matthewweaver.com | mlb ballparks | philadelphia phillies

Ballpark:
The Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park in 2004 and it is a tremendous advancement over the previous Veterans Stadium "cookie-cutter" ballpark. As I entered the park, I was struck by three quick impressions: 1) The place looks very similar to Petco Park in San Diego...without the nice weather of course; 2) The concourses are woefully narrow for a ballpark that had the chance to review the many designs of the other new parks; and 3) The club seats cover the majority of the homeplate seats, shutting out anyone that does not "belong."

All that being said, Citizens Bank Park is a pretty decent venue for baseball -- especially in a town that was used to a ballpark (The Vet) that had a jail in the basement! While I'm on the subject of jails, I do have to say that the restrooms in Citizens Bank Park remind me of a jail. Concrete block, spartan and poorly stocked. Two different restrooms were already out of paper towels BEFORE the game!

The ballpark was built on the site of the old Veterans Stadium parking lot at Broad Street and Pattison Avenue. It sits across Pattison street from the Wachovia Spectrum, Wachovia Center and Lincoln Financial Field. This is Philadelphia's sports complex area, South of Downtown, but unlike most other cities, the area does not provide any other diversions such as bars or restaurants.

Speaking of food -- it is above average. The hot dogs are great, the pizza is decent and there are local cuisine choices like Philly Cheesesteaks (Tony Luke's and Geno's). Not knowing which one was better and only having enough stomach room for one sandwich, I rolled the dice and tried one from Geno's. Bad move. Geno's cheesesteaks are flavorless and bland...kind of like eating Steak-Ums, for those of you who used to eat those frozen meat like substances. After eating the lousy sandwich, my cousin - with whom I attended the game - was able to contact a friend and learn that Tony Luke's is by far the best cheesesteak at the park. Geno's 1. Matt 0.

(I wonder if Geno is a "made" man. I'll probably get whacked.)
The area outside of the park honors the history of Philadelphia baseball with statues of Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Richie Ashburn and Robin Roberts at the various stadium entrances. There's even a large photo of the Phillie Phanatic, probably the most famous team mascot since the San Diego Chicken.

The interior of Citizens Bank Park is attractive with excellent sight lines and seats close to the field...even in the upper deck. There are plenty of bathrooms and concessions -- almost too many concessions, actually, as they many times jut into the narrow concourses and create traffic problems. There are the standard kid's areas, a Hall of Fame shrine in left center field (ala Yankee Stadium) and a fan concourse called Ashburn Alley. This concourse is extremely crowded and people move through it like sardines. I just cannot believe how they build such small concourses when the park was constructed in a parking lot free of existing city streets and other encumbrances.

The scoreboard is large with a vivid television and the video shell game is done with Turkey Hill ice cream tubs instead of team ball caps like in other parks around the country. (Turkey Hill is a local convenient store.) Other nice features are the large Liberty Bell sign in center field, tiered bullpens, a standing room only fan perch in left center field and a nice view of the Philadelphia skyline.

Citizens Bank Park is a good place to see a game, but there's nothing about the venue that really strikes me as memorable. That, along with some of the fan-unfriendly features (concourses and bathrooms) knock the ballpark down to a "B" grade.

How to get there:
From Philadelphia International Airport, take Interstate 95 North to the Broad Street exit. Follow Broad Street North several blocks until you reach Pattison Avenue. The venue is right next to Lincoln Financial Field (the home of the Eagles) and adjacent to Wachovia Center complex.

Parking is plentiful - and relatively cheap - next to the ballpark, but getting out is total gridlock. Be prepared to sit a long time while exiting the lots. In fact, you might just want to save your tailgating for AFTER the game, so you can kill some time waiting for the flood of cars to die down. :)

City:
Humorously dubbed the "City of Brotherly Hate" after its dreadful fan behavior in recent years - they booed Santa Claus! - Philadelphia is a city of contrast. The history of the nation lives there, with many buildings still standing from the birth of the nation in 1776, and Downtown is an impressive place. However, Philadelphia does have its share of problems, including urban decay and crime. One local that I met during a business trip in 1999 drives a beater car to work because of the danger of car theft or vandalism. There are plenty of safe places to be, but I wouldn't wander too far away from those areas.

Unfortunately, the ballpark is situated far from downtown, so it is not easy to see a game and visit the city without having to buck up for parking twice.

Stuff to do while there:
For those who want to see history in person, check out Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell and Betsy Ross House. There are many great restaurants in town, but getting a Philly Cheesesteak at a greasy spoon storefront restaurant is a must.

Amish Country is an hour to the West, Gettysburg is about 2 hours to the West and, if you want to gamble, just hop on the AC Expressway for the 1 hour trip to Atlantic City. Since Philly is in the middle of the East Coast Megalopolis, New York City and Washington, DC aren't too far away either.

Story:
Citizens Bank Park was the first venue on my 4-ballparks-in-5-days tour of the East Coast in late August 2005. From my home base at my grandparent's condo in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, I traveled the vast portion of the Megalopolis to see lots of baseball. My cousin Beth and I traveled from Lancaster to the ballpark on a somewhat hot and humid day. I quickly realized that living in Oregon for over five years (at the time) had robbed me of all abilities to cope with the humidity of the East Coast. Ugh, it was hot!

The old Veterans Stadium was the first ballpark I ever visited - in 1980! I was only 11-years-old, so I don't remember much about the game, however, I do remember that Giants pitcher Ed Whitson cracked a home run that night. A pitcher hitting a dinger was a rare occurrence in 1980 and it still is today. We sat in the nose bleeder upper deck seats above third base and I do recall feeling vertigo while scaling the stairs to our seats.

Fun facts:
The park is across the street from the old Spectrum arena and the statue of movie character Rocky Balboa, left there by the producers of "Rocky" in the late 1970's.

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Matt in front of the Steve Carlton
statue outside the LF gate

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The 3B gate along Pattison Ave,
with Mike Schmidt statue

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Mosaic photo from behind home
plate during batting practice

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Mosaic photo from my right
field upper deck seats

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A view of the infield - Pirates
pitcher Mark Redman throws
to Phillies 2B Chase Utley

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The skyline of Philadelphia seen
from the upper deck concourse

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The ornate scoreboard with
Turkey Hill "shell game"

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The Phillie Phanatic entertains
the crowd before the game

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The Centennial Team and Hall
of Fame displays in the left
center field shrine