Dome, remains in use, although its air-supported roof was replaced by a fixed roof in 2020. Air-supported domes fell out of favor in the 21st century after notable weather-related collapses in Minnesota and Pontiac exposed
11895-444: The 1990s, in light of the growing trend of "walkable urbanism", as teams sought to return to the city core where they could develop or take advantage of existing hospitality in order to grow their fanbase. Many teams also relocated to where they could control mixed-use development around their new stadium. Contrary to the above trend of teams moving away from suburbs, the Atlanta Braves left Turner Field for SunTrust Park . Often
12078-584: The 1990s, with the SkyDome (in Canada) that opened in 1989 being the last such stadium completed to accommodate baseball and football. With the completion of the Truman Sports Complex in Kansas City in 1973, a model for purpose-built stadiums was laid down. Since the Baltimore Orioles left the multi-purpose Memorial Stadium for the baseball-only Oriole Park at Camden Yards in 1992, most major league sports stadiums have been built specifically for one sport. However, some newer NFL stadiums (e.g. Seattle, Atlanta, Charlotte) have been built with consideration for
12261-413: The 2008 All-Star break, there had not been an official game called that was not suspendable. As of the break, every win and loss in the standings for every team represented a game played to its legitimate nine-inning (or more) completion. The streak ended on August 4 in Chicago, however, when the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros were unable to complete their game due to a rainstorm. The Astros were leading
12444-497: The 2008 season, the Cleveland Indians ' home field was renamed Progressive Field – after the insurance company based in suburban Mayfield Heights – in a deal valued at US$ 57.6 million over the next sixteen seasons. The new name replaces Jacobs Field, named for former team owner Richard Jacobs . Another naming rights agreement concerned a stadium still under construction. The Minnesota Twins and Minneapolis -based retail giant Target Corporation announced on September 15 that
12627-473: The All-Star break, the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby, along with selected Opening Day and holiday games, and the entire postseason. The biggest change in local rights came as the San Francisco Giants switched their terrestrial telecast rights from longtime home KTVU ( Cox Communications -owned Fox affiliate) to NBC Universal -owned KNTV after fifty years, one of the longest in televised sports history. KTVU will continue to air some Giants games as part of
12810-436: The American institute Of Architects. In March 2013, Oriole Park was named the No. 3 ballpark in the U.S. by TripAdvisor . Between 1992–2000, the Orioles averaged more than 40,000 spectators per game, with a total attendance of 3.71 million persons in the 1997 season. Since then, attendance has declined to 1.9 million in the 2009 season. The current single game highest attendance record at Camden Yards
12993-502: The Aviva and for the ultimately unsuccessful 2023 Rugby World Cup bid. Croke Park has also occasionally hosted visiting American football college matches, especially those featuring the Army and Navy , or Notre Dame , with which Ireland has a long-standing connection. Several stadiums hosted multiple sports teams before the advent of multi-purpose stadiums. In New York City, the Polo Grounds hosted football teams early on, as its rectangular nature lent itself well to football and
13176-538: The CFL. It has also hosted many association football events, as well as the 2003 Heritage Classic , the first major outdoor ice hockey event in Canada. Tim Hortons Field , which opened in 2014, was built both as a venue for the 2015 Pan American Games and as the new home of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats football team; its predecessor, Ivor Wynne Stadium , was originally built for the first Commonwealth Games . Other Canadian cities never expressed interest in building
13359-676: The Chicago Cubs, the same day the San Francisco 49ers were scheduled to host their division rival New Orleans Saints . The October 8 game was moved to New Orleans and the November 6 game was moved to San Francisco. In Australia, most major stadiums that can hold over 50,000, such as the Melbourne Cricket Ground and Adelaide Oval , are circular or oval-shaped venues which – while suitable for cricket and Australian rules football – pose
13542-575: The Dodgers played their last game in Vero Beach ; they lost to the Houston Astros , 12–10. It has been rumored that the Baltimore Orioles might move into the facility. The next stadium to close its doors was Chain of Lakes Park in Winter Haven , home of the Cleveland Indians . On March 27, they lost their final game in the stadium to the Tampa Bay Rays , 9–7 in 10 innings. Both the Dodgers and
13725-610: The Fox Sports' Saturday afternoon Game of the Week package if the team is competitive. Baseball games – mostly involving the Toronto Blue Jays – were televised on Rogers Sportsnet , TSN , and CBC . RSN airs Fox and ESPN/ESPN 2 feeds if they do not conflict with the Toronto Blue Jays games, as well as the All-Star Game and the entire post-season. Several teams wore special uniforms to honor military serving overseas: Through
13908-925: The Gaelic games community, most notably manifested in GAA Rule 42 , means that football and rugby clubs have generally had to play on separate grounds. True multisport facilities, where teams from a variety of sports use the same stadium as their home ground, exist outside North America in a few cases, most of those as smaller stadiums. A handful are notable for having 60,000 seats or more. The Melbourne Cricket Ground hosts athletics,cricket, Australian rules football, and association football. Accor Stadium hosts cricket and Australian rules football, as well as both rugby codes and association football. Wembley Stadium in London, Stade de France near Paris, and Millennium Stadium in Cardiff are not
14091-721: The Indians left their longtime Florida homes for new stadiums in the Cactus League in Arizona . The oldest of them all, Progress Energy Park, home of Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg , was retired on March 28 with the Tampa Bay Rays losing to the Cincinnati Reds 6–3. The Rays, unlike the other teams to close stadiums before them, are staying in Florida; they are relocating their spring training home to
14274-552: The O's, 2–1 after 6 innings. Both the Astros and the Cubs were also involved in a rare "rain-in" due to Hurricane Ike postponing the first two games of their three-game series on September 12 and 13; the city of Houston had been evacuated so they were not able to play at the retractable-roof Minute Maid Park . The last rain-in was on June 15, 1976, when the Astros' game at the Astrodome against
