Gesa Stadium

Tri-City Dust Devils (Northwest League)

7/10

This place does have a relatively bland exterior.

The main redeeming quality of the stadium itself is that it faces south, allowing a view of the surrounding hills.

Still, that southern orientation meant that this massive sunshade had to be built to block the setting sun from baking the seating area. It works well.

I first swung through here as part of my 2nd 3-day NWL loop in 2008. It was a near 100 degree night as the Dust Devils took on the Everett Aquasox. My pictures from this night are all bad, so my pictures of a game in 2015 against the Spokane Indians are featured.

The 2008 game saw hot temperatures in the middle of July and Everett pound Tri-City mercilessly. The Dust Devils, then a Colorado affiliate, fielded a young Charlie Blackmon, who would eventually become their starter in center field. In 2015, I arrived mid-afternoon from Boise which gave me enough time to go for a pre-game run along the Columbia River in Richland. It ended up being a cold, windy night, with scattered showers, emphasizing that September had indeed arrived.

This place is located in Pasco, in a (still) developing area right off of I-182, in the middle of a large parking lot that is mostly used for a large youth sports complex. It was built in the mid 90's, to lure minor-league baseball back to the area. They ended up with a team in the independent Western league for 6 seasons, then took on the Portland Rockies NWL franchise when the PCL Beavers moved back to Portland for their third tenancy.

It is a very basic layout however, almost a little too basic. Lots of concrete and lots of aluminum. Not quite as bad as Yakima, but in a similar vein. It is certainly adequate for this level of baseball, but is nothing remarkable either, I actually took a point off for the stadium, my old review of this park was 6/10. The saving grace are the concessions, as the team has a few independent food stands on the concourse. I ended up getting a burrito which was not too bad.

The staples were cheap as it was a discount night(on a Friday no less). I ended up giving the concessions the thumbs up, pulling this one up to a 7/10, making it one of 3 places where this happened on my last few days in the Northwest.

This place is hardly a must, but it's more or less your only option in the Southeast of the state, so to be shy to catch a game(or two) here either. 7/10

Update 2020: I have not been back to this park since 2015, but have been through the area a few times. The Dust Devils are one of two teams apparently on the chopping block in the NWL( Salem-Keizer is the other), as MiLB's re-organization would bring the NWL down to 6 teams. I'm certainly pulling for every team, including this one, but it appears quite a few teams will be out when all is said and done.


Linescores
2008-07-13
                                               123    456    789    R H E
Everett Aquasox(SEA)               000   201    014    8 10 1
Tri-City Dust Devils(COL)           000   000    000    0   7  2
Temp: 96F  Time: 3:00  Att: 1,550

2015-09-04
                                             123     456    789    R H E
Spokane Indians(TEX)             000     000    000    0 3  2
Tri-City Dust Devils(SD)           203    001    20x     8 11  1

Temp: 68F Time: 2:34 Att: 2,570

PK Park

Eugene Emeralds (Northwest League)

8/10

No doubting who the landlord is here. Nice facade though.

A decent crowd takes in a Sunday evening contest versus cross-state rivals Hillsboro.

Overall, this is a decent little place.

My first visit to PK Park was on my 2014 summer loop. The Ems were taking on the 2nd year Hillsboro Hops in a Sunday evening match up. We arrived after a long drive from Sacramento and I was looking for a good game to move on from a disappointing night there. This was the first time I'd seen a team in 2 different parks, after seeing the Emeralds twice in Civic Stadium.

The Emeralds ended up moving in here after their old park started to show it's age. Fortunately for them, the University of Oregon brought it's Baseball program back up to the varsity level and built PK Park, in the parking lot of Autzen Stadium, where the football team plays. "The Autzen Zoo", where the ticket office for the Emeralds is located as well, dwarfs this relatively small ballpark.

PK Park has a relatively steep seating bowl, with some suites on top. The field has not the greatest backdrop, of the practice facility for the school's soccer teams and some tall trees. Concessions are slightly above average, featuring such random items as the Bison(Buffalo) corn dog. The atmosphere here was also slightly notable, as having been here 3 times, I can tell you Eugene is a baseball town.

Overall, this place is a sadly much needed upgrade to Civic Stadium that the Emeralds badly needed and all they had to do was switch landlords. I'm in no hurry to go back, but this place is worth at least 1 visit.

