tev c, peekskill, NY -- May 11, 2009 10:15 AM
5 visit(s). My rating: 9
Citi field is the best ballpark in Major league baseball.I went there on april 18,may 6, and may 10,when jose reyes got his 300 steal of his mlb life time,and Livan Hernandez's 150 win of his mlb lifetime.The size of the home run apple is HUGE.The old apple is located in the center field gate.Behind the main scoreboard in center field is the fan fest.They have a dunk tank, a Wifferball field,Batting & pitching cages, and a Video game area where you can go head to head vs another player. There is so much to eat. The hallways are big and roomy and upstairs the food lines were much shorter.You can walk around the whole stadium.
tev c, peekskill, NY -- May 11, 2009 10:16 AM
5 visit(s). My rating: 9
Citi field is the best ballpark in Major league baseball.I went there on april 18,may 6, and may 10,when jose reyes got his 300 steal of his mlb life time,and Livan Hernandez's 150 win of his mlb lifetime.The size of the home run apple is HUGE.The old apple is located in the center field gate.Behind the main scoreboard in center field is the fan fest.They have a dunk tank, a Wifferball field,Batting & pitching cages, and a Video game area where you can go head to head vs another player. There is so much to eat. The hallways are big and roomy and upstairs the food lines were much shorter.You can walk around the whole stadium.
Cesar G, East Elmhurst, NY -- May 15, 2009 18:11 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
Citi Field surpasses Shea in virtually every category you can think of. Positives include the Jackie Robinson rotunda, an open view of the bullpen, better lighting, a cozier environment, and much better food. A note for those who plan on going at some point, nothing beats the Shake Shack.
Yet there are some things that I do not like. There really isn't anything that pays tribute to the great Mets players of the past and their championship teams, the fences are ridiculously high to go along with their deeper dimensions, the overhang is a bit unnecessary, and there are amenities available (spa, bar, restaurants, etc.) that do not belong in a ballpark. Just stick to baseball, please.
As a Met fan, it's refreshing to see something that surpasses Shea in every way possible. Of course there are some drawbacks here and there, but that's a Met fan's opinion. To the general fan of the game and its ballparks, Citi Field is a great place to watch baseball, and it will remain so for many years to come.
James Locopo, Garden City, NY -- Jan 21, 2010 13:39 PM
2 visit(s). My rating: 5
I really wanted to hate Eb-debts Field as I am sick of the Mets' ownership thinking that we would all be rather rooting for the Brooklyn Dodgers or that other former New York National League team (Titans? Bigthingys? Giants?). Yeah...I'm 45 and the Dodgers and Giants moved six years before I was born so only someone who was 60+ can truly remember them...in other words, not many anymore. The Mets have almost 50 years of history and plenty to mine rather than this thing with its' glorification to a player who never played for the franchise.
Anyway, I have to admit that I liked the stadium much more than I would have anticipated and there is nothing wrong with it that some blue and orange paint couldn't fix. Heck, hang some blue and orange shingles on the outside like Shea used to have until 1980.
Derek M, Los Angeles, CN -- Feb 18, 2010 01:12 AM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
After going to Shea the previous year, I arrived at Citi Field with only one thought, "now that's more like it!" The exterior is fantastic. As someone who's only heard about Ebbet's Field from family members, Citi Field is as close as I'll ever come. The Jackie Robinson Rotunda is not only beautiful, but designed wonderfully as the large crowds moved quickly and safely to their seating level. The curvature of the stands made even our distant seats feel close to the action, and I give the Mets credit for making this a pitcher friendly park, in our era of steroids and home runs. There are few things though that bothered me about this overall solid stadium. The location hasn't changed from Shea so the incessant sound of planes coming and going from La Guardia is still there, and the large parking lot isolates the stadium from any real part of Queens. Now, as a Dodger fan I loved the pictures of Robinson, Rickey, and the illusions to Ebbet's Field. But the Mets have their history too, and a good one at that. More acknowledgment should have been given to the team that currently plays in New York, not one that left 50 years ago.
Milo K, New York City, NY -- May 05, 2010 21:40 PM
6 visit(s). My rating: 9
In comparison to shea stadium, this gets a million. I've been to a few other ballparks, and I have to say this is the best. The exterior is very grand looking, and also quite retro-classy. Although it "borrows" almost all of its design feature from past or present parks, it certainly has a charm of its own throughout. The concourses are easily accesible, the food really is decent (nothing beats shake shack) and seats are comfortable. It's an overall great place to watch a game and enjoy being a mets fan.
John B, Flushing, NY -- Oct 19, 2010 04:36 AM
3 visit(s). My rating: 1
If I wanted to root for the Dodgers, then I'd move to LA, and that's exactly what Wilpon should have done. Every time I walk into the place Im not sure whether it's supposed to be a ballpark, a mall, or a hotel. The one thing I do know about the field is that it has nothing to do with the Mets. It was built to be a replica of Ebbets field so Wilpon could relive his childhood. If he wanted to do that then he should move to LA and buy the Dodgers. My history may be a little foggy, but I'm also having difficulty remembering when Jackie Robinson played for the Mets. He was a Dodger, and thats the organization that should honor him. Finally I drove my 84 year old mother past the place and she said what I was thinking; that from the outside it looked like an ugly erector set with the walls cluttered with advertisements like a subway billboard.
John B, Flushing, NY -- Oct 19, 2010 04:38 AM
3 visit(s). My rating: 1
If I wanted to root for the Dodgers, then I'd move to LA, and that's exactly what Wilpon should have done. Every time I walk into the place Im not sure whether it's supposed to be a ballpark, a mall, or a hotel. The one thing I do know about the field is that it has nothing to do with the Mets. It was built to be a replica of Ebbets field so Wilpon could relive his childhood. If he wanted to do that then he should move to LA and buy the Dodgers. My history may be a little foggy, but I'm also having difficulty remembering when Jackie Robinson played for the Mets. He was a Dodger, and thats the organization that should honor him. Finally I drove my 84 year old mother past the place and she said what I was thinking; that from the outside it looked like an ugly erector set with the walls cluttered with advertisements like a subway billboard.
