By: Cole ShoemakerApril 1, 2021 Many have lamented the demise of everyday social interactions during Covid—the handshakes, the hugs, the impromptu chats with neighbors—but I mostly just miss the crowds. Particularly when cheering at a live event, that celebratory collective effervescence brings us all together.  As the pandemic endlessly wound on in 2020, those communal …

Best and Worst Features of Each Major League Ballpark, with Rankings Read More »

By: Cole ShoemakerMarch 5, 2021 Note: For obvious reasons, 2021 spring training will be unlike any year before.  This piece might be of interest to those select spring training fanatics particularly excited to finally return to the ballpark after a year out of action, but it does not especially focus on Covid restrictions.  For those …

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Best Foodie Ballparks: The Definitive Guide and Ranking of All 30 MLB Stadiums by Food By: Cole ShoemakerAugust 24, 2020 For all that I relished about annually revisiting baseball’s cathedrals, namely meeting new fans and discovering ballpark changes, I truly miss the joy of having a high-quality snack at a ballgame. It’s no secret that …

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 Ballpark Trends of the 2010s: A Decade in Review   By: Cole Shoemaker 12/30/19   Huge structural changes in Major League Baseball are often synonymous with each passing decade in the minds of generations of baseball fans.   The breaking of the color barrier is associated with the 1940s, relocation and expansion captures the 50s …

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In a national landscape of highly acclaimed ballparks with well-positioned skyline panoramas, captivating water views, and sweeping mountain vistas, so much of our attention is devoted to the interior aesthetics of America’s great baseball cathedrals. Grand aesthetic visions are mostly framed by the inside, namely through a ballpark’s contextual integration of its environment, one of …

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