July 3, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Stadium groundbreaking in Miami

Great news from Mike Zurawski: "Construction on the Marlins new stadium started yesterday. I can't believe it. Its a miracle." Yes, sports fans, it's true: the bulldozers and road graders are busily excavating the land where the Orange Bowl used to stand, in preparation for work on the foundation It almost didn't happen, however, beause of a "last-minute $6 million shortfall." See MLB.com. The 37,000-seat retractable-roof stadium is expected to be completed by the 2012 season. They'll have to keep a pretty good pace to make that deadline. This takes some of the sting out of the final demolition of Tiger Stadium.

Outfield trigonometry

Motivated in part by recent controversies over outfield measurements, such as at New Yankee Stadium, I have added a new page on "Outfield Trigonometry", with an explanation about power alley measurements and loads of formulas and data tables you probably never thought you needed. It is a greatly enhanced version of a section that was formerly part of the Stadium Statistics page, which will soon be revised.

July 1, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Marlins sweep the Nationals again

Just when you think the Nationals are showing signs of life, they revert to their old habit of wasting solid outings by starting pitchers and throwing away run-scoring opportunities. They take an early lead, then their batters fall silent and Manny Acta decides to entrust the game's outcome to the bullpen, which gives up late-inning runs just about every time. On Tuesday night, pitcher Craig Stammen did a fine job, and even batted in two runs with a single. Adam Dunn's 20th home run added to the feeling that the Nats were going to overcome their jinx, but then the usual sequence of events unfolded, and they lost 7-5 in a rain-shortened game. Tonight (Wednesday) it was the same old, same old. It's not the way you want to start off a new month.

Somehow the Nats can't figure out how to beat the Florida Marlins, who have won all nine games against the "D.C. 9" this year. It's just like the Red Sox beating the Yankees in every matchup between the two teams. The Nationals have now lost 23 of their past 26 games to the Marlins, who are climbing toward the top of the NL East standings. Unlike most years, however, that's not saying much. They are now ahead of the Mets and only a half game behind the Phillies. (When was the last time the Mets were below .500 this late in the season?)

Nats make a deal

And not a moment too soon! The Nationals have traded their erstwhile closing pitcher Joel Hanrahan and outfielder Lastings Milledge to the Pittsburgh Pirates for reliever Sean Burnett and outfielder Nyjer Morgan, who has impressed a lot of people with his hustle and performance. As reported at MLB.com, "In seven games, Milledge, who was acquired from the Mets in December 2007 for catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church, was 4-for-24 with an RBI for the Nationals."

I was dubious of that trade at the time (see December 2007), and the fact that Church and Schneider have proved their worth to the Mets leaves little doubt that this was probably the worst trade that Jim Bowden ever made. That MLB.com article notes that Cristian Guzman is also "on the trading block," because of his mediocre fielding performance this year. He's a reliable hitter, but just doesn't have enough range to snag hard ground balls. After his wonderful comeback season last year, it's a big shame.

Finally, the Nationals sent their burly and enthusiastic but uneven outfielder-slugger Elijah Dukes down to the Triple-A Syracuse farm team for some "back-to-basic" instruction. I hope he can pull it together.

June 29, 2009 [LINK / comment]

PNC Park update

The PNC Park diagram has been revised in various ways -- some small, some not-so-small. Most importantly, the fence in right field is angled outward a few degrees more than I had estimated previously, and the stadium profile is much better than the crude original. A few other details are corrected as well, and details such as light towers and grandstand walkways are now included. Thanks to Mark London for his continued sponsorship of this page, and four others. The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that PNC Park is the best of all the neoclassical stadiums, of which Oriole Park at Camden Yards was the first. With any luck, I'll be able to provide a first-hand assessment in about five weeks...

Note that, for the time being, I have left the previous version of the "alternate" stadium configuration the way it was, so that you can more easily see what has been changed.

Also note that I have rescanned the panoramic under-construction photo of PNC Park, and added another photo I took while passing through Pittsburgh in August 2000.

Also note that I have updated the Dolphin Stadium page (but not the diagram) to reflect the new name, "Landshark Stadium." (It's just temporary, I assume.) The Nationals have just begun a three-game series against the Marlins, and Ryan Zimmerman started things off on a good note by crushing a long home run to the seats in left field.

St. Louis ballparks

There is a cool Google Maps application that shows where all past and present professional ballparks in St. Louis have been located, and you just click on the respective spots to see a video and photographic history. See St. Louis Times Dispatch; hat tip to Kevin McCann of SABR.

Baseball theology

I cited George Will yesterday with regard to the debate over health care, but this quote from his column is worth bringing to the attention of baseball fans:

Only God, supposedly, and Wrigley Field, actually, are perfect.

June 28, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Nationals beat the Orioles (once)

The heralded "Battle of the Beltway[s]" between Washington and Baltimore could just as well have been called the "Battle of the Basement Dwellers," as both the Nationals and Orioles are several games behind the fourth-place teams in their respective divisions. The Friday night game was a total embarrassment for the Nats, as their bullpen collapsed yet again, giving up eight runs in the sixth inning, as the O's won 11-1. It was the biggest margin of defeat the Nats have suffered this year. O Saturday they kept it relatively close, but wasted run-scoring opportunities once again. In this afternoon's game, John Lannan held the Orioles to only three runs in seven-plus innings. In the fourth inning, Ryan Zimmerman hit a double and Adam Dunn followed with a tape-measure home run that hit the warehouse building on one bounce. Budding outfield star Willie Harris added an insurance run with a homer in the same direction later in the game, as the Nats won 5-3, averting a sweep. See MLB.com.

