Sharing the view from inside Huntington Park
By Melissa DeGraw Metz, Director, Membership
Opening Day
There was no better place to be this past Saturday than Huntington Park . The new park, the new affiliation with the Cleveland Indians and a day of celebration had Columbus coming out in masses.
The park itself is beautiful and when you look around, you are consumed by Clippers baseball history. There are old pennants from when they were the Columbus Red Birds and bats from the former affiliation with the Yankees. There are quotes and banners all around the park that would take all day to read, so if you’re going to catch a game, arrive early to catch up on history.
Even though Huntington Park is a new stadium, you will see familiar landmarks from other stadiums across the nation. There are open-air bleachers on the Left Field Building roof that are reminiscent of Wrigley Park. The wall in right field is slightly higher than the rest of the outfield, a nod to the "Green Monster" at Fenway Park. There is even lawn seating where you can lay on a blanket to watch the game, similar to PETCO Park’s Park at the Park.
Wherever your ticket may be, there isn’t a bad seat in the house. I had a standing room ticket and parked myself at the huge drink railing that goes around the entire park. There are plenty of spots to hang out and watch the game if you don’t have a seat or if you prefer not to sit the entire time. I also checked out the huge 100+ foot bar in the Left Field Building prior to the game to catch up on other sports scores and stay in the shade for a bit.
Even though the Clippers lost the game, it was still a great time. The Columbus Clippers are downtown and they are here to stay.
Tags: Arena District, baseball, Clippers, sports
April 20th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
Sounds like a great time, our whole company will be there tomorrow and we are all excited but unfortunately the weather report calls for rain. Now that the park is in the heart of downtown I think we are going to see a packed stadium all summer long.
April 21st, 2009 at 11:23 am
Huntington Park is everything that, unfortunately, Cooper Stadium was not. It’s open, airy, and inviting. There are so many amazing views of the game, and each spot offers a unique game experience.
The sun came up yesterday afternoon, just in time for the game - proving (as we all already suspected) that even Mother Nature is a Clippers fan. Other than a 20 minute rain delay which provided the most stunning rainbow directly over the outfield flagpoles, my first Clippers game in the new stadium was a fantastic experience!
And, contrary to what others may say, a 5 hot dog per person limit on dime-a-dog night is PLENTY!!!
Can’t wait for my next game :)