In
the late innings of the only game I ever attended at Clipper Magazine Stadium,
a team official asked me what I thought of the place.
I told him that if I hadn't seen dozens more just like it,
I'd be highly impressed.
As it is, Clipper Magazine Stadium is a very nice place to
catch a ballgame. It's just so much like many of the other ballparks
I've visited that it held very little originality for me. But, as I
often say when I talk about ballparks built on this template, originality
doesn't matter to the average fan who hasn't been to any other places,
because to them, it is original.
Clipper magazine Stadium is a standard open-concourse
ballpark with seating that goes down from the concourse. It's got
all of the things you'd expect in a new ballpark - luxury boxes, a nice
large video/score board, a large air-conditioned souvenir store, and
plenty of promotions.
One nice feature is the 360-degree concourse that allows
you to walk the entire way around the stadium while keeping an eye on the
game. I can't help it - I'm a walker, and it is difficult for me to
stay still the entire time I'm at a ballgame. But I also like to
watch, so to be able to do both at the same time is a plus.
Unfortunately, whatever view you might get as you look out
from the stands is obscured by a series of giant advertisement
banners. While I'm sure that this provides a lot of income for the
team, it takes away from one of the only things that can help make this
type of park unique - the view of the surrounding location.
There is a barn-like building in right field, an obvious
nod to the agricultural aspect of the team's name. It's called the
"Home Run Pavilion", even though it's in foul territory. Go
figure. Also, it seems slightly out of place, as the farm theme
isn't really emphasized anywhere else in the stadium. That's a shame,
because it would have added some creativity to an otherwise
paint-by-the-numbers stadium.
Bottom line:
This is a nice, clean, fun place to be and was a good
introduction to the Atlantic League for me. I'm sure this place will
entertain home town fans for years to come. But, since I've seen so many just like it, I'd
have to say that the lack of originality makes it about average.