Transactions of note

The Nationals have activated starting pitcher Scott Olsen who had been on the disabled list, and to make room for him, they sent Shairon Martis to the minor league farm club in Syracuse. See MLB.com. I was stunned to learn that one of the only five-game winning pitchers has lost his job, while the least reliable relief pitcher Jesus Colome gets to keep his. What gives???

The Nationals also traded outfielder Ryan Langerhans to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for infielder Mike Morse. This seemed like an odd move to me, because the Nats have a fair amount of depth in position players, but are extremely weak in pitching. It was mainly to give Langerhans an opportunity to play in the majors; see MLB.com. The only function I can see for Morse is as an emergency backup or to provide the front office with negotiating leverage with some of the other players; for now he'll be playing in the minors.

The Cleveland Indians traded verteran utility player Mark DeRosa to the Cardinals for right-handed reliever Chris Perez and a player to be named later. Unlike other trades of recent years (C.C. Sabathia comes to mind), this deal "brought the Indians an immediate Major League return, rather than a batch of prospects." See MLB.com. I saw DeRosa play when he was with the Richmond Braves in 1999, before he was called up to play with the Atlanta Braves. Over the years he has earned a reputation as a valuable team player, and he is steadily improving as a batter, with 13 home runs so far this year.

June 26, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Standing room only; Nats win!

It's been a long time since I've felt sorry for the Boston Red Sox, and even though they currently lead the AL East, I almost did during last night's game in Washington. The first inning must have been excruciating and quite humbling for their recently-acquired veteran pitcher John Smoltz, in his first start of the season. The Nationals scored four runs in the first inning, and could have easily scored even more. Then he settled down, but the Red Sox could not get anything going off the Nats' rookie starter Jordan Zimmermann. Once again, batters toward the end of the lineup provided most of the offensive firepower, and the Nationals won 9-3, averting a sweep. It was a very welcome change of pace: In only two games since June 2 have the Nats scored more than four runs.

Attendance at last night's game was 41,985, the highest ever at Nationals Park, and exactly 97 more than the official seating capacity of 41,888. Attendance at the first two games of the season was only a few hundred less, yielding a series total of 125,032.

Prior to this series, there had only been one game at Nationals Park in which attendance had exceeded 40,000: April 13, 2009, which was Opening Day. The highest-ever attendance for a three-game series in Washington was 134,991: June 16-18, 2006 when the Yankees came to town and lost two games. The highest-ever attendance for a four-game series in D.C. was 162,058: July 4-7, 2005 when the Mets won three games, marking the end of the Nats' "Cinderella (half) season." The following table summarizes home attendance for Nationals games over the nearly four and a half years of their existence:

Year	Maximum attendance	Minimum attendance	Average attendance	Wins when att. >40K	Losses when att. >40K
2005	45,596	23,332	33,584	6	5
2006	45,157	18,324	26,574	2	3
2007	40,519	15,611	24,219	1	1
2008	39,824	20,407	29,004	0	0
2009*	41,985	12,473	22,773	1	3

* So far. I'm still mad that attendance at the inaugural game at Nationals Park last year was 2,000 less than capacity, even though thousands of fans like me tried desperately to buy tickets online. More complete historical data are found on the Washington Nationals page.

A blogger from Arlington named Miles Grant went to the Red Sox-Nationals game at Nationals Park on Wednesday night, and was surprised to see a live Great Horned Owl on display. See The Green Miles.

Inside Tiger Stadium

Two weeks ago I asked if anyone knew whether there were rows of seats behind the second set of support beams in the lower deck at Tiger Stadium. It's so far back there in the shade that it's hard to tell from photos, and demolition photos are inconclusive. (I've only seen the outside of it.) Thanks to Bruce Orser, who came across a great photo of the left field stands at Digital Ballparks, I can definitively answer in the affirmative.

Tigers are on a roll

The Detroit Tigers are currently the hottest team in baseball, winning seven games straight, and now leading the AL Central Division by five games over the Minnesota Twins. The Tigers swept the Cubs in a three-game home series, drawing 42,332 fans to Comerica Park in the game on Thursday. See MLB.com. The Tigers now head to Houston, where the Astros are in fifth place in the NL Central Division.

(LSU) Tigers win CWS

Congratulations to the Louisiana State University Tigers for winning the 2009 College World Series in Omaha, taking two of three games in the final series from the Texas Longhorns. It is at least some consolation for University of Virginia fans that the Cavaliers played a respectable game against LSU, losing 9-5 on June 13.

Tiger Woods slowly heals

In the world of golf, Tiger Woods could not recover from a first-round score of four over par at the U.S. Open in Farmingdale, New York, and Lucas Glover edged out Phil Mickelson to take the 2009 championship. Tiger had knee surgery last year, and is still a bit weak but is playing better all the time. He is currently second in total winnings for the 2009 PGA tour, behind Phil Mickelson. See ESPN.

Tamil Tigers are crushed

In Sri Lanka, meanwhile, the ethnic rebel group known as the "Tamil Tigers" was decisively defeated last month, ending a 26-year civil war. They don't play baseball in Sri Lanka, but rather a quite peculiar sport called "cricket." Coincidentally, the Sri Lankan team was defeated by Pakistan in the International Cricket Championship just last Sunday; see srilankacricket.lk. Interestingly enough, the Sri Lankan national team is called the "Lions"! For the life of me, I cannot make heads or tails of the scoring system. Last March, Islamic terrorists attacked a bus carrying the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, Pakistan, killing several policemen and injuring several team members and a coach; see BBC.

June 24, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Stadium diagram update archives

It has often occurred to me that I should make it easier to track revisions to my stadium diagrams, some of which have gone through multiple generations. For serious research purposes, such documentation is crucial. With that in mind, I scoured my blog archives and put together a set of archive pages that systematically keep track of when I have updated stadium diagrams over the past five years. Regrettably, my "blogging" prior to late 2004 was not consistent enough to serve as a reliable source of information on exactly when I made changes. See the 2009 stadium update page, which is (for now) equivalent to the "default" stadium update page. There are links for each of the separate annual pages, 2005 - 2009, each of which has a set of thumbnail images in the right-hand column showing the "Highlights of the year." Those are either brand-new stadium pages, or else ones which underwent major revisions. I am not certain that the listed updates are complete, but it's the best information that I have at present.