14457-794: The Oakland Athletics were the last team in the U.S. still sharing a stadium with an NFL team (the Oakland Raiders ), the Oakland Coliseum (now RingCentral Coliseum). This arrangement ended once the Raiders settled into the new Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2020, leaving no stadiums shared between NFL and MLB franchises. The Athletics officially announced they would begin their relocation process to Las Vegas by 2024. 2008 Major League Baseball season The 2008 Major League Baseball season began on March 25, 2008, in Tokyo, Japan with
14640-572: The Orioles and Baltimore's status as a Major League Baseball city, Baltimore and Maryland state officials immediately began planning a new park in order to keep them in town. The master plan was designed by international design firm RTKL. The stadium design was completed by the architectural firm HOK Sport, which had pioneered retro ballparks at the Minor League level four years earlier with Pilot Field in Buffalo, New York . HOK Sport's original design
14823-515: The Orioles announced further upgrades to Camden Yards in preparation for the 20th anniversary of the park's opening. These improvements included the expansion of concession food choices, widening of the concourses in the upper deck, the installation of a replica of the B&;O Railway Warehouse's original canopy, and the addition of a lounge atop the batter's eye in center field, which had previously been inaccessible to fans. All fans are permitted to access
15006-625: The Ravens' third season in existence. Camden Yards is just a short walk from Babe Ruth 's birthplace, which is now a museum. According to some sources, Ruth's father once owned a pub located in what is now center field of the stadium. In May 2005, a new sports museum, the Sports Legends Museum at Camden Yards , opened in Camden Station. It lasted only 10 years, closing on October 12, 2015. Multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium
15189-513: The Rays. Note: Two teams in the same division could not meet in the division series. The 2008 Spring training session was marked by the final at-bats for three stadiums that had been mainstays in the Grapefruit League , as the spring training sites in Florida are called. The first to end its run was Holman Stadium , longtime home to the Los Angeles Dodgers . On March 17,
15372-503: The Twins' new stadium set to open in 2010 will be named Target Field . Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Target Field is located not far from another facility of which the discount retailer owns naming rights: Target Center the home of the NBA 's Timberwolves . On September 19, the naming rights contract owned by McAfee for Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum lapsed; McAfee declined
15555-544: The United States. Though hailed as revolutionary at the time, the Truman Sports Complex model of stadium design was widely ignored for the next 20 years, though the influence of both Arrowhead and Kauffman Stadiums were easily seen in venues such as Giants Stadium. The true end of the multipurpose era began in 1987, when Buffalo 's Pilot Field , a stadium built for the Buffalo Bisons minor league baseball team and
15738-666: The action if needed. Lang Park in Brisbane is currently (as of 2020) the only purpose-built rectangle stadium in Australia (with fixed seating) with a capacity exceeding 50,000. The first real departure from the multipurpose stadium design occurred in 1972, when the Jackson County Sports Authority in Kansas City, Missouri , opened the Truman Sports Complex , which houses Kauffman Stadium (named Royals Stadium at
15921-411: The adjustments, which cover the area from the left-field corner to the bullpens in left-center field. As of 2020, Camden Yards' 333-foot (101 m) distance from home plate to the left-field corner was about average for the 30 major league stadiums, though its 364-foot (111 m) distance to left-center was the sixth-shortest in the league. In addition, Oriole Park was one of only eight ballparks with
16104-449: The baseball dimensions roughly symmetrical. Qualcomm Stadium's square-circle " octorad " layout was considered an improvement over the other cookie cutter stadiums of the time, and it was the last of the old multi-purpose stadiums to host a Super Bowl ( Super Bowl XXXVII ). More-modern multi-purpose stadiums have used more elaborate methods to accommodate multiple sports; Tottenham Hotspur Stadium , for example, uses two sets of turfs, one
16287-451: The best part of the Baltimore skyline". A Washington Post columnist called it a "cruel cubist joke on a previously perfect ballpark", although others said they were pleased with new construction downtown as indicative of urban revitalization. In January 2022, Orioles general manager Mike Elias announced adjustments to Camden Yards' left field dimensions in an attempt to reduce the stadium's propensity for home runs. The changes—the first to
16470-497: The best solution at the time. The first of these "cookie-cutter" or "concrete donut" stadiums was Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in 1961 (then known as District of Columbia Stadium); it was followed during the 1960s and 1970s by Shea Stadium in 1964, Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium and the Astrodome in 1965, Busch Memorial Stadium and Oakland Coliseum in 1966, San Diego Stadium in 1967, Riverfront Stadium and Three Rivers Stadium in 1970, Veterans Stadium in 1971, and
16653-482: The bottom landing. On September 6, 1995, Camden Yards witnessed Cal Ripken Jr. 's record-setting 2,131st consecutive game. Exactly one year later, Eddie Murray blasted his 500th home run there. Two orange seats stand out from the park's dark green plastic chairs. One, located at Section 96, Row 7, Seat 23 in the right-center field bleachers (officially known as the Eutaw Street Reserve sections), commemorates
16836-440: The bullpens in left-center field. Furthermore, the right field wall was lowered from 25 feet (7.6 m) to 21 feet (6.4 m) to improve the view of the field from Eutaw Street. In March of 2024, The Orioles announced a multiyear partnership with Coors Light to rename the lounge on top of batter’s eye/bullpen wall in center field. The lounge would be renamed, the “Coors Light Roof Deck.” In July of 2024, an LED T. Rowe Price Sign
