Class A Photo Album

Short-Season A

As the name implies, the teams at this level don't play as long of a schedule as those at the higher levels.  There's a good reason for this:  the rosters are comprised largely of just-signed players, so these schedules can't start until after the annual June Amateur Draft.  The teams at this level are in either the New York-Penn League or the Northwest League.  Here are some of their nicest parks:

If there is a more photogenic ballpark than Brooklyn's KeySpan Park, then I haven't found it.  This is the home of the Cyclones of the NY Penn League, and it opened in June of 2001.  Let's see . . . let's count all of the great photo opportunities from within this stadium:  an honest-to-goodness Coney Island amusement park (it's actually Astro Land), complete with the Cyclone roller coaster, is beyond the left-field wall; the light standards all have brightly colored neon rings around them; the Atlantic Ocean is beyond center and right; the beach -- with its famous boardwalk -- is just beyond the right-field stands; the massive (but no-longer-operational) Parachute Jump ride towers over the first-base stands; and, oh yeah, an entertaining brand of baseball on the field.  The architects did an absolutely outstanding job in coordinating the amusement-park theme throughout every element of this fantastic new park.  It won't make you forget that Ebbets Field ever existed, but this is a ballpark you will really enjoy visiting!  To see much, much more on KeySpan Park, click here.   

Built a scant three-quarters of a century before LeLacheur is Centennial Field in Burlington, Vermont, one of the oldest parks still in use in the Minors.  This is the home of the New York-Penn League Vermont Expos.  In these photos, the park is hosting a capacity crowd for a July Fourth contest.  Note that the park also has a huge wooden roof covering most of the grandstands.

If you ever plan a trip to Montreal, make sure you take in a game here on the way.  The park is located in lovely northern Vermont.

It's beautiful country in the Pacific Northwest, and a pretty ballpark in Spokane, Washington is Avista Stadium.  Never mind that the team's name is the Indians and that their Major League parent has been the Rangers for years, the park is definitely worth seeing.  This Northwest League stadium was built in 1958, and it's located within the County Fairgrounds.  In the shot on the right, crackerjack ballpark-photographer Gary Jarvis has captured the beautifully colored clouds just after a thunderstorm had passed through.  Many thanks to Gary Jarvis for providing these photos. 

Several years ago , I had the opportunity to have a conversation with a nationally known sportswriter (you've seen him on ESPN plenty of times).  He's visited many, many minor league parks, so I asked him what his favorite is.  He surprised me by saying Bowman Field in Williamsport PA.  This is the home of the Crosscutters of the NY-Penn League.  Very historic -- it's over 80 years old -- and very quaint, Bowman offers no modern creature comforts . . . nor does it need to.  Also, while you're in the area, visit the home of the Little League World Series and the adjacent museum across the river in South Williamsport.    

Going, going . . . The Pittsfield MA Astros pulled up stakes and moved to Troy NY following the 2001 season.   Of course, the move was made so that the team can play in a brand-new stadium there.  Pittsfield's Wahconah Park, built in 1919, is anything but new . . . but that's what makes it so lovable.  Places like this are a disappearing treasure.

By the way, notice how brightly lit the grandstands are?  That's because the sun sets in dead center field.  Remember, this place was built decades before the advent of night baseball, so they typically didn't have to worry about the setting sun, because all games started in the early afternoon.  The bright sun sometimes causes the rare event called a "sun delay," where the umpires stop the game for 15 or 20 minutes to let the sun set behind the trees beyond center field so the batter, catcher and (most importantly) umpire can see the pitch coming.

Such a shame parks like this are disappearing from the landscape of affiliated Minor League ball.

Vancouver's Nat Bailey Stadium was home to AAA baseball for years . . . until the city's Pacific Coast League team moved to Sacramento following the 1999 season.  It would have been a shame for this lovely 50-year-old park to be without a tenant, so we're happy to report that the Northwest League has a franchise here now.  Note the large roof and supports (creating "obstructed-view" seats), which is reminiscent of some of the classic Minor League parks in the Eastern U.S.  The Vancouver Canadians call this quaint park home.  Many thanks to Gary Jarvis for providing this photo.  

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