Nationals Park

Washington Nationals

8/10

The front entrance isn't much to look at, mostly because most fans don't come in this way, instead entering through the baselines and outfield.

An overcast day in D.C., which soon provided some showers.

From this angle, you can see the gates had just opened and a break in the upper decks, like in San Diego.

I pulled into DC in May 2017, after driving straight in after an afternoon game in Philadelphia, having started the day in Pittsburgh. I stayed here the night before the game, taking in a nice morning run past the Smithsonian, onto the national mall and pretty much to the Washington Monument before heading back to get ready for the game. This was a Sunday afternoon contest against visiting San Diego. The Nats were due to play another afternoon game the following day in San Francisco, owing to Memorial Day.

The park opened in 2008, after the Nationals played at RFK stadium for a few seasons after moving from Montreal. It was hardly an improvement, but this place is. It's modernly laid out, with a particularly noteworthy outfield concourse(the team store is out there). The park is in a older neighbourhood that according to the local I spoke with, used to be light industrial with body shops and the like. Now, a bunch of mid-rise condo towers dotted the outfield. Food was to MLB standard, but not much more. As first pitch approached, a light rain started, but only started to intensify, until(I'm sure doppler radar had something to do with it) the game was held up as a heavier rain started. I and most everyone else there, moved up to the concourse to wait it out and I ended up talking with a newfound Nationals fan who had really only started following baseball in his retirement. He had a million questions and I had nothing but time, but, I started to worry that this would be a rainout of a new MLB park and that even if the game did start, it would push my arrival time back, as afterwards, I was driving into Ohio, to be able to make an afternoon start the following day for the Chicago White Sox.

Once the game did get started after a delay of over an hour, the chatting continued as a pretty low scoring affair, which the Padres ended up taking by a run. The fans were into it and the quirky atmosphere I'd seen earlier in the year in Palm Beach showed itself again. This is MLB's youngest fanbase, with most of the people there having cheered for other teams earlier in their lives. The cheers of "Nats, Nats, Nats, Woo!" after a run are somewhat unusual, but also endearing. It was certainly something I could live with two years after the fact watching this team and their fans enjoy their first title in 2019. The atmosphere is a plus.

On the whole, this is a relatively new park with modern amenities in a neighbourhood it has given a shot in the arm. The unique atmosphere and the bucket of attractions in the U.S. capital make this a good park to visit. My only advice? If you're just coming here, leave the car at home, parking's a hassle and public transportation is plentiful, with the subway coming right to the park. I ended up coming back the next year for a hockey game and enjoyed that visit as well. I'll be back here soon.


Linescore
                    123   456    789   R H E
San Diego     210   020   000   5 14 0
Washington   110  010    000   3 8 1
Time: 3:19  Temp: 65F  Att: 30,243
Note: Start of game delayed 1:20 by rain.

Oakland Coliseum

Oakland Athletics, American League

8/10

The park has probably the plainest exterior in the Majors.

"Mount Davis" dominates center field before a 2015 game against Houston.

A crowd of just under 20,000 takes in a game in 2013 against Tampa Bay, both teams made the playoffs.

I first went to the Oakland Coliseum in 2013, on a two week trip of the western states as my only new Major League ballpark. The A's met the Tampa Bay Rays on a Friday night, two teams both leading their divisions. Attendance was an eyelash over 15,000. The A's won their division and still finished in the bottom 5 in attendance and the Giants were last in theirs and averaged 47 thousand. This is the situation in the Bay Area. We went back later in July 2015 for a mid week game against the Astros.

At any rate, the Coliseum, or the "O.Co Coliseum" after online clearance outlet, overstock.com, is another multipurpose stadium that continues to hang on. Apparently, it used to be not too bad for baseball, with a decent view of the surrounding hills. But the football Raiders, having moved to Los Angeles, agreed to move back, only if a massive stand was built in center field. "Mount Davis" lured the Raiders back to town(they are threatening relocation again, back to Los Angeles), but it really impacted the Coliseum as a baseball venue.

On the whole, the Coliseum is very old and this age shows with narrow concourses and basically no view of the field from the lower concourse. Access isn't too bad, although the rush hour traffic in and around Oakland before most evening games makes it difficult. The BART stops right outside though, so if you're already on either side of the bay, that could be better, I haven't tried it myself.

The concessions here were not too bad the first time and after doing some more exploring my 2nd time here, are some of the best anywhere. Items such as Sweet Potato pie and a gourmet noodle stand, along with some chains like Round Table pizza.  This is a place worth getting to early, to wander around a little.

The thing about the Coliseum, is that the atmosphere is incredible. Even though hardly anyone shows up. The people who go to an A's game genuinely want to go. There are not the people going to be seen like you might see in San Francisco(although the upper deck there is very passionate). My travel companion, had been to 5 MLB parks(thanks to me), when she pointed out that the atmosphere in Oakland was very raw compared to something a little more manufactured at one of the newer retro-modern parks. Case in point, it was dog night for the Houston game and about 150 pooches and their humans were in the stands of Mount Davis, far away from the rest of the crowd. During the national anthem, many of them could be heard howling along.

Stubhub tickets in the 8th row cost 40 dollars a person, plus free VIP parking. For affordability, this place is probably unrivaled. Also, there is a bona-fide supporters group, like something you'd see at a Japanese baseball game, or a Major League Soccer contest. They were very much into the game, and during my first visit here, had their angry hands going for Aussie closer Grant Balfour, who to put it mildly, had a bit of fiery personality.

This park is probably the worst for maintenance issues in the majors however, as raw sewage(i.e. poop) has backed up into the visitor's clubhouse at least once. Still, after some rumours of the Athletics moving for a 4th time, this time just down the highway to San Jose, or maybe Fremont, the A's signed on for 10 more years at the stadium, which will put them up to 2024.

At any rate, what the stadium lacks in amenities, it makes up in affordability, good concessions and a very authentic, baseball-first atmosphere. I give it an extra half point for food and atmosphere, which gives it an 8, which is pretty good for such an old venue.

Update 2019: This venue, at time of writing, is now the RingCentral Coliseum for the 2019 season after going three seasons without a sponsor. This place is as it was, the A's are a decent team of misfits, who draw poorly. The plan as of now is to build a new park in the Oakland area, possibly on the waterfront, possibly on this site, now that the Arena that's adjacent has been vacated by the Warriors. The Raiders are preparing to leave the area for Las Vegas, so the A's will soon be the only big league anything in town. The A's have recently publicly speculated about also going to Las Vegas, but this seems to be a negotiating tactic only for now. I'm rooting for them to make staying in Oakland work for them, but we will find out.

Linescores
2013-08-30
                    123  456  789  RHE
Tampa Bay    010  000  020  381
Oakland         000 030 01x   470
Time: 3:10  Temp: 68F  Att: 15,603

2015-08-06
                 123  456  789 10  RHE
Houston     100  000   030 1   591
Oakland      010 010  002  0  472
Time: 3:37  Temp: 66F  Att: 16,172