17019-440: The bullpens. Bronze sculptures of the six Orioles greats whose uniform numbers were retired by the ballclub were unveiled individually in the walking zone of the area behind the bullpens throughout the 2012 season . The statues were created by Antonio Tobias Mendez and cast at the locally based New Arts Foundry. On the street there is a statue of Babe Ruth entitled, Babe's Dream , created in 1996 by sculptor Susan Luery. In
17202-415: The case of Ireland, grounds built for Gaelic games are physically capable of hosting association football and the rugby codes without changing the seating configuration. Because the Gaelic games' pitch is rectangular and also longer and wider than that for football or either rugby code, the only changes required are the physical goals and field markings. However, opposition to those sports within large parts of
17385-655: The center of the field rather than towards the logical center of the game action (home plate for baseball and the 50-yard line for football). In the baseball configuration, most had symmetrical field dimensions. This detracted from the unique, individual identity enjoyed by the sport-specific "jewel box" stadiums with odd or asymmetrical field dimensions, and further supported the "cookie cutter stadium" nickname. The large capacities of multipurpose stadiums were usually more than adequate for football. However, baseball crowds tend to be much smaller than football crowds, resulting in baseball games at these stadiums being swallowed up in
17568-505: The ceremonial first pitch while being booed by some of the crowd that night, and joined Jon Miller and Joe Morgan in the broadcast booth for the third and part of the fourth inning of the game telecast. Fittingly, Ryan Zimmerman hit a walk-off home run to give the Nats a 3–2 win. Nationals Park replaced their temporary home, RFK Stadium . Unlike RFK, Nationals Park has been considered to be fair to both hitters and pitchers. Additionally, there
17751-432: The city center with freeway access. Subsets of the multipurpose stadiums were the so-called "cookie-cutter stadiums" or "concrete donuts" which were all very similar in design. They featured a completely circular or nearly circular design and accommodated both baseball and football by rotating sections of the box seat areas to fit the respective playing fields. These fields often used artificial turf , as it could withstand
17934-419: The closing of these ballparks, Dodger Stadium becomes the largest seating capacity park (56,000) and third oldest baseball stadium (after Fenway Park and Wrigley Field ) starting in 2009, and Angel Stadium of Anaheim (built in 1966) and Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum (first baseball game in 1968; stadium was built in 1966) become the fourth and fifth oldest baseball stadiums, respectively. Starting with
18117-553: The company was "waiting for a client willing to break the [retro] mold." Stadium planners are labeling LoanDepot Park the first example of contemporary architecture in MLB. On October 8, 1995, Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at Camden Yards as part of his visit to Baltimore , one of the most prominent non-baseball events at Camden Yards. On May 6, 1992, Oriole Park received the Urban Design Award Of Excellence from
18300-403: The drawbacks of air-supported domes in snowy locales. During the height of the multipurpose stadium construction era of the 1960s and 1970s, three baseball-only stadiums were constructed: Candlestick Park (1960), Dodger Stadium (1962), and Royals Stadium (1973; now Kauffman Stadium). Anaheim Stadium (now known as Angel Stadium ), although designed primarily for baseball, opened in 1966 with
18483-526: The earlier turfs, it has been seen as easier to build new stadiums for each sport rather than attempt to share an inflexible turf installation among multiple sports. Some 21st-century multi-purpose stadiums, such as Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and State Farm Stadium , have developed a more elaborate method of placing an entire playing surface, such as a grass surface for association football and an artificial turf one for gridiron football, on one or more slabs (one at State Farm, three at Tottenham Hotspur) and towing
18666-501: The early 2000s, also has had a role in the decline of the multipurpose stadium. While first-generation, short-pile turfs such as AstroTurf lent themselves well to multiple sports, this was not the case with FieldTurf and its competitors. Modern artificial turf requires a more permanent installation, including a sand and rubber base or infill that is not easily removed, and thus does not lend itself well to multipurpose stadiums. Because of such turfs' superiority in other features, compared to
18849-458: The entire season. Also, all games on FOX were televised in high definition; in previous years, only the primary (or "A") game was in HD. The limits for telecasts per season (starting in 2008) that any team can make are as follows: ESPN Radio continued as the national radio carrier for Major League Baseball, airing Sunday night games throughout the regular season as well as Saturday afternoon games after
19032-442: The environment. This was especially true if a baseball team were not doing particularly well either on the field or in the box office. This was another reason some baseball teams closed sections of the upper level during the regular season. Many multipurpose stadiums also had artificial turf playing surfaces, to ease the transition from baseball field to football field and vice versa. Most early installations of artificial turf such as
19215-480: The exception of Saskatoon), smaller stadiums (less than 13,000 seats) exist, which can be augmented with temporary seating to bring their capacities close to that of the smaller CFL stadiums. Most multipurpose stadiums that existed in North America overlaid one sideline of the football field along one of the baseball foul lines , with one corner of the football field being located where home plate would be. Because
19398-507: The fans closer to the field. This has created some difficulties with creating large athletics venues for major championships, as fans are less willing to accept the compromises required in the design of such stadiums, an issue that has bedevilled, e.g. the London Stadium since the 2012 Summer Olympics and was avoided in the commonwealth Games stadiums of 2000 and 2014 by returning the stadiums to football-only use, and in 2022 by having
19581-465: The final day of the 2000 season, but that game was on October 1, not September. The 2008 season also marked the first time Citizens Bank Park , home of the Philadelphia Phillies and Busch Stadium , home to the St. Louis Cardinals made it through an entire season without a game either being canceled or shortened. The Washington Nationals came close, but their home finale at Nationals Park
