Out with the old

Phillies' new ballpark signals end for cookie-cutter era

At one time, believe it or not, there were those who thought the monstrosities beautiful. They dominated skylines and towered over waterfronts, becoming unmistakable landmarks in cities such as Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Philadelphia.

On Monday, though, the days of baseball's true cookie-cutter stadiums officially come to an end. Philadelphia becomes the last to step out of its cookie-cutter past and onto the cutting edge with the opening of Citizens Bank Park.

Oh, the cookie-cutters. Vet Stadium. Riverfront. Three Rivers.

They will be missed.

Yeah. Like a foul ball off an instep, they'll be missed.

"You have to look at the time," said Joe Spear, a senior principal of the famed Kansas City architectural firm HOK Sport + Venue + Event, which pioneered the design of the types of stadiums that have spelled the demise of the cookie-cutters. "When a lot of those stadiums were designed and built, it was really a different time. High, modern architecture was a thing that some architects liked.

"Not many other architects did. They thought they were soulless, glass boxes."

The cookie-cutters were all the rage when they were built in the late 1960s and early '70s. Perfectly round, with high upper decks far away from the playing field, they were multipurpose coliseums, designed for both baseball and football. And tractor pulls, rock concerts and anything else outdoors that people could make money by staging.

A single place such as Riverfront or the Vet was supposed to be cheaper than building two stadiums, and if these stadiums didn't exactly fit the traditional mold of a baseball stadium ... well, they were cheaper.

It didn't take long, though, before fans started to yearn to be closer to the field and began to think of the stadiums as numbingly similar. A game at Riverfront looked awfully close to one at Three Rivers, or the Vet, and that wasn't good in any city looking for a stadium it could call its own.

When Oriole Park at Camden Yards arose in 1992 -- featuring a groundbreaking design led by Spear -- the cookie-cutters' days immediately were numbered. Baltimore's new showcase, near the city's once-decaying inner harbor, was a beauty. It boasted all the modern amenities, yet it was intimate and, with its brick and wrought-iron face, recalled the best of the old parks. Better yet, Oriole Park was unique, incorporating into its design the now-famous B&O warehouse beyond the right-field fence.

Many other so-called retro-ballparks followed. In fact, since the Baltimore stadium debuted, half of the stadiums in baseball are now the newer, more intimate, baseball-only parks. Some have fancy retractable roofs, like the ones in Phoenix, Seattle, Houston and Milwaukee. Some have quirks that are questionable, like the train and the flagpole and the hill in center field in Houston and the right-field box that juts into fair territory in the new park in San Diego. Some are too small (Houston, for instance), others are too spacious (Detroit's Comerica Park).

But they all beat the old cookie-cutters, hands down. If for no other reason than, inside and out, they often reflect the cities they represent.

"I think a ballpark has to have the right stuff, but I think there's a lot of room in that list of ballpark stuff for expression that is all about Cleveland or Cincinnati or San Diego. No one would ever say that it would be appropriate to put the San Diego ballpark in Baltimore," said Spear.

"Success in what we're about ... means having more fans falling in love with your ballpark. To do that, I believe your ballpark needs to say something. It needs to remind someone of where they are. It should be symbolic of its community, in some way, shape or form."

Veterans Stadium, the Phillies' cookie-cutter built in 1970, was blown up three weeks ago. Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, which opened in 1970, died in 2002. Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, born in '70, croaked in '01.

There are others in that class -- if not exactly true cookie-cutters -- that have gone foundations-up, or soon will. Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, built in 1965, gave way to Turner Field and was imploded in 1997. Many consider Busch Stadium in St. Louis a cookie-cutter, though through the years it has resorted to baseball-only, shed its artificial turf and, with its open arches and downtown location, is now closer to a real baseball stadium than it's ever been. Cookie-cutter or not, the St. Louis ballpark, built in '66, will soon give way to a new downtown ballpark.

And there are others that, already, look dated and maybe should be imploded. Olympic Stadium, the soon-to-be ex-home of the Expos, is one. Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., the Metrodome in Minneapolis and, arguably, Toronto's SkyDome are others. The world champion Florida Marlins still play in Pro Player Stadium, a football stadium adapted for baseball.

With the opening on Monday of Citizens Bank Park, though, there are no more true cookie-cutters in baseball. The days of the sky-high, circular, artificial turf, multi-purpose stadiums are officially gone.

Shed a tear if you want. But you may have to cry alone.

• You know, if only I'd have put that $100 down on the Tigers being the last to lose their first game, and the Mariners being the last to win their first.

• Fire Kirk Gibson. He has a winning percentage worse than Alan Trammell's.

