Terps Sports

You mean you don't love $9.50 beer night????

At least the crowd isn't nearly as obnoxious.

i like the stadium. obviously it doesnt have the look and feel of OPACY.

and of course the beers will be more expensive than most places. D.C. has lots of wealthy people in the area and in general things cost more there.

yeah beers are $8 now. sucks.

I always wonder how popular the area is going to become because one gust of wind in the wrong direction and you're smelling sewage.

Can't take mine away... Ward 6 resident FTW.

Drew

The lack of development in the surrounding blocks is a far bigger issue than any problems with the stadium itself.

$5 beers (16oz IIRC) before the game on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday games at the bar under the scoreboard. I pound a 2-3 of these then get one expensive beer during the game.

Definitely agree with this. Also, I know DC folks don't want to hear this, but the lack of character of the stadium does reflect the general feeling about the city.

I don't think it will be a special place when the development around the stadium is finished, but I do think it will be a vast improvement. It's a solid stadium with good sight lines. It's probably in the top 10-15 of MLB ballparks.

One of the biggest issues is the metro station is too small and makes for a ridiculous time trying to get out of there. Baltimore has a similar issue with the light rail, but it's easier to drive and park at games at Camden than it is at the Nationals park.

in fact it will be worse...the development is going to be sterile phony and truman show esqe in its fakeness...you cant just invent a place like that...it doesnt work...and this isnt to single out DC....in philly there are hideous plans to build an "entertainment complex" on the grounds where the spectrum was...the same people who did the awful power plant in baltimore are doing this one...i cringe everytime i think about it and hope is goes out of business within a few years of opening

I did the Barracks Row thing for Opening Day and I couldn't help but wonder "why the hell did I not do this for the past two years?????"

I'm a huge Nats fan and am pretty disappointed by the stadium, even after 2 years. Half Street is just as undeveloped now as it was when the Park opened, aside from the Bullpen which has nearly equally overpriced beers. The only plus is that it's a good place to smoke a stogie and chill before games. I was talking with my buddy at Opening Day and while we agree and understand that they couldn't incorporate the Capitol because of MLB rules, they definitely could have incorporated more of the riverfront.

Once the following things happen (which will happen, just much more slowly than originally anticipated), the Park will be a better experience:

1) Development of bars and activities around the stadium;
2) Demolishing Florida Rock and creating a true riverfront park around the entire back of the stadium; and,
3) Making Metro not suck as much (my entire packed train was emptied and taken out of service at Archives when we were coming home Opening Day. This worked well when we all tried to get on the next packed train).

I also am slightly disappointed in the aesthetics of the stadium. If you look at it from the outfield bleachers, it looks like it was built with a giant erector set. It's just not very architecturally pleasing at all. But if you look at it from home plate, the Centerfield Plaza, the Red Loft, and the Scoreboard Walk (do not overrate the Thurs/Fri/Sat $5 beers out there) are terrific features. Plus, the most underrated place to watch a game is from the pedestrian bridge between the right field mezzanine seats and the entrance to the club section. I've bought many a $5 ticket and then stood at the railing with a beer and watched the game from there.

Look, I still love OPACY. I love going there when the Nats play there. It gives me memories of being a kid and going there when it first opened to sellout after sellout after sellout and the great playoff runs of the late 90s. To compare Nats Park to OPACY is fruitless. OPACY is classic and it is just as beautiful today as it was when it opened 19 years ago. I don't think Nats Park will age as well. I just hope the development around Nats Park happens soon.

And I, too, hope that DC Police don't catch on to my free parking spot.

I feel the same way towards I feel towards Turner Field ... it's a nice park, but there's nothing memorable about it at all.

solid post. i think lost in this discussion is the fact there was a tight space to plop this stadium and they did a rush job to get a stadium up. as much as RFK was a nice throwback tribute, the team could not afford to spend another season there.

so could they have made Nats Park more attractive aesthetically? of course. but it's not like it's the worst park in baseball and with the developments outside of the park, it'll be a fine place for years to come.

Let's remember, it's a miracle this thing even turned out as well as it did. I mean, MLB and the DC government were the ones building the damn thing. The Lerners/Kasten had no say in it. There was no Camden Yards-style planning. It was just "Oh, crap, we have a team and we got financing, let's throw this bastard up quick."

If it ranks between 11 and 15th among stadiums - maybe a stretch depending on your opinion - and in 3 years the area around it is built up and has a contending team to go with it then it's a win. And Fed Hill area is no closer to OPACY than 8th Street area - with a bunch of quality bars - is to Nats Park. Obviously, there's no Pickles, Sliders combo yet.