19764-595: The first Yankee Stadium . On the far side of the Baltimore & Ohio Warehouse at Camden Yards is the present Camden Station , served by both the Baltimore Light RailLink and MARC 's Camden Line commuter rail service. The latter rail line provides direct service to Washington, D.C., and the former to BWI Airport . The Light RailLink service began around the time the stadium opened. Nearby Convention Center station also sees heavy traffic during Orioles games;
19947-403: The first of two national stadiums, Aviva Stadium , is shared by football and rugby union, although only rugby union has a club team, Leinster Rugby , that regularly uses the facility. The other larger national stadium, Croke Park , hosts three different sports regularly: gaelic football , hurling , and its women's equivalent, camogie . All three are gaelic games run by the same organisation,
20130-466: The first week in August) Monday nights , switching to Friday nights for the remainder of the season, plus multiple afternoon and prime-time games on the traditional Opening Day (March 31) and the annual State Farm Home Run Derby on July 14. Certain games aired on ESPN2 due to scheduling conflicts with the parent network. FOX Sports continued with a weekly regional Saturday Game of the Week ,
20313-522: The flag court to land on Eutaw Street. The first home run to reach Eutaw Street was hit by Mickey Tettleton of the Detroit Tigers on April 20, 1992. The longest in-game home run to land on Eutaw Street was a towering 462-foot shot by Gunnar Henderson of the Orioles on June 11, 2023. However, the only player to ever hit the Baltimore & Ohio Warehouse at Camden Yards on the fly is Ken Griffey Jr of
20496-399: The front row of the stands, when the ball hit the hands of the fan and fell back onto the field of play. The umpires originally ruled that the fan reached over the wall to touch the ball. After Rays manager Joe Maddon requested the umpires hold a conference to discuss the play, the umpires, headed by Gerry Davis , decided to look at instant replay. Replays showed that the fan did not reach over
20679-403: The fundamentally different sizes and shapes of the playing fields made them inadequate for either sport. When used for baseball, the lower-level boxes were usually set back much farther from the field than comparable seats in baseball-only parks because they swiveled into position for American football and association football. In the case of stadiums that hosted both baseball and Canadian football,
20862-448: The game 2–0 in the 8th inning, and since that was the score when the inning started, the game was not resumeable to the next day and the Astros were awarded the "win". This was the only game to be rain shortened until September 26, when the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Baltimore Orioles in a game curtailed to seven innings, 2–0. The next day, the Jays lost another rain-shortened game against
21045-407: The game from two designated standing areas (in the left field bullpen area or above the scoreboard in right field). Many home run balls have landed on Eutaw Street, and the Orioles organization has marked the spots with small baseball-shaped bronze plaques embedded in the street, though it sometimes takes up to a year for each homer to get a plaque. As of 2023, there have been 120 homers that cleared
21228-681: The home of the Montreal Alouettes football team and the Montreal Expos baseball team, and began serving as an alternate home to the Montreal Impact when that team entered Major League Soccer in 2012. Similarly, the open-air Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton was constructed for the 1978 Commonwealth Games and the 1983 Summer Universiade but has also become home to the Edmonton Elks of
21411-430: The interior and exterior design of the "classic" ballparks with the amenities of newer facilities; and "retro-modern" parks, which have modern amenities and "retro" interiors, but have modern exterior designs. The first "retro-classic" park in MLB was Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, which opened in 1992 and was based mostly on Pilot Field's design. The "retro-modern" park made its first appearance in 1994 with
21594-584: The last 10 years of Memorial Stadium 's tenure to an average of 43,490 over the first 10 years of Camden Yards' existence. Due to its success, many other cities built traditional-feeling asymmetrical ballparks with modern amenities (such as skyboxes) in a downtown setting. Many of these stadiums, like Camden Yards, incorporate "retro" features in the stadium exteriors as well as interiors; these parks have been dubbed "retro-classic" parks. Other parks, known as "retro-modern" parks, have combined "retro" exteriors with more modern interior elements. The park also ended
21777-662: The last season in New York City for two historic stadiums where the Mets and Yankees reside. Shea Stadium closed in Flushing Meadows , Queens on a down note September 28 with the Mets being eliminated from postseason play for the second consecutive season by the Marlins, 4–2, while Yankee Stadium closed after 83 seasons (the Yankees played at Shea Stadium in 1974 and 1975 while Yankee Stadium
21960-422: The latter is hit into the bullpens. The club informed its season-ticket holders in the affected sections of the changes. Although fans who typically sit in those locations will be farther from the infield and home plate, they will remain as close as they were to the field of play. As part of this process, the orange seat honoring franchise icon Cal Ripken Jr.'s 278th home run to set the MLB record for home runs by
22143-513: The left- and right-field seats. In stadiums that were primarily football stadiums converted to baseball stadiums, the stands were at nearly right angles. This allowed the football field to be squared within the bleachers, but left the baseball configuration with many undesirable views farther away from home plate or facing away from the diamond, such as at the Kingdome, the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, and
22326-475: The length of a regulation American football field is 360 feet, longer than the roughly 330-foot average for foul lines in Major League Baseball, this requires an unusually long distance from the home plate to the fence along the foul line on which the football field is constructed, part of the football field to be constructed in foul territory (and the size of said territory to be increased accordingly), or
22509-520: The logic that he wouldn't have pulled Molina had the correct call of home run been made in the first place. After a 15-minute delay, the umpires denied Bochy, citing the replacement rule. Burriss was told to complete the home run circuit, making it a two-run home run in which Molina, who had hit it, didn't score. For the 2008 season, TBS switched from doing Atlanta Braves games (who telecast 45 contests on WPCH-TV a/k/a "Peachtree TV" locally in Atlanta) to