• The Roger Clemens-Barry Bonds showdown early last week was one of the best things I've seen in April since that spring break I spent in Nogales oh so long ago.

• Shortstop Bobby Crosby, the rookie who's taking over for Miguel Tejada in Oakland, had one hit, a single, in his first 12 at-bats. He also had four strikeouts. No conclusions being drawn here. Just passing on some facts.

• I love the way Cliff Floyd plays. When Cliff Floyd plays. The veteran Mets outfielder is going on the disabled list again, this time with a strained quadriceps. The poor guy lives under the same rainy cloud as Ken Griffey Jr. It's just sad.

The real E-Bag appears on your friendly neighborhood site every Friday, but we'll give you a taste of it here on the bottom of the Pitch every Monday.

At this point -- as is the case in other mailbags on SI.com -- I'd like to discuss the coolest new bands I'm listening to or the best movies I've seen recently. But the last CD I bought was Pocket Full of Kryptonite, I think, and I haven't seen a movie since The Incredible Mr. Limpet. But I'm going to take the whole family to the PG version of that new comic-book thriller, Heckboy, as soon as that comes out.

I have to give you my "E of the Week" for your comments on Andy Van Slyke. You compared his quotes regarding Barry Bonds using steroids to what Jack McDowell said about Mark Prior. First, Bonds looks like the poster boy for someone who uses steroids. His arms are about triple the size that they were when he played for the Pirates. Second, his personal nutritionist has been arrested for providing steroids to MLB and NFL players. As far as I'm concerned, Van Slyke was just saying what every baseball fan and player has been thinking for years. -- Tom Schmidt, Phoenix

Well, Tom, you're first in line. Many others wrote in echoing your words. Some were, you better believe it, not nearly as nice as you.

For you to lump this in with Andy Van Slyke's comments about Bonds is just plain stupid. Van Slyke played with Bonds when he was 180 pounds and saw him nearly every day. Surely you have to think his comments carry a little more weight, and come on, who are we kidding here? Look at the home run numbers. Look at the increase in the size of some of these players (and now even the decrease as suspicions start to rise, e.g., Jason Giambi). Thank God for the Cecil Fielders, Andy Van Slykes and Reggie Jacksons of the world who have enough common sense to speak out against what is obviously degrading the character of the game they still love. -- Mike Grams, Phoenix

MAILBAG MAILBAG Comments, questions or obviously unfounded criticism? To e-mail Donovan, use the form below. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

Well, guys, you're right. And you're wrong. I mean, obviously, there is much more suspicion surrounding Bonds than there is Prior. And there probably should be, given what Bonds has accomplished and what he's gotten into with the BALCO probe. I'll even give you another point: It is somewhat encouraging when someone in a public position, like Jackson, comes out with his doubts. It brings the suspicions that many of us carry to the forefront, and this is an issue that needs to be addressed. But to link someone to such a charge, relying only on empirical evidence, is a risky proposition, whether you're Van Slyke talking about home runs and Bonds, or McDowell talking about bad tendons and Prior. I know this isn't a court of law. It's not innocent until proven guilty. But a little due process, a little fairness, wouldn't hurt anyone. It might even clear some things up.

This is in response to William L. Farrar O'Fallon's mindless tirade about sportswriters [in last week's Payoff Pitch], which wasted a lot of space and said nothing of sense or credibility. First off, his history is wrong: As long as there have been sports, there has been sports media. Athletes today couldn't command their multimillion dollar salaries if the media wasn't making them household names all across the country -- or do you really believe many people outside the National League cities would care about Barry Bonds if there were no sports media spreading word of his accomplishments all over the country through TV, radio and newspapers? (Not to mention the Internet; if you don't like sports media, than stay off a sports Web site!) Since the first responsibility of the press is toward the public, it is the duty of the press to report on these athletes, warts and all. So, if there is a suspicion an athlete is succeeding by cheating, thus robbing the fans (whose devotion also helps an athlete reap his millions), then it should be reported. Integrity may be meaningless to Mr. O'Fallon, but I value mine. The only thing "surprisingly stupid" here is his assertion that, by reporting on the misdeeds of athletes, we sportswriters are risking our profession. Athletes come and go, Mr. O'Fallon, but sports endure. For the record, I've been a sportswriter for 20 years, never touched drugs, don't even drink, and my well-above-minimum wage is well-earned. -- Bill Gates, Baltimore

Thanks, Bill. If I'd have said that, it would have looked like I was trying to get in the last word, and that's just not fair. Maybe by having you say it, it still looks that way. Oh, well. Just can't win with some people.

John Donovan is a senior writer for SI.com.