Ballparks

Since it is one of my goals to attend a home game for every MLB team, I have taken the time to visit as many ballparks as possible. People often ask which is my favorite. Although each park has something to recommend it, some are clearly better than others. So, I thought it would be a fun exercise to rank all of the ballparks I have attended (even those no longer in use). I will rank each venue on a scale of 1-10 (I was going to use Radical 2 to Pi, but my fingers don't count irrational numbers well) on a number of criteria.

Criteria:
***Tradition (The historic nature of the ballpark and any long-standing traditions)
***Amenities (Availability of parking, restrooms, and other services, as well as helpfulness of employees)
***Comfort (Seating and sightlines)
***Fan Base (Knowledgability and dedication of the fans at the ballpark)
***Quality of Baseball (Relative quality of the team over the past 20 years, with added emphasis on the past 5-10 years)
***Fun Factor (Games, mascots, promotions, etc.)
***Food (Variety and quality of food and beverage)
***Prices (Ticket, food, parking, etc.)
***Overall Look and Feel (DOUBLE WEIGHT) (Subjective impression -- does this feel like a baseball cathedral or a dump?)

The following ballparks will be ranked (listed in rough order of my first game attended):

• Comiskey Park (Chicago White Sox)
• Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs)
• Milwaukee County Stadium (Milwaukee Brewers)
• New Comiskey Park a/k/a the Evil Cell Phone Company Field (Chicago White Sox)
• The Metrodome (Minnesota Twins)
• (The Original) Busch Stadium (St. Louis Cardinals)
• Kauffman Stadium (Kansas City Royals)
• Tiger Stadium (Detroit Tigers)
• Jacobs Field a/k/a Evil Insurance Company Field (Cleveland Indians)
• Joe Robbie a/k/a Pro Player a/k/a Dolphin a/k/a Your Name Here Stadium (Florida Marlins)
• Riverfront Stadium a/k/a Whatever the Hell Cinergy is Field (Cincinnati Reds)
• Comerica Park (Detroit Tigers)
• Great American Ballpark (Cincinnati Reds)
• The Skydome a/k/a Rogers Centre (Toronto Blue Jays)
• Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Baltimore Orioles)
• Miller Park (Milwaukee Brewers)
• PNC Park (Pittsburgh Pirates)
• Yankee Stadium (New York Yankees)
• Shea Stadium (New York Mets)
• Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox)
• Nationals Park (Washington Nationals)
• Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia Phillies)

So, that's 22 ballparks, representing 18 MLB teams. Like any good countdown, we'll start at the bottom and work our way up. Stay tuned.