Update 2019: The Emeralds are now the Cubs affiliate in the NWL. They continue to draw decent crowds, averaging just over 3,400 a game. I can't find a reliable number for how the Ducks draw at their park, but for 2019, it was less than this. Eugene is not on the chopping block as part of the reorganization of MiLB and I'd be very surprised if this changed. This is the last park until the bay area, so it always has a decent chance of snagging me for a game on the way through.

Linescore
2014-08-17
                                          123   456   789 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17  R H E
Hillsboro Hops(ARI)              100  330   000  0  0   0   0   0   0   0    2   9 17 1
Eugene Emeralds(SD)          500  200   000  0  0  0    0    0   0   0   0   7 16 3
Time: 5:28 Temp: 79F  Att: 2,543

Civic Stadium

Demolished

9/10

 

 

Approaching the park, the wooden facade with peeling paint lets you know what you're in for.

I wasn't as proficient at ballpark pics, but these two give you the general idea.

The long side of the L-shaped grandstand.

Back in 2009 for the last night game here ever against Salem-Keizer.

 We first attended Eugene's Civic Stadium in 2007 as part of a 3 game loop of the Northwest League, which was really our first ballparking trip. We had seen a game in Spokane the night previous and started off towards Yakima afterwards. I went again on the way home from my big 2009 loop for one last game, which turned out to be the 2nd last game and last night game for the Emeralds here. This drew over 5,000 people. Approaching, the park looks like something out of Bull Durham. A peeling wooden facade greets you on the way in.

The park is very simple, lots of wooden bench seating made up the bulk of this WPA era ballpark. There was nothing fancy or modern about this place, it was baseball, pure and simple. But, as much as I like wooden, WPA era bandbox style ballparks, there were some drawbacks about this park. 

 Firstly, food was difficult to buy here at best, there just weren't many concessions and the ones there were lined up quickly. Parking was almost non-existent, as the small parking lot was reflective of the time in which the stadium was built. The almost entirely wood construction made the park seem like a bit of a firetrap.

Still, I thoroughly enjoyed this park. It was absolutely a baseball-first atmosphere, as a wooden ballpark from 1940 was hardly a place to be seen. There was really nothing distracting from the game, with the possible exception of an overly talkative neighbour. This place is a time machine, 9/10.

The Emeralds moved across town to the University of Oregon campus to share a park with a newly formed Ducks varsity team. Locals wanted to preserve this one, which was on the National Register of Historic Places. The plan included purchasing the stadium and renovating it somewhat so it could host lower tier soccer. Funding to buy the stadium was raised in the summer of 2015 and it looked like the plan would go ahead.


But, what I alluded to earlier became a reality that same year. Several youths, playing with matches in the press box, managed to set a fire, which quickly spread out of control, and destroyed the stadium in about an hour. Throngs of people turned out to watch the local institution burn to the ground. The "Friends of Civic Stadium" are planning to use the money they raised towards something similar, but haven't decided what as of yet. It was disappointing to hear about their dream dying the way it did, but I'm interested to see what plans they come up with as an alternative.

Update 2018: I've added the linescores of the two games I went to here. I cannot find any more information about the plans for the stadium site, and the website for "Friends of Civic Stadium" now defaults to some random "sports" site. Under the new grading system, this place likely shouldn't have scored so high, but it's a moot point. Besides, I'd rather not take anything away from this gem. 

Linescores
2007-07-16
                                                    123  456  789  R H E
Vancouver Canadians(OAK)             023  020  012  10 16 0
Eugene Emeralds (SD)                    002  030  201  8  11  1
Temp: 79F Time: 3:48 Att: 2,987


2009-09-02
                                                         123  456  789  RHE
Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (SF)               001   030  300  771
Eugene Emeralds (SD)                        100   000  022   593
Temp: 83F Time: 2:32  Att: 5,815 

Nat Bailey Stadium

Vancouver Canadians, Northwest League

10/10

 A large crowd outside just before 1st pitch, waiting to get in, pick up tickets, or come up with a new plan for the afternoon, as the game sold out.

 The first pitch of the Vancouver Canadians taking on the visiting Boise Hawks.

A great sell out crowd on a Friday Afternoon.

Firstly, this park is now known officially as Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium. But I went there before this change and most people still use the old name, so we will stick with that.