Going through all those archives was quite a "trip down memory lane," and yielded a few surprises. For example, I had forgotten how my political activities in 2007 had interfered with my baseball research work. Likewise, the number of times that I updated the diagrams for Yankee Stadium and Tiger Stadium over the years is hard to believe. But hey, Rome wasn't built in a day, and there is a lot of trial and error involved in getting things just right.

"Put your red on" ??

The promotional campaign to get D.C.-area baseball fans to "Put your red on" as a gesture of support for the lowly Washington Nationals is nice, but often inappropriate. Earlier this month, the Cincinnati Reds came to town, and would have swept the Nats if not for a throwing error by second baseman Brandon Phillips that allowed Cristian Guzman to score the go-ahead run. This week the Boston Red Sox are in town, and the house was almost packed with fans of the visiting team last night, with an attendance of 41,517, even more than on Opening Day. It was encouraging that John Lannan had yet another very solid outing, giving up only three runs in six-plus innings. It was a very close and exciting game against a daunting opponent. But of course, once they brought in the relievers, everything fell apart, and the Red Sox scored six runs in the eighth inning. Arghhhh! Final score: 11-3.

No go for "P.G. United"

By happenstance, I recently learned that the Prince George's County council voted 8-0 against the proposed soccer stadium deal with D.C. United, which pretty much kills the whole project. See the Washington Business Journal. This is good news as far as I'm concerned, as Maryland already has FedEx Field, home of the "Washington" Redskins, as well as their own baseball and football stadiums. This will also obviate the awkward necessity of having to rename the team from "D.C. United" to "P.G. United." The franchise bosses are not giving up the fight, however: see the D.C. United Web site. What this means for RFK Stadium, their home since 1996, remains uncertain. It would be nice if they could somehow downsize and refit RFK to make it more suitable for soccer, possibly tearing down large portions of the upper deck, but that would seem to be very difficult from an engineering standpoint, and quite unlikely.

More hockey arena news

You thought I had given up on hockey news? No, siree! Mike Zurawski informed me that Madison Square Garden (home of the NHL New York Rangers and NBA Knicks) will undergo a renovation that is estimated to cost about $500 million. They will widen the concourses, add more bathrooms, and build new corporate boxes. See New York Daily News. "MSG" (not monosodium glutamate) sits on top of the "new" Penn Station, which replaced its grandiose predecessor that was built in 1910 and closed in 1964. For another "trip down memory lane," see forgotten-ny.com.

Madison Square Garden, which upon closer inspection, actually appears to be round, not square!! (Taken during my trip to the Big Apple last October; see Photo gallery.)

June 22, 2009 [LINK / comment]

City size and baseball attendance

I have updated the Baseball cities reference page, which shows the relationship between population and attendance at Major League Baseball games for the last eight years, summarized in the following chart:

The five largest metropolitan areas are labeled, as well as St. Louis and Montreal. The red data points for the Washington-Baltimore area highlight the effect of the relocation of the former Montreal Expos franchise to Washington in 2005, which yielded a 1.0 million net increase in annual Major League Baseball attendance. That page also includes data on stadium capacity.

Attendance trends

The data on attendance displayed on that page reveal which cities have been most successful in drawing fans to see ball games over the past few years:

1. Washington Nationals: +21.9%
2. Texas Rangers: +10.7%
3. Philadelphia Phillies: +9.6%
4. New York Mets: +7.6%
5. Chicago White Sox: +7.3%
6. Los Angeles Angels: +6.9%
7. Toronto Blue Jays: +5.3%

The Washington data are "inflated" by the comparison to Montreal, where attendance was abysmal during the last few years of the Expos. Two cities, in contrast, show marked declines in attendance during the current decade:

1. Seattle Mariners: -6.1%
2. Baltimore Orioles: -5.4%

Too many empty seats

One clear pattern stands out when you look at the earlier "neoclassical" stadiums, the ones that were built during the 1990s: Nearly all of them were too big. Every one of the following ballparks has an excess capacity of at least 5,000 seats.

• Orioles Park at Camden Yards (1992): 48,000
• Rangers Ballpark in Arlington (1994): 49,000
• Coors Field (1995): 50,000
• Turner Field (1997): 50,000
• Chase Field / "Bank One Ballpark" (1998): 49,000
• Safeco Field (1999): 47,000

The only ballpark from that era that was not too big was Jacobs Field / "Progressive Field" (1994), with a capacity of 43,368. You could also add to that list U.S. Cellular Field, a.k.a. "Comiskey Park" when it opened in 1991. Its original capacity of about 45,000 later grew by about 2,000, but then shrank to about 41,000 seats in 2004, to about where it should be.

June 20, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Ballpark in Arlington update

I have updated the (Rangers) Ballpark in Arlington diagram, partly in response to a request from Mike Zurawski and partly because of some great photos submitted to me by Joe Johnston. They were taken at a Rangers-Yankees game in May. Click on the panorama (which I stitched together from three separate shots) below to see the full-size version.

Now, is that an awesome view, or what!!?? It makes me want to run out and buy a ticket for the game right now. Except all that sun in Texas this time of year might be hard to take. Why in the world didn't they build a bigger roof on that stadium, to keep more fans in the shade??? Anyway, thanks very much for the fine photo, Joe!

It is worth mentioning that the Rangers are in first place right now, a half game ahead of the Angels in the AL West. Perhaps this year they will finally overcome their "underachiever" status and make a postseason appearance.

