With a theme centered around aviation, ONT Field is a marvelous example of everything that can be done right when designing and building a new ballpark.

The city of Ontario planned this perfectly. They went to the voters to seek permission to raise the sales tax, and got approval. They bought the perfect land on which to build an otherworldly sports complex. They went with the biggest sports architects in the world (Populous) to design the main stadium in it. They went about things the right way to obtain a team to play there, making sure the market where that team came from (Rancho Cucamonga) was able to attract another team to play there. They filled the front office with exceptionally talented people who knew how to give fans what they wanted. They charged reasonable prices for tickets, food and souvenirs, and on Wednesdays let fans buy reserved seats for just $7 … and give them a fireworks show to boot!

And the people responded. As of this writing, the Ontario Tower Buzzers lead the California League in attendance.

Talk about a success story!

So settle in and read my in-depth review of how ONT Field came to be, how it got its name, how it was designed and what it’s like to attend a game there. And leave a comment at the end to tell me what you thought of my review.

I recently visited Tropicana Field to write about everything that it took to repair the stadium so the Rays could return there this season. My article appeared in USA TODAY Sports Weekly and a longer version (with more photos) appears here. Check it out!

I was overjoyed to get to cover the Men’s College World Series (MCWS) for USA TODAY Sports. One of my assignments was to describe the ten lessons I learned in Omaha. That article runs in the June 24 issue of Sports Weekly. An expanded version of that article appears here … so check it out!

The West Virginia Mountaineers had only hosted a Regional once before. They had never hosted a Super Regional. And they had certainly never punched a ticket to the College World Series.

All of those boxes have been checked.

I had great fun covering the first-ever Morgantown Super Regional. You can check out my thoughts (that are being published by USA TODAY Sports Weekly) right here.

There are five new ballparks in 2026, but only one of them was constructed amidst century-old structures.

The Chattanooga Lookouts’ new home was built on the former home of U.S. Pipe and Wheland Foundry, an industrial site abandoned two decades ago. A local family bought the property in hopes of one day turning it into something special for the citizens of Chattanooga. After 20 years and an immense amount of planning, their property is springing back to life — first as a top-notch ballpark, then with apartments, then offices, and then all kinds of other mixed-use development.

But what makes this truly special is the way the abandoned buildings at the site have been integrated into the baseball facility. Through “adaptive re-use,” the structures are now greeting fans in ways never before imagined. It’s fun. It’s historic. It’s showing tremendous stewardship. And it works.

As you’ll read in our in-depth review of Erlanger Park, it’s been ironic that Lookout fans have never actually been able to see the team’s namesake mountain while attending a game. Now they can, and it’s glorious.

So check out our detailed look at how the ballpark came to be, how the franchise owner’s vision made it a reality, and what it’s like to attend a Lookouts game (hint: it’s the most affordable of any of this year’s new parks). It’s all in our review of Erlanger Park.

Decades ago, Wilson, North Carolina was best known as a major market for tobacco. As the tobacco warehouses and marketplaces disappeared, the city then became known for its fascinating assortment of outdoor whirligigs. Now those whirligigs tie into an impressive new ballpark, home of the area’s entry in the Carolina League. Read all about how Wilson reinvented itself, and how the Mudcats-turned-Warbirds have taken roost in the city’s right-sized stadium.