I went to my first ever Pro baseball game when I was 8 years old in 1992. It was here, at "The Nat", to watch the then AAA Vancouver Canadians battle the Edmonton Trappers. This was in the midst of the Blue Jays first championship season and baseball enjoyed a higher stature in Canada than it does now. I'd love to say I enjoyed it and was hooked, but it was a slow game, with the final being either 1-0, or 2-1 and runs not coming in until the 6th or 7th inning. Eventually we left early and I jokingly taunted my Aunt and Cousin that it was their fault, knowing full well it was mine.

I went back in 2000, having turned 16, to watch the now Short Season A Vancouver Canadians take on the now defunct Portland Rockies with my Stepfather, Brother and some friends. It was the first season of the Canadians having moved down 4 rungs on the Minor League hierarchy, but as my Stepfather heard from a local die-hard, the difference in the quality of play was only so much. The team went from a poorly drawing AAA team in a small old ballpark to an NWL team in a big city, with a gem of an old park and a strong following locally. I attempted to go back in 2013, but discovered the game I wanted, the last Saturday night home game of the year, had completely sold out.

I finally got back to Nat Bailey Stadium in August 2014 and have to say that I LOVED it. There's just so much to like.

The park is a 1950s era grandstand that is very basic, featuring lots of painted concrete and wooden benches, outside of the box seats. My ticket behind the aisle cost 12.50 Canadian, which is higher than most low minor parks, but for Canada is very cheap. The park has the main concourse under the seats, but a smaller one to move people to their seats in view of the field and a teeny one at the top of the grandstand. There is a videoboard, but the main scoreboard is hand operated, which is always a nice touch.

Parking was free on the street a few blocks away, as the stadium is located in the middle of Queen Elizabeth Park. Parking right next to the stadium was 7 dollars and had bad entrance and exits, so if you're able, I'd suggest parking on the street, it saves time in the long run.

I went back solo for a Friday afternoon "Nooner at the Nat"(which actually started at 1, but we'll spot them that) against the Boise Hawks, who I hadn't seen play since my visit to Boise. The game sold out, but not every seat was filled. Still, about 4,000 people or so showed up and from die-hards to casual fans, most people were into the game...which was a good thing, as the Canadians took it on the chin, losing 10-3. I read a review from ballparkreviews.com about how the atmosphere at minor-league games in Canada is usually better and having been to a few different parks now, I totally agree. People who go to ballgames in Canada want to watch at least some baseball, pure and simple.

Another reason I enjoyed Nat Bailey was the food, it was fantastic. I was in the mood for a burger, but with the line at the main concession looking quite long, I went to the shortest line "Sushi and Asahi Beer". It's a great pairing and me, my Asahi and my Sushi had a good time(despite me spilling the sushi trying to break apart the chopsticks). I also got an ice cream helmet. Also of note, the team uses the tiny concourse at the top of the grandstand to have a few beer stands, which kept a lot of people from walking past my seat during the game, and kept the beer people and the food people from all being in the main concession area. I can't think of another older park that did that as well.

The location in a park isn't terribly scenic, but is pleasant enough for the park's purposes. Between the well maintained gem of a park, good layout and use of space, plus good food and atmosphere, it doesn't get much better than a game at "The Nat" and it now ranks among my favourites. I thought it was a strong 10/10 as of right now, it's my favourite in the low minors.

Update 2016: I enjoyed this one so much that I went back and typed a lengthy update almost right afterwards. There's little to add, except for the fact that the C's have put in a party deck in left field, which has boosted capacity somewhat. The Canadians are the leading draw in the NWL, averaging just over 6,000 a game. That's 21st in MiLB period, with only the Midwest League Dayton Dragons drawing better in the low minors. It's pretty remarkable how their numbers have jumped in the last few years. I found the 2014 line score with little issue, but the other two will take a lot more digging. I will save them for the next update.

Linescore
2014-08-22
                                                123     456    789    R  H E
Boise Hawks(CHC)                     231   003     001    10 11 2
Vancouver Canadians(TOR)        000    010    002     3 12 2

Volcanoes Stadium

Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, Northwest League

7/10

 Batting Practice just wrapping up prior to the Canadians/Volcanoes. That van is on I-5. It's that close.

 The seats in the back are all club seating.