Target Field progress

In Minneapolis, they are already installing the seats and furnishings for the various club suites, etc., as you can see from the photo galleries at the Minnesota Ballpark Authority; hat tip to Bruce Orser. At this rate, the Twins might be ready to move in to their new home by the end of the season. (Very doubtful.) They are only two games behind the Tigers in the AL Central Division, and seem poised to make yet another postseason bid.

Nats win three straight

It is too early to say whether they are out of their historically dismal slump, but the three consecutive wins by the Washington Nationals is more than just a fluke. Ironically, their formerly red-hot hitters have been ice cold lately, and Ryan Zimmerman's average has fallen to less than .310, probably dooming his chances of making the All Star Game. The Nats won two out of three games in New Yankee Stadium, their first series win since early May (against Arizona). (Bruce Orser informed me that Adam Dunn's towering home run actually only went 403, not as far as I thought.) Back at home in D.C., the Nationals beat the Toronto Blue Jays last night, 2-1, their first extra-inning win of the season. It's a relief to be playing well for the home crowd once again. Let's just hope it lasts.

June 18, 2009 [LINK / comment]

U.Va.: (very) close but no cigar

The University of Virginia Cavaliers baseball team snatched defeat from the jaws of victory not once, not twice, not even three times, but four times last night, as the Arkansas Razorbacks finally prevailed in the 12th inning to stay alive in the College World Series. In the top of the ninth, with U.Va. (playing as home team) leading 3-1, there were two outs and two strikes on Zack Cox, who managed to hit a single. Then the very next batter, Brett Eibner, hit a home run to tie the game. All across Virginia, fans' spirits were instantly deflated. But even so, the Cavs got going right away in the bottom of the ninth, loading the bases with only one out. Then Danny Hultzen grounded into a double play, sending the game into extra innings. Arghhh! The same situation came about in the tenth inning, and this time Jarrett Parker and John Hicks struck out to end the inning. (Both of those guys had multiple hits and multiple strikeouts in this marathon game.) U.Va. runners made it to third base in the 11th and 12th innings as well, but it was all for naught. The one run in the top of the 12th was all Arkansas needed to win the game, by a score of 4-3. I was following the play by play on the NCAA Web site, which uses the CBS College Sports Game Tracker. It compares favorably to MLB's Game Day online service, but the updates were often agonizingly slow. For the full wrap-up see virginiasports.com.

And so, the "Cinderella" year for the Cavaliers comes to an end, as Destiny passes them by. You have to give those guys and their manager (Head Coach) Brian O'Connor a lot of credit for relentlessly plugging away, even if the final outcome was hard to take. As for who's left in the College World Series, you can keep up with the latest results on the NCAA bracket at ncaa.com.

Nationals beat the Yanks

It was small consolation that one of my favorite teams won for the second straight night in New Yankee Stadium last night. This time, however, it was the Washington Nationals ... believe it, or not! Adam Dunn smashed a home run (#18) so far beyond the right field wall that it almost cleared the bleachers! They clung to a slim lead and defeated the Yankees, 3-2, as John Lannan went 8 1/3 innings, a superlative performance. (Poor Chien-Ming Wang, 0-5!) See MLB.com.

Stadium rankings update

I have updated my purely subjective Stadium rankings page, which has a new column showing when the last time I have visited each of the respective ballparks. It includes rankings for New Yankee Stadium and Citi Field for the first time. Of course, my opinions won't count for much until I'll actually been inside them. Speaking of which, I'm hoping to be at PNC Park in early August when the Nationals visit the Pirates, and if all goes well, I'll also see the Metrodome (in its last year with the Twins), as well as Coors Field, and possibly one of the Chicago ballparks. That means I'll probably have to put off seeing games in the new stadiums in New York until next year.

NOTE: Because different Web browser programs work differently, the columns on that page may not line up exactly for some people. If that's a problem for you, please let me know, indicating which operating system and program you are using. Thanks.

The mail bag

Paul Naprstek brought to my attention some details about when the seats at Wrigley Field were reconfigured, which I'll have to look into. And long-time fan of this site Rob Stevens sends friendly kudos for pointing out the differences between New and Old Yankee Stadiums. I'm sure this will be getting more attention in the near future. Finally, another long-time fan, Joe Johnston, sent some fantastic photos of Rangers' Ballpark in Arlington. Stay tuned!

Sosa tested positive

This shouldn't surprise anyone, but drug tests on Sammy Sosa have indicated the presence of banned substances, notwithstanding his strong denial when testifying before Congress. See the New York Times; hat tip to Bruce Orser.

June 16, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Home runs in New Yankee Stadium

The general public is gradually starting to realize something that I began pointing out over a year ago: that, contrary to numerous official announcements, New Yankee Stadium is not a virtual carbon copy of Old (or Renovated) Yankee Stadium in terms of the outfield configuration. In fact, the distance to the fence in right center field is markedly closer than it was in the old stadium, about 18 feet, according to my estimates. This is the reason for the huge increase in home runs at the new stadium, not the weather. Indeed, AccuWeather.com

analyzed the 29 games played and the 105 home runs hit at the new Stadium and determined that 20 of those home runs, all hit to right or right-center field, would not have been home runs at the old Stadium across the street.

See MLB.com; I cite AccuWeather.com below. I believe the current home run total at NYS is 115, about twice as many as there were last year at OYS (or RYS, if you wish). That article spells out something about which I wasn't sure until now: the height of the outfield fence is eight feet, two feet less than at OYS. So, the vaunted successor to the House That Ruth Built seems to be a measly little band box, a veritable home run heaven for left-handed hitters. In a way, however, that is actually closer to what Yankee Stadium was like in the old old days, before the tragic renovations of 1976. It's just that the Yankees can't exploit the superiority they used to enjoy with left-handed sluggers, especially Ruth and (switch-hitter) Mantle.

