Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
March 05, 2006
Staying in Neutral

Derrick Goold details how the designers of the new Busch Stadium strove to keep the park neutral.

How new Busch will play is only an educated and informed theory until a pitch is thrown there, even as the final bricks are placed. Several of the newer fields in baseball have not played as perceived on paper. Some veer dramatically from their intended designs - becoming homer havens or pitcher parks. A few have struck the desired balance. Since the new stadium's initial conception, the guiding request from owners, from the baseball people and from the fans has been to have a neutral field. No near walls, no gimmicks, no cutesy nooks or contrived crannies.

It should be a ballpark, not a fun park.

"We haven't seen the finished product yet, but my understanding is that the way this was built was not to have those types of characteristics that would affect the play of the game, that would adversely impact the play," Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty said. "There shouldn't be any short fences, or anything like that that would tend to make it a hitters' park or anything that would make it too big and become a pitchers' park.

"I think it will play true, and that's what we want."

There is one thing in the article, however, that makes me believe it might favor the offense:

The traits of new Busch that will have the bigger impact on play are more subtle. Santee stresses the lights - their quality and their location - will give fielders a far clearer view of the field and the ball than ever at Old Busch. As the seats have been moved in for a more intimate feel for the fans, the foul territory has been sacrificed. That might peeve pitchers, but Eckstein is thrilled. He fouls off so many pitches that the smaller the foul territory the longer the at-bats.

And the higher probability of a hit.


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Posted by David Pinto at 08:56 AM | Stadiums | TrackBack (0)
Comments

...and people laughed at me for keeping Eckstein on my fantasy team when I could've had a higher ranked SS. Heh. (It was an auto draft league, so I can't claim he was my first choice)

Posted by: Devon at March 5, 2006 03:21 PM
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