34. AT&T Park
Everybody, and I do mean everybody, saws that AT&T Park, the waterfront home of the San Francisco Giants, is one of the best parks in baseball. Basically every rating of the parks that I've ever seen puts AT&T in the top 3 at worst. My sister went there and said it was gorgeous.
I myself went on a beautiful Wednesday afternoon for the getaway game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 26, just eight days after the Giants sellout streak ended at 530 games after a nearly seven year run. I had a beer at once of the over priced establishments within walking distance of the park, and then linked up with my fraternity brother Greg, who took advantage of a flexible schedule to play hooky. We met at the Willie Mays statue by the home plate gate, moved past the anti-choice protesters (seriously, there were lots of them, and in San Francisco of all places) and headed to our seats in the top right hand corner of the deck. We certainly could have had much better seats in terms of seeing the game, but in terms of seeing the scenery it's hard to top the the seats we had. If we looked to the right, we looked out over the bay. Straight ahead we could see over the right field wall to the small fleet of kayaks in McCovey's Cove. Far more of San Francisco Bay can be seen over beyond center and left fields, including a nice view of the Bay Bridge.
Honestly, the view was so mind bogglingly nice that I only paid partial attention to the game, which was a comparatively boring 2-1 snoozer. Greg regaled me with stories about the park and his life in San Francisco. We drank beer and had garlic fries, which are the signature item at the park. This being San Francisco in July on the water, it was in the high 60s but so bright and sunny that it seemed much warmer. I'm told it can get chilly at night, which I believe, but I bet the lights across the bay are also gorgeous.
So aside from the view, how is the park? The actual architecture of the park is one of the better examples of the retro park craze. Fans can walk completely around the park (there's a "knot hole" that people can look through to see a narrow view of the game for free) and plenty of statuary from historic Giants. Most notably besides May is Willie McCovey standing on the point opposite the Cove that has been dubbed with his name. They pay homage to their days in New York with banners for old World Series wins, as well as with retired numbers. There's a giant Coke bottle in left field. They have a giant counter showing how many Giants home runs made it into the water on the fly (Barry Bonds has more than almost everybody else combined even though he's been retired for ten years). In short, there are some fun little quirks livening up what is already an upper tier retro park. I didn't walk around the fully interior of the park during the game because it was just so nice in my seats that I couldn't be bothered to get up, but what I saw I liked. There are a ton of good food options, easy street access and a train stop right across the street.
Really, there's not anything to complain about unless you loathe the Giants, which I do. However, at the end of the day the old real estate adage holds: location, location, location! You've got an open air stadium with comfortable weather (even if gets chilly, I'm guessing it's not Cleveland in April chilly) and a ridiculously gorgeous view. To top that, there are plenty of (admittedly pricey) bars and restaurants around the park. The neighborhood feels a little artificial compared to the ones around Wrigley or Fenway, but it sure beats those parks that are surrounded by parking lots or the fake monstrosity that is SunTrust Park. And for those who complain about taxpayer funding, this park came much closer to being fully privately subsidized than most.
Dammit, I can't plausibly rank this anywhere but the top of the rankings.
Park Rankings
RankParkTeamFirst Visit# Visits (at time of article)
1AT&T ParkSan Francisco GiantsJuly 26, 20171
2 Marlins ParkMiami MarlinsMay 23, 20141
3 Wrigley FieldChicago CubsApril 23, 20042
4 PNC ParkPittsburgh PiratesSeptember 25, 20042
5 Jacobs FieldCleveland IndiansApril 17, 199963
6 Miller ParkMilwaukee BrewersApril 24, 20041
7 Camden YardsBaltimore OriolesJune 22, 20121
8 Kauffman StadiumKansas City RoyalsJune 9, 20131
9 Petco ParkSan Diego PadresApril 27, 20151
10 Fenway ParkBoston Red SoxJuly 1, 20161
11 Dodger StadiumLos Angeles DodgersJuly 20, 20171
12 Yankee Stadium (original)New York YankeesJuly 28, 20061
13 Minute Maid ParkHouston AstrosMay 21, 20161
14 Chase FieldArizona DiamondbacksApril 25, 20151
15 Safeco FieldSeattle MarinersAugust 25, 20141
16 Coors FieldColorado RockiesApril 20, 20151
17 Comerica ParkDetroit TigersJuly 31, 20041
18 Target FieldMinnesota TwinsJuly 25, 20141
19 Turner FieldAtlanta BravesMay 5, 20071
20 Angel Stadium of AnaheimLos Angeles AngelsJuly 18, 20171
21 SunTrust ParkAtlanta BravesMay 6, 20171
22 Busch Stadium IIISt. Louis CardinalsAugust 8, 20131
23 Nationals ParkWashington NationalsJune 21, 20121
24 Citizens Bank ParkPhiladelphia PhilliesJune 23, 20121
25 Citi FieldNew York MetsJune 24, 20121
26 Globe Life ParkTexas RangersMay 27, 20161
27 Rogers CentreToronto Blue JaysMay 21, 20051
28 Cinergy FieldCincinnati RedsAugust 8, 19984
29 Yankee Stadium (sequel)New York YankeesJune 25, 20121
30 The MetrodomeMinnesota TwinsJune 22, 19923
31 Shea StadiumNew York MetsJuly 24, 20061
32 Great American Ball ParkCincinnati RedsMay 9, 20041
33 U.S. Cellular FieldChicago White SoxApril 25, 20041
34 Tropicana FieldTampa Bay RaysMay 21, 20141
Background: Prologue Memory Interlude
Original Series End
I myself went on a beautiful Wednesday afternoon for the getaway game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 26, just eight days after the Giants sellout streak ended at 530 games after a nearly seven year run. I had a beer at once of the over priced establishments within walking distance of the park, and then linked up with my fraternity brother Greg, who took advantage of a flexible schedule to play hooky. We met at the Willie Mays statue by the home plate gate, moved past the anti-choice protesters (seriously, there were lots of them, and in San Francisco of all places) and headed to our seats in the top right hand corner of the deck. We certainly could have had much better seats in terms of seeing the game, but in terms of seeing the scenery it's hard to top the the seats we had. If we looked to the right, we looked out over the bay. Straight ahead we could see over the right field wall to the small fleet of kayaks in McCovey's Cove. Far more of San Francisco Bay can be seen over beyond center and left fields, including a nice view of the Bay Bridge.