22692-475: The lower boxes were set even farther back than their American counterparts, because Canadian football fields are 30 yards longer and considerably wider than their American counterparts. Likewise, attempts to build stadiums without support columns to obstruct spectators' views, as was the case with sport-specific "jewel box" stadiums, resulted in upper decks being placed very high above the field—as far as 600 feet away in some cases. Several teams closed off sections of
22875-457: The nation's history. Gaelic grounds can easily accommodate both as the typical Gaelic pitch, while similarly rectangular, is significantly longer and wider than the fields used for soccer and rugby union, which are almost identical in dimensions. Historically, however, the GAA has been reluctant to allow 'foreign' sports to use its facilities, although these objections were set aside both for the rebuild of
23058-408: The national athletics body as the sole primary tenant of a renovated stadium. Winter sports facilities, especially speed skating rinks , can be multi-purpose stadiums. Very often, a rink or two of approximately 61 by 30 meters—the regulation size of an IIHF ice hockey rink —are placed inside the oval. Sometimes the ice surface is even larger, allowing for both bandy and curling . In Ireland,
23241-601: The notable exception of Toronto). Instead, stadiums were built primarily for Canadian Football League (CFL) teams and to host multiple-sport events, such as the Winter Olympics , Commonwealth Games , and Pan American Games . Three of Canada's largest stadiums from this era and type feature domed or retractable roofs : namely BC Place in Vancouver, SkyDome/Rogers Centre in Toronto, and Olympic Stadium in Montreal. BC Place
23424-494: The opening of Jacobs Field, now known as Progressive Field , in Cleveland . Many football teams that shared a stadium with a baseball team had their stadiums converted into football-only facilities shortly after the baseball tenant left, while other football teams followed their baseball counterparts and had new football-only stadiums constructed. The widespread adoption of FieldTurf , and similar modern artificial turfs beginning in
23607-416: The original AstroTurf was nothing more than carpet on top of concrete with little padding, material that was easy to apply and remove. Such types of removable artificial turf caused frequent injuries to players and eventually made free agents wary of signing with teams whose home fields had artificial turf. During the first month of the football season, the playing field included the baseball infield soil that
23790-546: The oval configuration for cricket and Australian rules football and a rectangular configuration for rugby and association football, and in the case of Singapore's National Stadium, an athletics configuration as well. Association football stadiums have historically served as track and field arenas, too, and some (like the Olympiastadion in Berlin) still do, whereas a newer generation frequently has no running track, in order to allow
23973-814: The permanent homes to any club teams, but are used primarily for international competitions and major tournament finals, mostly for association football and rugby (though Wembley has regularly hosted American football). In South Africa, Soccer City and Ellis Park Stadium have hosted rugby union and football, while Moses Mabhida Stadium has hosted football and cricket. Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi , in India hosts cricket and football. Eden Park in New Zealand hosts rugby union and cricket. Sky Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand , has hosted both rugby codes, cricket, association football, and Australian rules football. Architects from
24156-401: The play with his brother Bill Welke , the home plate umpire . After the review the call was upheld as a double. The first call to be reversed by instant replay occurred on September 19, and again involved the Tampa Bay Rays in a game against the Minnesota Twins at Tropicana Field. A fly ball hit by Rays' first baseman Carlos Peña , the umpires ruled, was interfered with by a fan sitting in
24339-469: The players showed up to watch, and official attendance was 0. This marked the first time in MLB history that the public was not permitted to attend a baseball game. On August 19, 2008, the stadium hosted its 50 millionth fan, a milestone reached in just 17 seasons, the fastest park in baseball history to reach such a figure. Since opening in 1992, Oriole Park has hosted the third-most number of fans in Major League Baseball, exceeded only by Dodger Stadium and
24522-422: The portable sections would be placed in the western quadrant of the stadium and serve as the third-base half of the infield. In the football configuration, these would be placed in the northern quadrant of the stadium (covering what is used as left field in the baseball configuration) to allow for the football field to be laid out east–west. This had the advantage of improving sight lines for both sports while keeping
24705-452: The possible use of the stadium for Major League Soccer or international soccer, which has similar field dimensions to American football. Fields that are suitable for soccer are almost always equally suitable for either rugby code ( rugby union or rugby league ), and the 2031 Rugby World Cup is expected to employ the same stadiums as the NFL and MLS. Outside North America, the term is rarely used, since association football (i.e., soccer)
24888-475: The predominant design trend of big league ballparks was the symmetrical multi-purpose stadium . Memorial Stadium , the Orioles' home since they moved from St. Louis in 1954, was an early example of such a design. In 1984 , the Baltimore Colts moved to Indianapolis , in part because Baltimore and Maryland officials refused to commit money for a replacement for Memorial Stadium. Not wanting to risk losing
25071-562: The public. Its unique two-tiered design was a first in major league parks. A picnic area is located above and behind the bullpens. Rows of picnic tables covered by orange umbrellas are available for fans to sit and eat. Many trees are located there, too. Many fans at home games view the game from behind the railing behind the bullpens. Until the 2012 season, the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network 's pre- and post-game shows before Orioles home games were televised in an outdoor studio behind
