Quote:
Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001
Can't get photos right now, but in my opinion:
Best Pre-Camden:
1. Wrigley Field (Really a tossup between Wrigley or Fenway)
Worst Pre-Camden:
Oakland/Alameda County Coliseum (or whatever its called nowadays)
Best post-Camden:
1. PNC Park (despite its horrible tenant)
Worst post-Camden:
2. Tropicana Field
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as others have mentioned, i would consider tropicana to be a pre-camden ballpark as it was built in 1990 two years prior to camden yards and was designed as a multi-use facility. it's true that the rays didn't start playing there until the late 90s, but the facility itself is of a decidedly pre-camden philosphy.
and now that the metrodome and landshark stadium are on their way out as baseball stadiums, it becomes clear that there will really be 3 main groups of stadiums left in MLB, with the 3rd group split into two sub-groups.
Group 1. the pre-war era, the classic early 20th century cathedrals of fenway and wrigley. they must be considered in a category by themselves given the fact that they are the lone surviving relics of a time long since past. i guess you could race one against the other if you really wanted to, but that kinda seems like racing the acropolis against the giza pyramids, what's the point? they're both fantastic treasures and our civilization is blessed to still have them around.
Group 2. the post-war era, of which only 4 survive. the best from this group are dodger stadium and kauffman stadium, both now considered classics. angel stadium has been vastly improved with its renovations in the 90s. only oakland's coliseum seems to be woefully out of date as a ballpark from this group, thanks in no small part to the awful renovations made when the NFL's raiders moved back in.
Group 3a. the modern era, starting with the multi-use rogers centre in toronto in 1989 and followed up with the multi-use tropicana filed in 1990 (though baseball would not be played there for many years). these two together, because of their outdated multi-use philosphy, form their own sub group within the modern era. rogers centre is mostly a success while tropicana is mostly a failure.
Group 3b. then the philosophy changed and the modern era became more formalized in 1991 with US cellular field, the first baseball-only stadium built in nearly 20 years, though without the historicist retro detailing that would be incorporated into 1992's camden yards to complete the total package of the retro ballpark craze that would sweep through the league. since US cellular field was completed in 1991, every other MLB ballpark that's been built has been a baseball-only facility. US cellular field changed the philosophy and then camden yards wrapped it in the more attractive throwback package (that has since been retroactively applied to US cellular with renovations). picking a best or worst from this group is more difficult because the bulk of the league's stadiums now lie (or soon will) within this group, though camden yards in baltimore, PNC in pittsburgh, and AT&T in san francisco seem to get the most consistent praise from what i've heard and read.
just my 2 cents.