The masses enjoy a decent night at a decent park.

I went here in July of 2008 for the final game of my 2nd Northwest League trip. We had driven by on the way out of town from a Eugene Emeralds game the previous year, with the park all lit up, having just finished a game as well. I noted at the time it was literally directly next to Interstate 5, which seemed a little interesting.

Well. Fast forward to the next year and we pulled in for a game between the Volcanoes and Vancouver Canadians. The Volcanoes were in the midst of a stretch of amazing seasons, which resulted in a period of around 4 years where they were at least tied for 1st place every day of the season. The Giants take their farmhands seriously, and it showed.

Anyhow, this is a pretty average ballpark located, as mentioned, right next to I-5, which honestly, imposes some pretty big limits on the experience right away. I-5 is busy and traffic goes by constantly throughout the game. In addition, there is a driving range style net, which is required to keep homeruns from ending up on the freeway, which they reasonably could without it, it's that close. The most mind boggling thing of all though is that while access was ok, getting out of the parking lot, back onto the highway, was quite time consuming, as there's only one overpass in the area. Most other off-ramp ballparks have a few, to divide up the traffic.

Besides my location rant, the ballpark is pretty decent. The configuration focuses pretty heavily on a club behind home plate, but still leaves plenty of good seats for the rest of us. The food here is above average, with lots of unique options. The team store featured clearance bobbleheads of team mascot, "Crater" who is a half-baseball/half dinosaur. For 7 dollars, I decided to get one. The park does have the smallest video screen I have ever seen. It was difficult to really watch, but it turned into a decent auxiliary scoreboard once the game started.

Overall, this is an average park, which has the plus of a good menu, but the big knock of being pretty much on the shoulder of an Interstate highway.

Update 2016: I have still not been back here, it'll be 9 years between visits this year, so it's at the top of my list in the northwest this season. I thought the team was continuing to draw acceptably, but attendance has dropped from 2,900 to 2,100, which in 2016, was the lowest in the NWL. I'm not entirely sure why this is, but with no obvious market trying to lure a team and the ballpark still being acceptable, I don't expect much controversy surrounding this team for at least 5 more seasons.

Linescore
2008-07-15
                                                 123   456   789   R H E
Vancouver Canadians(OAK)          510  000  101   8  8  0
Salem-Keizer Volcanoes(SF)        000  531  00x   9 11 2
Temp: 84F  Time: 3:13  Att:  2,628

Memorial Stadium

8/10

Boise Hawks, Northwest League

A much better picture of the exterior in 2015.

Final preperations for Hawks/Hops, in September 2015.

You get a decent look at the park from the 3rd base side.

I went to Memorial stadium on my 2nd Northwest League trip in 2008, between games in Pasco and Salem, to watch the Hawks battle the Tri-City Dust Devils. It isn't overly horrible, but I'd have to say it's probably the worst of the 8 parks in the Northwest League.

Firstly, the park is barely within the city limits of Boise, located about 10 minutes northwest of Downtown. It's located at the local fairgrounds, so there isn't much to do in the immediate area. The park, opened in 1989, is a testament to all that went badly in 1980s ballpark design. The park has basically no façade at all, with some concrete and chain link fencing, with only some signage to indicate what it even is.

The layout is divided into three separate stands, which as of my visit in 2008, are all named after Dodge cars. Concessions were not memorable for any reason, either way. There is a large child's play area down the right field line, which meant that a small child was hit by a line drive when I was there. There was likely a better spot to put all this.

But, the atmosphere was not bad. The crowd was very much into the game. One of the on field contests involved three fans in potato themed costumes(Fries, a perogy and something else) racing from 1st to 3rd base. During the race, one of the contestants shoved the perogy into the unsuspecting Tri-City shortstop, knocking him over. His counterpart at second base then doubled over laughing.

The park has it's issues, but it's not like people in the Cubs organization, or in Boise, don't know about these shortcomings, as the Hawks made a proposal in 2012 to build a new, 25 million dollar ballpark/soccer stadium in downtown Boise. Renovating Memorial Stadium was also being considered as a less acceptable option.  This was the last mention of the debate I could find, so it's safe to say that the new ballpark is not happening anytime soon, if at all. In my opinion, the Hawks are the most vulnerable of the 8 franchises in the NWL and could be up for a move in a few years, should a more suitable market be found. The current setup is good on atmosphere but is clearly a rung below the current standard for most minor league ballparks. Still, Boise is a good market for baseball and hopefully it won't come down to the Hawks leaving town.

