A comparison of the two parks of the 2015 World Series

One park is hosting the World Series for the very first time, and the other is doing so for the second year in a row.

And both are showplaces, as each are top-ten parks in my one-to-thirty ranking of MLB stadiums. Citi Field is #7 and the rebuilt Kauffman Stadium is #4.

Every year since 2003, we’ve provided a “tale of the tape” of the two parks in that year’s Fall Classic, so this year is no exception.

Inside

Kauffman Stadium

Citi Field

1973, although in 2009 it received a quarter-of-a-billion-dollar renovation Year opened Opened next door to Shea in 2009
In the Harry S Truman Sports Complex, which also includes Arrowhead Stadium Site Just like its predecessor, the noise from the jets lets you know it’s near LaGuardia
37,903. The Royals shattered their old single-season attendance record in 2015, and was up 38% over 2014 Seating capacity 41,922. The Mets had the best attendance gain vs. 2014 in the NL. It was the best yr since 2009
Natural grass (bluegrass and rye) Playing surface Natural grass (bluegrass)
Immense CF video scoreboard (when it opened in 2008, it was the largest in the world), fantastic team museum Special features The exterior copies the look of Ebbets Field. Entry rotunda is grandest in the sport
Kivett and Myers (architects from this firm started HOK Sport, now Populous) Designed by Populous
$70 million Cost to build $900 million
330′-387′-410′-387′-330′ Outfield dimensions 335′-358′-408′-375”-330′
This is the fourth — 1980, 1985, 2014 and this year World Series hosted This is the ballpark’s first.
The only World Series won by the Royals was in 1985. They came up two runs short of winning the 2014 Series Last World Series won by home team 1986 in the Fall Classic sadly remembered for Buckner’s error
1973 and 2012, both games won by the NL All Star Games hosted 2013, which had the biggest crowd in the park’s history. The AL shut out the NL.
The fountains, baseball’s best feature because KC is the City of Fountains Landmark Other than the rotunda, a giant apple appears in CF when a Met homers
A great park for doubles and triples, but definitely not for HRs (20.7% fewer were hit than MLB average). Runs scored were 1.9% more than average. Park factors (2015)
Source: ESPN.com
It’s a pitchers’ park, because the third-fewest runs in the Majors were scored here, although the number of HRs were almost exactly average
Wonderful, respectful fans and the best ushering/security staff in the sport Filled with These are fans who don’t take a back seat to the cross-town Yankees, and their ballpark doesn’t either
Outside