Honestly, the view was so mind bogglingly nice that I only paid partial attention to the game, which was a comparatively boring 2-1 snoozer. Greg regaled me with stories about the park and his life in San Francisco. We drank beer and had garlic fries, which are the signature item at the park. This being San Francisco in July on the water, it was in the high 60s but so bright and sunny that it seemed much warmer. I'm told it can get chilly at night, which I believe, but I bet the lights across the bay are also gorgeous.
So aside from the view, how is the park? The actual architecture of the park is one of the better examples of the retro park craze. Fans can walk completely around the park (there's a "knot hole" that people can look through to see a narrow view of the game for free) and plenty of statuary from historic Giants. Most notably besides May is Willie McCovey standing on the point opposite the Cove that has been dubbed with his name. They pay homage to their days in New York with banners for old World Series wins, as well as with retired numbers. There's a giant Coke bottle in left field. They have a giant counter showing how many Giants home runs made it into the water on the fly (Barry Bonds has more than almost everybody else combined even though he's been retired for ten years). In short, there are some fun little quirks livening up what is already an upper tier retro park. I didn't walk around the fully interior of the park during the game because it was just so nice in my seats that I couldn't be bothered to get up, but what I saw I liked. There are a ton of good food options, easy street access and a train stop right across the street.
Really, there's not anything to complain about unless you loathe the Giants, which I do. However, at the end of the day the old real estate adage holds: location, location, location! You've got an open air stadium with comfortable weather (even if gets chilly, I'm guessing it's not Cleveland in April chilly) and a ridiculously gorgeous view. To top that, there are plenty of (admittedly pricey) bars and restaurants around the park. The neighborhood feels a little artificial compared to the ones around Wrigley or Fenway, but it sure beats those parks that are surrounded by parking lots or the fake monstrosity that is SunTrust Park. And for those who complain about taxpayer funding, this park came much closer to being fully privately subsidized than most.
Dammit, I can't plausibly rank this anywhere but the top of the rankings.
Park Rankings
RankParkTeamFirst Visit# Visits (at time of article)
1AT&T ParkSan Francisco GiantsJuly 26, 20171
2 Marlins ParkMiami MarlinsMay 23, 20141
3 Wrigley FieldChicago CubsApril 23, 20042
4 PNC ParkPittsburgh PiratesSeptember 25, 20042
5 Jacobs FieldCleveland IndiansApril 17, 199963
6 Miller ParkMilwaukee BrewersApril 24, 20041
7 Camden YardsBaltimore OriolesJune 22, 20121
8 Kauffman StadiumKansas City RoyalsJune 9, 20131
9 Petco ParkSan Diego PadresApril 27, 20151
10 Fenway ParkBoston Red SoxJuly 1, 20161
11 Dodger StadiumLos Angeles DodgersJuly 20, 20171
12 Yankee Stadium (original)New York YankeesJuly 28, 20061
13 Minute Maid ParkHouston AstrosMay 21, 20161
14 Chase FieldArizona DiamondbacksApril 25, 20151
15 Safeco FieldSeattle MarinersAugust 25, 20141
16 Coors FieldColorado RockiesApril 20, 20151
17 Comerica ParkDetroit TigersJuly 31, 20041
18 Target FieldMinnesota TwinsJuly 25, 20141
19 Turner FieldAtlanta BravesMay 5, 20071
20 Angel Stadium of AnaheimLos Angeles AngelsJuly 18, 20171
21 SunTrust ParkAtlanta BravesMay 6, 20171
22 Busch Stadium IIISt. Louis CardinalsAugust 8, 20131
23 Nationals ParkWashington NationalsJune 21, 20121
24 Citizens Bank ParkPhiladelphia PhilliesJune 23, 20121
25 Citi FieldNew York MetsJune 24, 20121
26 Globe Life ParkTexas RangersMay 27, 20161
27 Rogers CentreToronto Blue JaysMay 21, 20051
28 Cinergy FieldCincinnati RedsAugust 8, 19984
29 Yankee Stadium (sequel)New York YankeesJune 25, 20121
30 The MetrodomeMinnesota TwinsJune 22, 19923
31 Shea StadiumNew York MetsJuly 24, 20061
32 Great American Ball ParkCincinnati RedsMay 9, 20041
33 U.S. Cellular FieldChicago White SoxApril 25, 20041
34 Tropicana FieldTampa Bay RaysMay 21, 20141
Background: Prologue Memory Interlude
Original Series End