25254-401: The reconfiguration process more easily, or be removed for non-sporting events. Furthermore, many of these stadiums were either enclosed domes (where natural grass could not grow without sunlight) or located in cold-weather cities (where undersoil heating was expensive and unreliable) and before the development of hybrid grass and improved natural grass cultivation techniques, artificial turf was
25437-511: The same courtyard, one will find sculptures indicating the retired jersey numbers of the Baltimore Orioles. The stadium is the first major league park to have an outfield wall made up entirely of straight wall segments since Ebbets Field . The playing field is 16 feet (4.9 m) below street level. The stadium contains 4,631 club seats and 72 luxury suites. Every seat in the ballpark is green, except for two – one in left field which marks
25620-590: The same sight-line problems for football, rugby league, and rugby union as an athletics venue would. Playing sports with rectangle-shaped pitches on larger ovals often means fans can be as much as 30 metres (98 ft) or more from the sidelines. Both Stadium Australia in Sydney and the Docklands Stadium in Melbourne have retractable seating, to be able to change from an oval to rectangle shape and bring fans closer to
25803-457: The size of the iconic ballpark’s playing area in two decades—raised the wall's height from 7 feet (2.1 m) to about 13 feet (4.0 m) and moved it back as much as 26 + 1 ⁄ 2 feet (8.1 m), according to information provided by the team. The new configuration resulted in the elimination of the first 10 rows of outfield bleacher seats in sections 72–86, resulting in a net reduction of about 1,100 seats. Major League Baseball approved
25986-471: The slab(s) in and out of place for each sport. Because of the expense of using this method, it is generally only used for the highest-level professional sports. The Miami Marlins moved to Marlins Park , a new retractable-roof stadium in Miami, in 2012. Sun Life Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) was then renovated to eliminate its baseball functionality, making it a football-only stadium. With the Marlins' relocation,
26169-461: The specific way they accommodate court sports. Both the Super Arena (used mainly for basketball, volleyball, mixed martial arts , and professional wrestling events) and Paris La Défense Arena (home of rugby union's Racing 92 ) feature movable seating blocks that allow each facility to serve as an appropriately sized venue for either field or court sports. In 2014, Singapore's new National Stadium
26352-400: The spot of Cal Ripken's 278th career home run, breaking Ernie Banks' all-time record among shortstops, and one in right field, which marks the spot of Eddie Murray's 500th career home run. Camden Yards lights spell out "GO ORIOLES" all throughout the month of September. Since its opening day in 1992, Camden Yards was a success and fan favorite. Attendance jumped from an average of 25,722 over
26535-414: The spot where Murray's 500th home run landed. The other, Section 86, Row FF, Seat 10 in the left field bleachers, was the landing spot for Ripken's 278th home run as a shortstop , breaking Chicago Cubs legend Ernie Banks ' record for the position. That home run was hit on July 15, 1993. Ripken finished his career with 345 home runs as a shortstop and 431 overall. The great success of Camden Yards sparked
26718-493: The stadium also had four tiers of seats, luxury boxes , a facade facing the street, and a roof, whereas the northern half of the stadium used a simpler two-tiered seating configuration. During reconstruction, the athletics track was removed, and the north half of the stadium was demolished, reducing the capacity to 49,000 when it reopened as Turner Field . Because of the former track area, the field of play , particularly foul territory , although not large by historical standards,
26901-461: The stadium feel too enclosed, and cut off panoramic views of the stadium's aesthetic surroundings (waterfront, skyline, mountains). The suburban locales of many multipurpose stadiums (as well as other sport-specific stadiums also built there) were also a focal point of criticism. Choosing a suburb over a city core was meant to take advantage of lower land values and new freeways. Suburbs were often poorly serviced by public transit, and when coupled with
27084-510: The stadium, as well as the 19th-century style clock above the scoreboard. Ashton's vintage designs, which echo the team's turn-of-the-century origins, proved influential, and the firm was called upon to complete similar retro redesigns of Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium . Construction began in 1989 and lasted 33 months. Former Orioles owner Eli Jacobs favored naming the new field Oriole Park , while then- Maryland Governor William Donald Schaefer favored Camden Yards . After considerable debate,
27267-470: The standing area of the lounge and fans can purchase tickets for drink rail seats. The Orioles also opened Dempsey’s Bar and Grill, named for beloved longtime Orioles catcher and TV broadcaster Rick Dempsey , on the ground level of the warehouse that is open before games and on non-game days. The team also erected cast-bronze statues of all the Oriole Baseball Hall of Famers in the picnic area beyond
27450-475: The stands. This made the football viewing farther away, and in some cases partially obscured as in Candlestick Park. In the case of Qualcomm Stadium, it was constructed with half of the field-level seating being permanent (built of concrete, in the southern quadrant of the stadium), and the other half portable (modular construction using aluminum or steel framing). When the stadium was configured for baseball,
27633-481: The start of the 2011 season . All seats in the lower seating bowl were replaced and drink rails were added in the club level. Several skyboxes were also eliminated and refurbished to make room for more casual party suites, including the Miller Light Flight Deck. The renovation reduced Oriole Park's capacity from 48,876 to 45,971, making it more comparable with newer ballparks. During the 2011–12 off-season,
27816-663: The station is located near the stadium's main entrance. The stadium is located in downtown Baltimore , near the Inner Harbor . The ballpark, along with the adjacent M&T Bank Stadium , home of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League , make up the Camden Yards Sports Complex , though Camden Yards generally refers to only the baseball stadium. The football stadium was not built until 1998,
27999-459: The suburban stadium was not located in the municipality that the team purportedly represented, and in some cases the stadium was over a state border. An instance of this was Giants Stadium , which primarily hosted football, but was also an association football stadium at times. Its primary tenants, the New York Giants and New York Jets , were nominally based in New York City, but Giants Stadium