There was a similar story at Yahoo Sports [link via Bruce Orser]: "The new Yankee Stadium is a lot of things that the New York Yankees expected when they planned it. No one fathomed it would be the park that could break Coors Field's stranglehold on the single-season home run record of 303 in 1999." No one?

See, I told you so!

While it is true that I made no firm predictions about how many home runs there would be at New Yankee Stadium, I did make it clear more than once over a year before it opened that the right field fence was going to be closer than in the old stadium. In response to an e-mail message from a fan named Marcus Gilbert in February 2008 I wrote,

The dimensions of the new Yankee Stadium are not as close to those of the original as has been claimed. More to the point, the right field fence is parallel to the third base line, whereas the fence angles outward in the current version.

I first released a preliminary rendering of New Yankee Stadium in March 2008. This past January I wrote,

The Yankees want everyone to think that the outfield dimensions will be the same as at the old Yankee Stadium, but unless I have been misled by some of the blueprint images I've seen, that is definitely not the case in the power alleys.

And of course, anyone who has browsed this Web site and compared the new and old stadiums on either of those pages would see this right away. To make this 100% clear for everyone, I have come up with the following overlay diagram comparing the two Yankee Stadiums:

This close-up image of right field in New Yankee Stadium is overlaid with the outline of Old (or Renovated) Yankee Stadium, showing how much closer the fence in right center field is now than before. The red-shaded area -- in play last year, but beyond the fence now -- is the "bulls-eye" for would-be home run hitters.

Don't blame the weather

One of the lamest excuses from the Yankees front office for all the home runs at New Yankee Stadium is the difference in wind currents. Well, that "urban legend" is falling by the wayside. There are a lot of gullible fans out there, but slowly the truth is getting out. Curiously, I had a hard time finding the widely-reported story at AccuWeather.com, but did find what Bernie Rayno wrote there on April 21:

The old Yankee stadium had more vertically stacked tiers and a large upper deck, acting like a solid wall in effect, which would cause the wind to swirl more and be less concentrated. The new Yankee stadium's tiers are less stacked, making a less sharp slope from the top of the stadium to the field. This shape could enable winds to blow across the field with less restriction. In addition, the slope of the seating would also lead to a "downslope" effect in the field which, depending on wind direction, would tend to cause air to lift up in the right field. Fly balls going into right field during a gusty west wind would be given more of a lift thus carrying the ball farther out into right field.

In other words, AccuWeather.com was itself part of the "spin machine" that kept alive that false notion, hence their apparent eagerness to rectify the true situation. As far as the possibility that the different shape of the grandstand may affect wind currents, these enlarged profiles illustrate this point more clearly:

It would take a huge amount of effort to measure wind in various locations to determine whether that phenomenon is a real one or not. At Candlestick Park, there was a similar belief that the 1972 enlargement, enclosing the outfield with a double-decked grandstand, affected winds, but I don't think there has been definitive proof of such an assertion.

Yankee Stadium II update

With all of these things in mind, I've made a revision to the New Yankee Stadium diagram, yet another change in plans in response to real-world news. Compared to the earlier version, the upper deck is a few rows deeper and the profile about 6-8 feet higher altogether. Also, the second deck seems to be even less steep than I thought before, with a slope of about 16 degrees rather than 18 degrees, but I may need to check other sources before deciding for sure. There is no change in the shape of the field, the first deck, or the bleachers. For the time being, I have left my proposed alternative configuration (with the outfield fences pushed back 10-15 feet) the way it is, so you can see which parts of the diagram were revised.

And just for the record, the difference in the outfield fence distances is so great that it is even apparent in these scaled-down thumbnail images.

Nats in the Big Apple

And speaking of the New Yankee Stadium, the forlorn, luckless, leaderless Washington Nationals begin a three-game series at New York tonight. The Nats' best starting pitcher Shairon Martis (5-1) faces some guy named C.C. Sabathia with a slightly worse record (5-4), so it should be a pretty even matchup ... NOT! Well, at least the Nats' left-handed slugger Adam Dunn ought to be good for a few more home runs in cozy little New Yankee Stadium. At 17 for the year, he is currently five behind the three league leaders. WUSA-TV's Brett Haber just said that if the Nationals sweep the Yankees, Manny Acta might get to keep his job.

The mail bag

I've fallen behind in communications once again, but have received from very helpful input recently from Bruce Orser, John Pastier (author of the superb reference book Ballparks Yesterday and Today), Ron Selter, Jonathan Veilleux, and Cesar Gomez, who sent me some Citi Field photos. (Stay tuned.) Plus, I still have some ballpark photos to post from John Minor. And that's not including the (friendly) flak I got for my feeble attempts at discussing hockey! Mike Zurawski disputes my contention about the historical status of hockey arenas, citing Lambeau Field (Green Bay Packers) and Soldier Field (Chicago Bears). Possibly, but those are exceptional cases, and I don't recall a big fans' movement to keep Soldier Field looking the way it used to when they did that horrible renovation to it several years ago. (To my surprise, Mike approves of that renovation.) My point was more about fans, that hockey fans are more nostalgic about their "home ice" than football fans are about their home fields.

Hockey update

Speaking of hockey, did I ever mention that I used to ice skate? At least I think so. I'd better check my sources first.

June 15, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Can Manny Acta keep his job?