Update 2016: I ended up back here in September 2015, on the way back from points south, as part of a dedicated effort to redo some older reviews. It was 7 years between visits, so I was unsure how things had gone. The Hawks, as a result of numerous affiliations switching in the NWL, were now a Colorado farm team. It was a late season game against the Hillsboro Hops, featuring Dansby Swanson, who had just been picked first overall by the Diamondbacks that summer, after starring at Vanderbilt. He went 3 for 5. The game wasn't much to take in, as a few 5 run innings for Hillsboro and Boise getting more errors than hits made the final a decisive 12-0.

But the ballpark had changed in a few ways. Firstly, the sponsored sections were gone. I sat in the main stand, behind home plate and was shocked to find out that the first 10 rows or so were full service. Ushers would run out and get you food so you didn't have to get up, and would happily come scoop your trash when you were done. For 12 dollars, that is craziness. For 2016, these seats had been jacked up to 35 dollars each. The crowd, largely wasted on a lopsided game, was somewhat into it and until the 2nd 5 run inning, held out home for their Hawks to turn things around.

The food is also miles ahead of where it once was, with a new stand on the third base side offering Fish Tacos, and one of the more unusual offerings I've seen, Rocky Mountain Oysters. The main concessions I can't really speak to, because Fish Tacos were an immediate deal.

Overall, much improved atmosphere and concession bring this place up to an 8, which is about as good as I think it could be. Nothing new regarding new ballpark construction as far as I know. With Yakima losing its team, Boise is probably the most vulnerable of the 8 NWL markets and if something better pops up, the old park combined with Boise being the league's eastern outpost could mean it's number will be called. Hopefully that does not happen.

Linescore
2008-07-14
                                               123  456   789   R H E
Tri-City Dust Devils(COL)    004  001  000   5 10 1
Boise Hawks(CHC)                011  300 12x   8  13 1
Temp: 94F Time: 2:51   Att: 2,300

2015-09-03 
                                    123   456   789   R H E
Hillsboro Hops(ARI)    105  100  050  12 16 0
Boise Hawks(COL)       000  000  000  0  3  4
Temp: 68F Time: 2:44 Att: 2,359

Avista Stadium

Spokane Indians, Northwest League

10/10

A nice summer evening sees Spokane host Yakima. This is the only picture from my original trip deemed worthy of staying.

The exterior before the first Saturday home game of the season vs. Eugene.

A great crowd was on hand considering the weather was overcast with occasional showers.

Pre-game vs. Eugene in 2014, you can literally see the moisture.

We attended Avista Stadium in Spokane on night 1 of a 3 game tour of Washington and Oregon, which was my first trip specifically to go to new ballparks. This explains why my pictures were somewhat lacking, and all generally of the same thing. The park is the top draw for attendance in the Northwest League every year. The park may have something to do with it, but Spokane has approximately 650 thousand people in the area surrounding and into Idaho, so there are more than a few people to market the team to.

I don't have many photos of this one and don't remember much about it, so this will be brief(I realized this after and took many more photos of the other two parks, both in Eugene and Yakima). But it is a relatively run of the mill minor-league stadium. There is the mascot a "Spokanasaurus." We were grilled mercilessly by our border guard on the way down, even being told "What you wanna go to Spokane for? I been there. There's nothin' there. Nothin'."

As far as I remember, the park was very average. The game was an eyelash over 5 hours, not wrapping up until around quarter after 11. Writing this, I realize that Spokane may end up on my list for this summer, possibly even as a long weekend road trip. For now, it will be remembered as an average park, with an average score.

Update 2016: I was typing this in early 2014 and mentioned it to my then girlfriend and alluded to needing to go back at some point. She just said "Let's go!" I checked and seeing  it was around 12 or 13 hours from the house, I knew it was possible. So we went down in June 2014 and I am now engaged to the same girl. The next year, on a trip to California, I was looking for an NWL game for night 2. When it was only the all star game, I hoped that it would be in Spokane and sure enough it was, with a new format featuring the Pioneer League all-stars vs. the Northwest.