28182-416: The time of opening) and Arrowhead Stadium . The Truman Sports Complex was the first example of multiple stadiums being built for specific sports at the same time. The designers, Kivett and Myers, were then absorbed by Kansas City architecture firm Hellmuth, Obata, and Kassabaum to become HOK Sport + Venue + Event (now the independent firm Populous ), which went on to design many professional sports venues in
28365-451: The trend of personal transportation shifting from public transit to private cars in the mid-20th century, meant that many of the stadiums of that period (multipurpose or sport-specific) were surrounded by large parking lots. In some suburban locales, hospitality, entertainment, and shopping facilities were often non-existent due to lacking the supporting population or due to municipality zoning restrictions. Suburban stadiums fell out of favor by
28548-402: The turf to bounce many of his long throws to first. The concrete or painted concrete façades of many stadiums of that era (multipurpose or sport-specific) were criticized by architects as uninviting. Most such stadiums were built in the relatively plain brutalist and international styles popular at the time, which fell out of fashion in the 1980s. Furthermore, the "concrete donut" design made
28731-670: The upcoming meeting on the road and playing the home game during the latter meeting. An example of the former happening was in 1997 when the Florida Marlins played game 7 of the World Series at home on Sunday, October 26, which moved the Miami Dolphins game against the Chicago Bears to Monday night. An example of the latter happening was in 1989 when the San Francisco Giants hosted a postseason game on Sunday, October 8, against
28914-488: The upper level and only sold them during the playoffs, as they were too far away to be of any use during the regular season. For football, the seats nearest the field were set farther back than at football-only stadiums to accommodate the larger baseball field. In some cases, the seats closest to the field, normally prime seats for baseball, were almost at field level for football. In general, spectator sight lines were not optimized for either sport, i.e., seats were angled towards
29097-452: The venue now known as Hard Rock Stadium . For stadiums such as the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum , where the Los Angeles Dodgers played their home games from 1958 through 1961 while awaiting completion of Dodger Stadium , this also had the undesirable effect of having unusually short foul lines, making it easier to hit so-called " Chinese home runs ". Baseball stadiums that were converted to football stadiums had more of an obtuse angle between
29280-460: The wall during batting practice, and it was hit by Ken Griffey Jr. during the Home Run Derby associated with the 1993 MLB All-Star Game . Eutaw Street, between the stadium and the warehouse, is closed to vehicular traffic. Along this street, spectators can get a view of the game or visit the many shops and restaurants that line the thoroughfare, including former Oriole star Boog Powell 's outdoor barbecue stand. On game days, pedestrians must have
29463-428: The wall; the ball was over the wall when he tried to catch the ball, and the ball bounced back onto the field. Just over four minutes later, Davis returned to the field and signaled that the ball was a home run. The use of replay created a statistical anomaly September 26, in which San Francisco Giants catcher Bengie Molina hit what was ruled a single off the high wall in right field at AT&T Park in San Francisco, in
29646-433: The years. Camden Yards was built on land that once served as the rail yard for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 's Camden Station . The view from much of the park is dominated by the former Baltimore & Ohio Warehouse at Camden Yards behind the right-field wall. Some seats in the stadium have a good view of the downtown Baltimore skyline . The bullpen area was designed after many write-in designs were submitted by
29829-436: Was a problem as the contest was delayed for three hours and four minutes. On October 27, Game 5 of the World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Philadelphia Phillies was suspended in the bottom of the 6th with the score tied 2–2 and the Phillies leading 3–1 in games. This marked the first time in World Series history that a game was suspended. The game finished with the Phillies winning 4–3, at home on October 29. However,
30012-465: Was added above the videoboard replacing where “The Sun” was formally located. In 2007–08 construction started on two large buildings beyond the stadium's outfield walls—a 757-room Hilton Baltimore hotel north of the stadium occupying a two-city-block area and a high-rise apartment building, both completed in 2009—which have blocked views of the city's skyline from most sections of the grandstand. The Baltimore Sun said on April 21, 2008, "There's just
30195-400: Was also a big issue since the MLB postseason overlaps with the NFL regular season. If a baseball team advances in the postseason to the point where it is scheduled to play a postseason game on the same day the football team plays a home game, adjustments had to be made, such as having the game moved to Monday night or – if a division opponent were scheduled – have the game sites switched, putting
30378-400: Was also renovated with additional seating, including a 4,500-ton, three-tier movable grandstand to accommodate both baseball and football configurations. Mile High Stadium was home to the AFL / NFL Denver Broncos and the MLB Colorado Rockies franchises. For the 1996 Summer Olympics , the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) built the temporary Centennial Olympic Stadium in
30561-440: Was also used for baseball. The original Yankee Stadium was designed to accommodate football, as well as track and field (Yankee Stadium popularized the warning track , originally designed as a running track around baseball fields), in addition to its primary use for baseball. In addition to baseball, Fenway Park and Braves Field would host college football and several professional football teams (all of whom relocated within
30744-404: Was an exhibition game March 29 against their beltway rivals, the Baltimore Orioles, in which season ticket holders were admitted free. The first game, however, was on March 22, when local university George Washington played a home Atlantic 10 college contest against Saint Joseph's at Nationals Park. The Colonials sent their fans home happy by defeating the Hawks 9–5. This season also marked