After the Washington Nationals were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays this weekend, speculation is mounting that Manny Acta will get fired in a matter of days. When the MLB.com Web site is part of the rumor mill, you know the guy's in trouble. At the Nationals Journal (blog) on washingtonpost.com, there was a flood of fan input, and here is what I posted:

Acta seems like he knows what he's doing, and he is well liked by the team, so I'd really like to give him more of a chance. However, the team's record is worse than anyone could have imagined, and it's not just bad luck. All the evidence points to Acta's extreme ineffectiveness in terms of motivating the players. His laid-back style is just not suited for getting out of the team's current predicament. The "hand he was dealt" is not really that bad; the Nats have some very good hitters, and even the young starting pitchers are decent. They just don't play well as a team, but rather keep wasting run-scoring opportunities. Unless he changes his attitude and his players' attitudes immediately, which is unlikely, there is no point in postponing the inevitable. Fans in Washington deserve better, and since you can't fire the team, I'm afraid Manny will have to take the fall.

Nats head to The Bronx

The Nationals are currently 16-45, an abysmal .262 in percentage terms, and are now so far behind the rest of the MLB that it's not even funny. They had an awful start to the season, losing 10 of their first 11 games, but from late April through early May they played respectably, winning 9 and losing 8, thus giving us hope. Since May 10, however, they have lost 27 games while winning only 6, and now are on track to out-do the 2003 Detroit Tigers, who went 43-119 for the season (.265). (Hey, three years later they were in the World Series!) Tomorrow they head to New Yankee Stadium, where the visiting Mets were clobbered yesterday, 15-0. I shudder to think what will happen to the "D.C. 9," but at least those are my two favorite teams, so I'll be happy whoever wins. Besides, the Yankees need to catch up to the Red Sox!

Historic hockey arenas

One interesting aspect of the recent Stanley Cup playoff is that the "home ices" of both teams are rather old. The Pittsburgh Penguins' Mellon Arena is currently the oldest hockey arena, built in 1961. I saw it once, and wondered what the heck that igloo-shaped thing was. The "Civic Center" was originally built with the stipulation that it serve as a venue for symphony concerts, but the acoustics were lousy, so they built something better a few years later.

Two especially historic hockey arenas were abandoned in the 1990s: Maple Leaf Gardens (in Toronto) was built in 1931 and closed in 1999, replaced by Air Canada Centre, and Boston Garden (home of the Bruins since 1928) was closed in 1995, replaced by the Fleet Center, soon to be renamed TD Garden. Maple Leaf Gardens is still standing, whereas Boston Garden was demolished in 1997. Those arenas both held dear places in fans' hearts, and in that respect there is a nostalgic parallel between baseball and hockey that does not really exist with either football or basketball. [OK, maybe Celtics fans had a strong attachment to Boston Garden, but I don't know of other examples.] Here are the oldest hockey arenas that remain in NHL use:

Mellon Arena*	Pittsburgh	Penguins	1961
Madison Square Garden (IV)	New York	Rangers	1968
Rexall Centre*	Edmonton	Oilers	1974
Joe Louis Arena	Detroit	Red Wings	1979

* Name changed. Am I presenting this information as a way to make it up to hockey fans for my factual goof about the Detroit Red Wings? Quite possibly.

Cavs are still alive

In an upset, the U.Va. Cavaliers beat California State at Fullerton (#2 seed) this afternoon, 7-5, thereby remaining in contention for the 2009 College World Series championship. The Cavs lost 9-5 to the LSU Tigers on Saturday in the double-elimination tournament. See ncaa.com.

June 13, 2009 [LINK / comment]

College World Series 2009

The University of Virginia Cavaliers baseball team plays its first-ever College World Series game this evening, going against the LSU Tigers. If you look at the list of eight teams that qualified, you may notice a certain regional pattern. As the Washington Post pointed out, "This year, Virginia is the northernmost school in a field that includes Louisiana State, Cal-State Fullerton, Arkansas, North Carolina, Arizona State, Texas and Southern Mississippi." Location matters, indeed.

To a large extent, this built-in climate advantage for southern universities is permanent. One possible solution that would have collateral budgetary and academic benefits should be considered, however: Moving the standard university schedule forward by two weeks. Instead of the present spring semester lasting from mid-January until early May, you would go from early February until the end of May. For institutions in the north, that would save a great deal on heating bills. Schools that offer an intensive one-month term in May could simply move that to January, which would be more appropriate for travel to places like Latin America in any case. In most universities, summer school would remain essentially as it is.

Anyway, it's been fun watching TV reports of the U.Va. players getting treated like big stars, signing autographs for fans at Rosenblatt Stadium. Let's hope this charmed season ends on a happy note.

More fallout in Detroit

It seems that demolition at Tiger Stadium has taken a pause, but it's too late to turn back now, so don't get your hopes up. I know that some fans think that Tiger Stadium was overrated, and I [wouldn't] dispute that it had its share of faults. It was, however, an authentic embodiment of a baseball experience that few Americans can get any more, and I share the feelings of Detroit fans who mourn its passing.

In the National Hockey League Stanley Cup final game last night, the Detroit Red Wings squandered their home advantage and lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins, 2-1. Is this an example of bad karma, as a form of divine retribution for the sacrilege of gutting a "green cathedral"? Detroit has not won a hockey championship since 1955, whereas Pittsburgh has won twice, in 1991 and 1992. In Pittsburgh, meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers beat the Pirates, 3-1. How ironic is that?

Tiger fan blogger John Parent has a "final goodbye to Tiger Stadium." Like the author Tom Stanton, whom I mentioned yesterday, John really "gets it" when it comes to understanding the true value of old ballparks.

In identifying those individuals in Detroit most at fault for the needless demise of Tiger Stadium, I should have mentioned George Jackson, head of the Economic Development Corp. He was named one of the "worst persons in the world" by the often-opinionated (to put it mildly) Keith Olbermann of MS-NBC. In an interview on WJR radio, Jackson called Tiger Stadium an "icon of urban blight." Links via [PreserveTigerStadium.com].