Having a bit more to work with as far as sample size, I realized this place is great. The stadium was built in the 1950's, but I originally thought it was from the 80's, it's so modern(ish). There's both box seating further back and decent seats closer to the action, if you can get them. I've never had my pick of seats here, it's usually what's left. The smallest crowd in 3 games here was still 4,500, with for Short Season A is really good. This leads into a good atmosphere here, baseball first, random stuff second. Lastly, is the food, with stand names like "Intentional Wok" for a Chinese food booth, you know you're doing ok. While the dollar hot dogs in 2014 had gotten quite cold, I still think the concessions here are good as well and while I can only remember so much about them, the variety of items was some of the best I've seen anywhere. Overall, this place was vastly underappreciated under my old review and a few more visits have put me up to a 10/10. There's not a thing wrong with this park, which is why it's a perennial attendance leader(2nd of 8 in 2015) in the NWL.


Linescores
2007-07-17
                                        123   456    789   R  H  E
Yakima Bears(ARI)             200  120   050   10 13 3
Spokane Indians(TEX)        100   600   100  8   7   7
Temp: 90F  Time: 3:38  Att: 4,518

2014-06-14
                                      123   456    789   R H  E
Eugene Emeralds(SD)      010   000   200   3  9   1
Spokane Indians(TEX)      202  100    00x   5 12 0
Temp: 65F  Time: 2:25  Att: 6,709

2015-08-04
                                                123   456    789  10  R H E
Pioneer League All-Stars            011  001    020   0   5 9  0
Northwest League All-Stars        100  010    021   1    6 10 1
Temp: 88F  Time: 3:28  Att: 7,083

Everett Memorial Stadium

Everett AquaSox, Northwest League

9/10

A wonderful August evening sees the AquaSox battle Eugene.

A relatively modest crowd for the relatively modest park.

How can you not like a hand-operated scoreboard that says"Hit the sign, win a suit" ?

                                

The relatively benign exterior prior to a game in 2014.

I went to Everett Memorial Stadium in 2009, on the first night of my trip to Dodger Stadium. It was more or less just a throw in that fit the schedule that I wanted, but it turned into a little more than that. The game was a late August match featuring the Eugene Emeralds(As of 2014, I've seen this team play 5 times, it's always them!) taking on Everett's entry in the Northwest League, which in 2014, will be marking their 30th season.

The stadium is a pretty straightforward entry owned by the local school board, of all people. There is a large parking lot in the area around the stadium, which is free, if you show up early enough(The Old Yakima Special). The ballpark exterior is relatively plain and the seating area is aluminum and stadium seats, although I thought it looked substantially better than it's counterpart in Yakima. I was around 10 rows back and was right on top of the action. There is a hand-operated scoreboard in the right field alley and a video board in center, just off to the left side. The video board looks substantially better than it's counterpart in Salem and is clearly visible. I didn't sample any food here.

The only thing I didn't like was the mascot, Webley, an anthropomorphic tree frog, who insisted on repeatedly sticking his finger into my ear. Really. What does one do when someone in a tree frog costume keeps pushing the envelope? I ignored him until he went away. Still, I wonder if I wasn't justified in a once in a lifetime act of mascot abuse.

Overall, Everett might just be my favourite NWL park. It's a relatively simple, but clean and modern park, that looks newer than it actually is. It doesn't have much old-style charm, but I don't feel it should, given it was built in the 1980s. The fans seem to love it to, as only league stalwarts Spokane and Vancouver, plus brand-new Hillsboro draw better. I would absolutely consider heading back if I was in the Seattle area without the Mariners in town and would take it over a return visit to Tacoma in a heartbeat. One to put on your list.

Update 2016: Since I typed this back in early 2014, I've been here two more times to see the Frogs play Vancouver and have a pretty good read on it. The park is still a favourite of mine, even if it does feature a great deal of aluminum. The atmosphere is strictly baseball first, considering the saturated baseball market around here. My most recent night was the same day as a Mariner home game, so attendance was limited to locals. I like the food here and would give it a half point, but it's not quite enough to get the 10/10. Still, besides Vancouver, this is my favourite NWL park, I'd go here anytime.