30927-426: Was canceled on September 25. On September 29, one day after the scheduled final day of the season, the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox made up a game postponed from two weeks earlier, the first such game since 1981, as in 1908 and 1973. The game needed to be played because the White Sox trailed the Minnesota Twins by a half-game in the AL Central standings following play on September 28, and even then, rain
31110-441: Was criticized for leaving spectators exposed to the elements, and for the long distance between the stands and the pitch resulting in poor visibility. This was because the athletics track, which was seldom used, was constructed around the outside of the pitch, while views from the lower tier were also restricted due to the positioning of advertising boards. These factors contributed to low attendances; only 237 spectators showed up for
31293-422: Was demolished so that a football-specific replacement could be built on the site as part of Portugal's bid to host Euro 2004 . German stadiums such as the AWD-Arena , Commerzbank-Arena , MHPArena , RheinEnergieStadion , AOL Arena , and Zentralstadion also underwent reconstruction/renovation to remove the running track an thus become football-only venues. Several of these projects were done in preparation for
31476-444: Was larger than most MLB stadiums of its era. After the 2016 season, the Braves moved to the new SunTrust Park , and Georgia State University purchased Turner Field and surrounding parking lots for a major campus expansion project. As part of this project, Turner Field was reconfigured as Center Parc Stadium , a downsized rectangular stadium that is now home to the university's football team . The first multipurpose stadium in Canada
31659-456: Was multipurpose in practice, being convertible between football and baseball. Home of the Minnesota Vikings through the 2013 season, it was also home to the Minnesota Twins until 2009 and the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team (NCAA) until 2008 as well as the Minnesota Golden Gophers baseball team (NCAA) until 2012. The Metrodome has been demolished, with U.S. Bank Stadium , built mainly for professional football but able to convert to
31842-435: Was neither in New York City or even New York State . Instead, it was in the Meadowlands of East Rutherford, New Jersey . As a result, then-Governor Mario Cuomo would not attend any games at Giants Stadium (instead choosing to attend the home games of the Buffalo Bills as they were "New York State's only team" in the NFL). A similar criticism applied to Giants Stadium's replacement, MetLife Stadium . Association football
32025-406: Was opened. It can convert between an oval for cricket, rectangle for rugby and association football, and a running track for athletics. Kalinga Stadium is a multi-purpose international sports complex in Bhubaneswar , Odisha , India . Construction was begun in 1978. It is best known as the home ground of the Indian Super League football club Odisha FC since that club's inception in 2019 . It
32208-411: Was perceived as an especially bad fit for this type of stadium because, in the United States, the sport does not draw as many fans to games as American football or baseball (with the exceptions of Atlanta and Seattle ), resulting in the stadium being filled to only a fraction of its capacity. This, combined with a desire for more compact, intimate stadiums akin to those of European football clubs, led to
32391-417: Was refurbished), with the final home game played on September 21 as the Bronx Bombers defeated the Orioles, 7–3. The teams will move into new ballparks near their current homes – Citi Field for the Mets and New Yankee Stadium for the Yankees – in time for their 2009 home openers on April 13 against the San Diego Padres (Citi Field) and 16th against Cleveland Indians (New Yankee Stadium) respectively. With
32574-452: Was renovated to a baseball-only facility in 1997, three years after the Rams' departure for St. Louis. Similarly, Candlestick Park was renovated into a multipurpose stadium in 1970 to accommodate the San Francisco 49ers ' move from Kezar Stadium and converted to football-only after the San Francisco Giants moved to their new ballpark in 2000. Candlestick Park was demolished in 2015. Another baseball stadium, Denver's Mile High Stadium ,
32757-475: Was taken away and ruled a ground rule double. This led to discussions about introducing instant replay to baseball games, especially on balls that are ruled fair or foul and home runs. In August, all 30 parks have been wired to send feeds similar to a video goal judge in the NHL , where all video feeds are sent to a central control room at Major League Baseball Advanced Media's home office in New York City to be reviewed, and correct any errors. On August 20, MLB and
32940-411: Was the Montreal Olympic Stadium , which was built for the 1976 Summer Olympics and initially had functions to host events of different sports and types. However, the project became obsolete over time and the stadium lost its original functions, becoming a "white elephant". The first successful such stadium was the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton , which was built for the 1978 Commonwealth Games and
33123-403: Was the first since Camden Yards not classified as a "retro" park, whether of the classic or modern variety. Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria specifically rejected the retro model for the new park, desiring a facility that reflected the 21st-century culture of Miami. Populous , which designed both Camden Yards and LoanDepot Park, was willing to listen; the lead designer for Marlins Park would later say
33306-516: Was the home ground of the I-League club Indian Arrows from 2018 until 2022 . Its main stadium is configured for football and athletics , with an 8-lane synthetic athletics track surrounding the football pitch. Field hockey , tennis , table tennis , basketball , volleyball , wall climbing , and swimming are accommodated elsewhere within the complex. While multipurpose stadiums were intended to easily accommodate both American football and baseball (and in some cases, association football),
33489-441: Was very similar to the new Comiskey Park . However, President & CEO Larry Lucchino, turned it down preferring an old fashion ballpark with modern amenities. Lucchino hired Janet Marie Smith, an architect and city planner, to represent the team as Orioles Senior Vice President to execute his vision. The Baltimore-based firm Ashton Design was brought on to the project to develop the signage, graphics, illustrations and logos that dot
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