Nick G, New York, NY -- Jul 23, 2011 20:52 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
Refreshing to see a ballpark pay homage to baseball history, although I think Citi Field could have done a little more about METS history, as opposed to focusing so heavily on the Dodgers and Giants. Nice touch by keeping the old HR apple on display outside the front gate. The amount of ads inside the ballpark was staggering, although I can't honestly say it really interfered with my enjoyment of the game.
Lou DiFalco, Denville, NJ -- Jun 07, 2012 11:33 AM
1 visit(s). My rating: 7
Citi Field is visually impressive and echoes much of the New York Mets history as well as honoring Jackie Robinson in an impressive rotunda behind home plate, reminiscent of Ebbets Field. There is also a Mets Hall of Fame Museum, a must for any Mets fan.
I have sat on every level and walked the concourses. It is quite roomy with almost ridiculous options in terms of concessions.
Any seat on the first three levels (100 through 300) are great. Also, the promenade box seats (400) are fine too.
Where I have a problem with this stadium is the promenade reserved sections (500), the upper most level, specifically down the first and third base lines. In my opinion, Populous, formally HOK, blew it here. They neglected to realize in the design phase that many seats would have obstructed views by plex-glass railings that lead to the promenade reserved seats.
If you plan to go to a Mets game, my advice would be to sit no higher than the promenade box seats (400s). If you have to sit in the promenade reserved, I would suggest not sitting past first or third base where obstructed views are more likely.
Citi Field is a beautiful ballpark, first class. But nothing is perfect.
Wesley Kahnert, Franklin, TN -- Jan 04, 2013 11:22 AM
3 visit(s). My rating: 6
I saw games at both Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds, or as I called it when I was young, the Polio Grounds.
Citi Field is a nice, antiseptic fake-classic stadium. The exterior may remind folks of Ebbets Field, but it was inside the park where Ebbets Field became what it was. The seats are much farther away from the playing surface than they were at Ebbets. If you were in the first row behind the Dodgers' dugout, you were closer to fair territory then than the Mets' dugout is to fair territory now.
I would have chosen to recreate Ebbets and ignored the Polo Grounds. There are ways to get waivers on the 325 feet minimum. Make it 297 down the right field line with the high fence and screen like Ebbets had. If you ask me, if baseball lords want to recreate former parks, then they should use the exact same dimensions. Citi could have been made to look like Ebbets Field as if it had been refurbished to 21st century standards.
As a 2012 stadium, it was much cleaner than Shea, but it was disappointing because I expected much more. Nice, yes, but special--not to this fan who saw his first Big Apple game at Ebbets Field in 1955 at the age of 5.
Zach LaFleur, Fowlerville, MI -- Nov 23, 2014 14:33 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 3
The Mets must be kidding us, for they intend to make their playing field smaller (for a second time in about seven seasons)! They are doing the exact opposite of what the Yankees should be doing for the new Yankee Stadium, for that one has always been too small for major leaguer batters (and frustrating for their pitchers and defense)!
Dave Zanko, Hillsdale, NJ -- Aug 02, 2016 08:54 AM
10 visit(s). My rating: 8
I went to the second ever regular season game at this stadium and have returned many times since, so I've seen the changes made since it's opened first hand. Must say that the outfield wall changes have all been improvements. I know the Mets have always been a pitching-first team, and be edit from a pitching-friendly park, but they went a little overboard originally. But heck, just making the walls blue like the old Shea was an improvement, as was adding more Mets-specific decorations.
As for the rest of the stadium, it's pretty much like other modern ballparks with all the bells and whistles. I don't pay much attention to those, except for the food, which is pretty darn good.
In all, CitiField is a typical modern-era stadium.
Joseph Johnston, Covington, LA -- Sep 20, 2019 23:30 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 8
Our Citi Field trip of 8/29/19 was a pleasant experience. This Yankee fan has wanted to see the Mets' new home. On our recent New York trip, we took the 7 train from Manhattan to Mets-Willets Point, Queens. The subway was not quite so tightly packed as the train to Yankee Stadium. And I think Mets fans might be a tad nicer than Yankee fans, I hate to say.
Beautiful exterior view of the stadium. You can see the back of the upper deck and its roof, so you know it’s a ballpark.
Some have stated that Citi Field is designed too much like Ebbets Field and not enough like the Polo Grounds. However, from our seats near the RF foul pole, the edge of the LF grandstand looks somewhat like a similar part of the Polo Grounds. But no one is building a bathtub park like the Polo Grounds under current rules.
We couldn’t see all of the scoreboard over the RF stands, but we could see all of the playing field, which is more important. And we did get to see the Big Apple pop up in CF. The hot dogs were good, also. It would be cool if the concession stands served big red apples in plastic wrappers with a Mets logo just like the Big Apple in CF.
Alex D, Alexandria, VA -- Sep 28, 2023 16:14 PM
1 visit(s). My rating: 6
I went to Nats @ Mets on 7/31/15. Crushing but very exciting game, Flores walkoff homer in the 12th inning. The park was fine, nice enough. Didn't walk around too much after someone called me a dirty name as we walked in (I was wearing my Gio Gonzalez jersey, what did that guy have against lefties??) Don't remember much about the food. Ultimately it's on me for coming to a divisional matchup during a pennant race but I don't look fondly back on it or anything. Not really any interesting views of the surroundings but I could see the game pretty well from the ~30th row third base side