This enlarged profile of Tiger Stadium more clearly illustrates my conjecture that, in at least some parts of it, there were a few rows of seats behind the second set of support beams. If anyone who has been to a game there know for sure, please let me know.

Used stadium for sale

Tiger Stadium is not the only abandoned major sporting venue in the Detroit area, and this surplus inventory may have raised pressure on officials to "liquidate" their stock. In the far-out suburb of Pontiac, the once-gleaming Silverdome sits all alone in a vast, weedy parking lot. Like Cuba, in a way, it serves as a monument to human folly. Last year a developer offered to buy it for $20 million, but the mayor of Pontiac, Clarence Phillips, objected on the grounds that the guys' finances were too shaky. The city is paying $1.5 million a year to maintain the Silverdome, most of which is for electricity to keep the dome inflated. See the Detroit Free Press. (They had the same problem at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, South Dakota, which is why they replaced the inflatable roof with a rigid structure a few years ago.)

Believe it or not, there was a proposal last year to create a "Global Baseball League" consisting of 10-12 countries that would have played most or all its games in the Silverdome beginning in April 2009. See sportsology.info. As far as I know, this hare-brained scheme didn't pan out.

Bosox sweep the Yanks

With all the baseball activity in Detroit and Omaha this week, I didn't pay due attention to what was going on in Boston. It's just as well, the way things turned out. The Red Sox have beat the Yankees in all eight games so far this year, and have now taken over first place in the AL East from the Yankees.

June 12, 2009 [LINK / comment]

Tiger Stadium memorial update

At "The Corner" (Michigan and Trumbull) in Detroit, the demolition crews are busy doing their dirty deeds, and the front portion of the upper deck is now mostly gone, as is the northwest edge of what was left of the grandstand. It was a sad week indeed in Motor City. Well, at least Chrysler was saved from extinction, thanks to a judge's ruling that approved the partial buyout of the corporation by FIAT. And at least the Detroit Red Wings are giving fans something to cheer about this evening. (Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals has just begun, in Detroit.)

In recognition of the old ballpark and everything that it represented, I have made some corrections and enhancements to the diagrams on the Tiger Stadium page. After squinting long and hard at various photographs, I determined that the upper deck had 26 rows (including the lateral aisle), not 28 as I thought before. However, it appears from some demolition photos that I've seen that in at least some parts of the stadium (away from the diamond), the lower deck extended back a few rows. In other words, the very back seats may have been obstructed by two sets of support beams, like at the Polo Grounds. The 1934 version diagram has a more accurate rendition of the huge bleacher section that covered what used to be Cherry Street beyond the left field wall; hence my estimate of a center field distance of only 397 feet for 1934-1935. I realized that those bleachers extended onto the field, except for a sliver of land in the left field corner. It must have been murder for left fielders who had to chase balls hit there. [One of the biggest changes is based on a more accurate estimate of the backstop distance: In Phil Lowry's Green Cathedrals, it gives a figure of 66 feet since 1955, and 54 feet before that. After looking at a variety of aerial photos, however, I put the distance at just about 60 feet, maybe a couple feet less. Making this change affected the rest of the grandstand, greatly reducing the amount of foul territory, among other things.]

The saga, in retrospect

When the history of the failure of the historical preservation movement in Detroit is written, some may ask about the lack of big-name celebrity support for the cause. Where was renowned Tigers fan Tom Selleck? What about musical stars from Michigan like Ted Nugent, Glenn Frey (of the Eagles), or Smokey Robinson? Or what about do-gooder par excellence Jeff Daniels or left-wing curmudgeon Michael Moore?? Well, I guess a "Live Aid"-style telethon for this cause might have seemed a little silly to most people.

In any event, here are the crucial events leading to the final demolition:

• April 2008: Detroit's Economic Development Corporation sets a preservation fund-raising deadline of June 1, or else demolition will begin.
• June: City extends the deadline to August 1, as Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy steps up fund-raising.
• July: Partial demolition begins, prior to deadline.
• August: Demolition proceeds rapidly.
• September: Demolition pauses, giving preservationists more time to save the one-third of the stadium that still remains.
• November: Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy and the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation signed a Memorandum of Understanding.
• January 2009: Michigan legislature passes tax credits dedicated to the redevelopment of Tiger Stadium, worth at least $4 million.
• June: A judge grants a temporary restraining order, but preservationists fail to convince Economic Development Corporation, and the final demolition resumes.

You can also follow the tragic demolition step by step in photographs, at aerialpics.com.

Book: The Final Season

On the Tiger Stadium page, I also cited a very good book by Tom Stanton about what that stadium really meant: The Final Season: Fathers, Sons, and One Last Season in a Classic American Ballpark (Thomas Dunne Books, 2001). Mr. Stanton decided to mark the final season of the stadium (1999) by attending every single Tigers home game there. He took along his father and other close family and friends as a way of bringing back childhood memories. The book chapters are interspersed with inspiring tales of hardships in the Great Depression, World War II, and Detroit's turbulent decline beginning in the 1960s. It's a lot like Tom Brokaw's tribute book The Greatest Generation, but from a baseball fan's perspective. Take a look at Amazon.com or see the author's Web site: www.tomstanton.com.

Coolest video EVER!

Some extremely clever guy strapped a video camera onto a radio-controlled airplane, and took a video of Tiger Stadium in 2006. The quality is better than you'd expect, and I actually noticed some details that helped me in getting the diagram just right.

I got Baseball Fever

Here is my second-ever posting on baseball-fever.com:

We can debate how much of a loss Tiger Stadium is to baseball posterity, or whether it was better than Comerica Park or not, but what bothers me is the sudden, surreptitious way the final phase of the demolition came about. The OTSC folks were caught off guard by the economic development folks last week, in spite of having a (semi-)solid plan on the table. Preservationists made a good-faith effort, and were "rewarded" with a sneak attack by those whose motives are not yet clear, but probably sinister. They knew they had to act quickly once that vote was cast last week before the pro-Tiger Stadium forces could rally, and the wrecking crews were on standby alert like it was a military operation. It's kind of like when the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939, or perhaps like when the Baltimore Colts packed their bags in the middle of the night and moved to Indianapolis in 1984.