Linescores 

2009-08-25
                                              123   456   789  R H E
Eugene Emeralds(SD)              001   021  000  4 9 0
Everett AquaSox(SEA)             000  101   100  3 12 0
Temp: 67F  Time: 2:18  Att: 1,850  
                                           

2014-08-18
                                                123  456   789  RHE
Vancouver Canadians(TOR)         000   220   020  671
Everett AquaSox(SEA)                010  031   30x   851
Temp: 81F  Time: 2:31   Att: 1,284

2015-07-27
                                                123  456   789  R H E
Vancouver Canadians(TOR)         000   000  000  0 4 0
Everett AquaSox(SEA)                401   010  00x  6 10 0
Temp:69F   Time: 2:10  Att: 1,625

Hillsboro Ballpark

Hillsboro Hops, Northwest League

7/10

             The ballpark has a pretty basic exterior. On the left, you can see the football grandstand.

The Eugene Emeralds' hitter, clad in his tie-dyed jersey, tries his luck at the bat.

A pretty decent crowd on one of the last nights of the season.

I got to see the Hillsboro Ballpark in its first year in 2013 as the 2nd stop of my ballparking trip for the year. I took the scenic route down from Tacoma, enjoying some great views on the Oregon coast before making the trip inland to Hillsboro, a western suburb around a 20 minute drive west of downtown Portland. I arrived to find the newly minted Hillsboro Hops, the Arizona Short-Season A affiliate battling the Eugene Emeralds, the Padres' team, with the Hops attempting to reel in the Boise Hawks for the division flag. Not every fan was aware of the pennant race, but those that were very interested in the game, which was fun to be around for.

The Portland area had been without pro baseball after the Beavers moved away following the 2010 season. The Yakima Bears were dissatisfied with Yakima County Stadium, as well as the state of the local economy. Combine that with Portland being the biggest market for the NWL without a team, and the local government in Yakima not budging on renovations and the writing was on the wall. A proposal in Vancouver(the other Vancouver) just across the state line from Portland fell through, so the Hillsboro group made their play and got the job done, pro baseball is back the Portland area.

The park was built on a pre-existing rec complex, attached to a 7,600 seat football stadium, Hillsboro Stadium. It works out that the ballpark and football stadium share a concourse, on the third base side. You can see the football stadium clearly in the photos I've posted. Because of this, things like parking and access routes have already been figured out, so there weren't any headaches here. The concessions have numerous offerings, including local beers and there are more than a few of them, on the third base side, they're shared with the football stadium.  The atmosphere was enjoyable in general, nothing too overbearing, but nothing particularly unique either.

Hillsboro has a very sleek, clean looking park, with ample concessions, but there are a few issues that arose. First of all, the main entrance is just offset from the third base side and shared used with the football stadium. This means most fans head in this way. The only way to the seats on the first base side is to walk past the entrances to the suites, on a relatively narrow concourse. I got out of there prior to the game ending, but could see it being a chokepoint. As well, I watched the last inning from the third base side, to facilitate a speedy getaway.

Not.

So.

Fast.

Security gave us the stop sign going down the stairs, so we all waited. Out a side door the vanquished Eugene Emeralds had to walk right in front of us, to go down a path to the football stadium, to access the visitors clubhouse. I don't know if this wasn't planned, or if a tunnel for the visitors isn't ready yet, but awkward doesn't even begin to describe this. About 500 people or so had built up by the time the team was walking out and one fan broke the silence: "Well, thanks for comin'" After the team was gone, we filed out. It sticks out as probably the single worst logistical error at a ballgame I've ever come across. After an ugly game, it has the potential to turn into an ugly scene. I really hope it gets fixed.

Anyhow, besides that, Hillsboro has turf. Fair enough, most places seem to these days, but Hillsboro has A LOT. Including two different colours between the infield and outfield(this is supposedly an error by the company that installed it, which they are fixing for free during the offseason) as well as something else I've never seen before: turf base paths. Combine this with a few hours of rain before the game and sliding became an interesting proposition. I'm hardly a physics expert, but as I saw, it's pretty difficult to stop while sliding on wet turf. A torrent of water came up every time and even the slowest minor leaguer looked like Robbie Alomar doing a headfirst slide. The Hops' players seemed to know their park and were hooking at least one foot every time, or sliding right at the base, while a few Eugene players literally slid into the base coaches box, having to scramble to avoid a close play. I realize the Pacific Northwest is hard place to keep grass serviceable(I grew up in BC after all), but maybe dirt base paths aren't a lot to ask for at a pro game? I'd hate to see a bad injury or something...