In case you're wondering, for several weeks after signing up with Baseball Fever, I was prevented from posting any comments by their anti-spam measures, which I fully understand. Somebody contacted me to let me know that I had finally been approved, which I appreciate.

June 10, 2009 [LINK / comment]

It's Doomsday in Detroit

The proverbial "Fat Lady" is singing in Motown, which is to say, it's all over for Tiger Stadium. At the hearing on Monday, the judge found that the preservationist movement had already had enough time to raise sufficient funds, but had failed. Thomas Linn, of the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy, said there will be no further appeals. Even though that organization has been paying for security at the site for the last few months, and even though other city development projects are behind schedule because of funding shortfalls, the authorities refused to give Tiger Stadium a break. And within hours, the wrecking crews went back to work. For further gory details, see the Detroit Free Press and/or ESPN, and for some insightful commentary, read Mary Kramer; as she asks, "why the rush?" (The latter links via Bruce Orser.)

How could such a terrible, short-sighted injustice happen? Well, most people in Detroit right now are a lot more worried about whether the Chrysler Corporation will survive than about sports, so their attention is probably diverted. And for those who are paying attention to sports, they are probably less interested in historical preservation than in the Detroit Tigers, who have surged into first place in the AL Central Division, or the Detroit Red Wings hockey team, which will play against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the seventh and deciding game of the NHL Stanley Cup championship series on Friday night. Anyway, it is a huge, monumental travesty that this cause been singled out for harsh treatment by the city officials and judicial authorities. If you ask me, there are ulterior motives at play behind the scenes. Here are the most likely suspects:

• Frederick Berg, attorney for Economic Development Corp.
• Mayor Dave Bing
• Judge Prentis Edwards

As one consequence of this sudden, unexpected tragedy, I have moved Tiger Stadium to the head of my queue of works in progress. Stay tuned.

For the record, I made some very small tweaks to the Coors Field diagrams which I released yesterday.

Nationals draft Strasburg

For most baseball fans, the biggest news yesterday was the 2009 amateur baseball draft.As expected, the Washington Nationals picked Stephen Strasburg. The Nationals are in such bad shape right now, pitching-wise, that they are likely to rush him into service by the end of this season. Whoa! Give the guy time to adapt to major league baseball before you ruin his confidence, please! Strasburg is reputed to throw the ball 103 miles an hour, which if true stretches the limits of human ability. They also drafted another promising pitcher, Drew Storen, the number ten pick. In fact, they already signed him to a contract. See MLB.com. As far as Strasburg's salary, I have heard a figure as high as #10 million, which is ridiculous for a rookie, no matter how good he is. The Nationals front office was criticized -- rightly -- last year for taking so long to sign their draft picks to contracts, but in this case they need to think very seriously about long-term plans and budgeting. Strasburg may turn out to be as good as they say, but it would be foolish to join the herd in the bidding war. They could regret it later, like the Giants regretted signing Barry Zito to a multi-year megabucks contract.

As that article states, the last two pitchers who played in the major leagues the same season they were drafted were David Clyde (Rangers, 1973) and Ben McDonald (Orioles, 1989). Remember them? Me neither. See what I mean?

Boaters Citi Field

Mike Quindlen let me know about a special transportation option that is available to Mets fans in New York: "There is a marina walking distance from Citi Field. It's called World's Fair Marina. They charge a dollar a foot to dock your boat there for the day. For example, I have a 22 foot boat so it's $22 dollars. It beats the hell out of traffic and costs about the same because you don't have to pay tolls. Granted, fuel is probably more but it's a wonderful experience..." I know the Nationals are planning something like that for the future, as the Anacostia River waterfront is cleaned up and redeveloped, but it may take years. Obviously, there are plenty of boating fans in McCovey's Cove at AT&T Park, but I wonder if the same setup exists at Pittsburgh or Cincinnati. Does anybody out there know?

June 9, 2009 [LINK / comment]

The 'Hoos go to Omaha!

Unless you live in Virginia, the nickname "Wahoos" (or "'Hoos" for short) may not be familiar to you. But if the U.Va. baseball team keeps winning as they head to the College World Series in Omaha later this week, the rest of the country will learn real fast. The University's football and basketball teams have shown occasional moments of excellence over the past couple decades, but they usually fall short when the day of the Big Game comes. Maybe the baseball team will do better. U.Va. overcame the heartbreaking extra-inning loss to Ole Miss on Friday, and won the next two games over the weekend, earning their first-ever berth to the Final Eight series in Omaha. It's a double elimination tournament, not really a "world series" per se, however. The final series is a three-game matchup between the top two remaining teams. The Cavaliers play against the LSU Tigers this Saturday night. See virginiasports.com.

Coors Field update

The Coors Field diagrams have been revised, showing the lights, and with greater detail in the profiles. There are a couple corrections in the angles of the grandstand. That page also features four fine photos from John Minor, taken on a sunny day in Denver. "Rocky Mountain High...."

Coincidentally, or not, the Rockies just finished a remarkable triumphant four-game sweep on the road in St. Louis. They are still in last place in the NL West, but the Cardinals have been toppled from the top spot in the NL Central, giving way to the Brewers.

Nats demote Hanrahan

After giving him a second chance, hoping against hope, the Washington Nationals have replaced Joel Hanrahan with Mike MacDougal as their closer. I'm sorry to say it, but it's about time. See MLB.com. The Nats open a three-game series against Cincinnati this evening, but bad weather may force yet another change of schedule.