Overall, don't get me wrong, I liked this park and it's a noticeable improvement for the club when compared to Yakima. I'm also glad Portland has a pro ball club right next door after losing the Beavers THREE TIMES. This looks like a good home for the team, and hopefully with time, it'll get a bit of a personality and some of the more obvious issues(as little as they probably matter in the long haul) will get ironed out. I'd be open to going back in a few years to see how things are coming along. For now, it's a 7/10.

Update 2016: Not much else to add here. The ballpark is now Ron Tonkin Field, named after a dozen or so car dealerships in the northwestern part of the state of Oregon. The Hops have won the NWL flag the last two seasons and are 3rd in attendance, only drawing behind Spokane and Vancouver. They have about twice as many fans on average as they did in Yakima. I would consider a return trip, but if I had a choice, my review in Salem needs to get touched up first.

Linescore
2009-08-29
                                        123    456   789    R H E
Eugene Emeralds(SD)        000   002    000    2 7 0
Hillsboro Hops(ARI)            004   301    01x   9 11 0
Temp:72F    Time: 2:59   Att: 4,535

Yakima County Stadium

Yakima County Stadium

Vacant

5/10

The Stadium's Exterior was very plain.

 The stands were built on top of the clubhouse, meaning that sightlines could be very poor, especially towards the back. There was however, an excellent view of the rolling hills outside of the park.

Boomer the Bear works the crowd. Unbeknownst to him, his career would end 5 years later, his faithful service forgotten.

This is as good a place as any to start, because it's the namesake of the blog. Boomer the Bear was the mascot of the Yakima Bears of the Northwest League, who, after the 2012 season, moved to Oregon. Boomer the Bear was a good mascot, he tried hard, he minded his own business and like so many others in baseball, the game left him after a few short years. All that are left for him are memories.

I went to my one and only game at Yakima County Stadium in 2007, as part of a 3 game loop of the Northwest League. The Bears, who we had seen two nights before in Spokane, played the Eugene Emeralds, who we had seen the previous night in Eugene. I had read poor reviews of it prior to going and wasn't able to find much to the contrary. It was honestly, nothing too special. The stands were blue plastic seats and aluminum. Sightlines, as mentioned, could be very bad. The atmosphere was not the best, as at a lot of other poor parks, the game was a secondary attraction. Without a lot of options, the game was about the only thing going on. Still, the little things that make the game such a pleasure to watch were in full effect. We made fun of a pitcher's stretch, the incredibly hot day gave way to a hot, windless night and..there was baseball. Future major leaguer Josh Collmenter was a member of the Bears I cannot remember if he played.

The Bears had moved to Yakima in 1990 and moved into Yakima County Stadium in 1993. Only 19 years later, the Stadium was no longer adequate for the team's liking. Attendance was suffering and the worst of all for a Minor League team, the grass appeared to be much greener elsewhere, namely, in Portland, where there hadn't been professional baseball for two years after the Beavers moved away. Eventually, the Portland suburb of Hillsboro was selected, a brand new park was built and the Yakima Bears moved to become the Hillsboro Hops. Yakima County Stadium will host a team in the summer collegiate West Coast League in 2014, perhaps retaining the Bear nickname and perhaps, giving Boomer the Bear's life meaning again.


UPDATE: Yakima's WCL team will be known as the "Yakima Valley Pippins.

Update 2016: While the Bears are gone, the Pippins are drawing only slightly worse. The Bears drew in the around 1,600 a game in their last year and the Pippins draw around 1,400, good for 3rd in that league. While some people have clearly abandoned the seemingly lower brand of baseball, most have not and the stadium at least gets some use if nothing else.

With the new ratings system, the score is still the same, the somewhat tacky, baseball last atmosphere took a point, off, as did the stadium itself, for being entirely too much aluminum and the seating being on top of the clubhouses. Without major renos, this park will not be getting back into affiliated baseball, but for a summer league park, it's entirely adequate.

Linescore
2007-07-18

                                      123   456   789  R H  E

Eugene Emeralds(SD)      402   000   100  7  7  1

Yakima Bears(ARI)           211   000   000  4 12 2

Temp: 80F Time: 2:30 Att: 1,941