No one goes there anymore... it's too crowded

Perhaps the biggest story of the early part of the baseball season has not been the home runs or the pitching or anything happening on the field. For a change there hasn't really been all that much talk about MLB's drug and alcohol problems or the crazy contracts some players got from a few clubs. And to think, Manny Ramirez and CC Sabathia didn't even have to wear a mask or play the Powerball to get all that cash. Good for them.

No, aside from the tragedy of Nick Adenhart and the deaths of Harry Kalas and Mark Fidrych, the biggest story this season has been all about the new ballparks in New York City.

As if it could be anything else.

Clearly there is the New-York-as-the-center-of-the-universe silliness at the forefront. After all, when something happens in New York it's as if it never happened anywhere else. That's the way they think - never mind that every team that was ever going to build a new ballpark had already done so, how can it be possible that Pittsburgh has a nicer ballpark than the two New York teams.

Apparently that's the case. Not only are there a cavalcade of stories out that the Mets' Bailout Ballpark and the Yankee Tribute to Avarice and Greed Stadium are, well... underwhelming, but the fans aren't turning out either.

Who builds a $1.5 billion stadium in the South Bronx anyway? The poorest Congressional district in the country has the most expensive ballpark ever built... funny how that works.

It's also kind of funny to see all those empty seats behind the dugouts in the new joint, too. The really funny part is all those smart guys running things for the Yankees didn't get that a lot of folks don't want to pay $295- to $2,625 for one baseball game. Really... what were they thinking? They still play 162 games per season, right? They're on TV and everything, too...

"I'm sure they're thinking, 'It's just April,' " Jon Greenberg, executive editor of the Team Marketing Report, told The New York Times about the lack of sellouts. "But it's lost revenue they anticipated getting. This is the worst possible time to debut a stadium."

Yeah, that's where the arrogance part enters the picture. Despite the fact that nearly every business is tightening their belts, the Yankees still had the belief that they were immune to the global economic crisis. You know, because if a family has $2,625 burning a hole in its pocket, the thing they need to spend it on is one ticket to a Tuesday night game at the new Yankee Stadium against the Kansas City Royals.

Otherwise, the reviews indicate the new ballpark is pretty nice. It might not be $1.5 billion nice, but nice nonetheless. In fact, one person who has been to the new parks says the Mets' park might be nicer, but neither is as good as Camden Yards, the park in Pittsburgh or San Francisco, which sounds a bit sacrilegious.

Heck, CBP in South Philly has its charms like two big highways filtering down to the complex as well as plenty of parking. There's even public transportation nearby. Who doesn't love the Broad Street Line?

The Yankees aren't the only New York team struggling to get people to the park. Even the NL East contending Mets are drawing just 37,740 per game, which is 89.9 percent of the capacity at the new ToxicAssets Park. There are more variables at work here, too. One is that it costs 60 percent more to buy food and other extra items not included in the price of the ticket at the Mets' new park.

But the most interesting part is that the Yankees and Mets appear to be operating like the airline industry. Here's what the Times wrote:

But the slow start in New York is striking considering how much the teams here spent to build and promote their parks. Like airlines that break even on economy tickets and rely on first-class travelers to turn a profit, the teams need to sell their most exclusive seats to help repay the hundreds of millions of dollars of tax-free bonds they issued to finance their new parks.

The unfilled seats in New York are even more glaring compared with how robust sales have been for previous stadium openings. The Baltimore Orioles sold out 67 of their 80 home dates in 1992, when Camden Yards opened. The Cleveland Indians sold out 36 games in the strike-shortened season in 1994, and were filled to capacity 455 consecutive games from 1995 to 2001.

After moving to their new park in 2001, the Houston Astros drew 3.1 million fans, 300,000 more than they ever attracted at the far larger Astrodome. The Pittsburgh Pirates, a perennial second-division team, sold 2.4 million tickets in 2001 when PNC Park opened, 700,000 more than they ever sold at Three Rivers Stadium.

The answer for the Yankees? Yeah, that's right... they're going to raise ticket prices by 4 percent.

The most interesting part about the Mets and Yanks struggling to draw fans to their pricey castles to themselves is that the early leaders in attendance are a pair of teams that have no intention on building a new ballpark...

Ever.

The leaders:

1.)    Red Sox 101.6 percent of capacity

2.)    Phillies 96.9 percent

3.)    Cubs 96.3 percent

4.)    Angels 92.7 percent

Wrigley and Fenway aren't going anywhere, and CBP clearly is just digging in. Maybe the answer isn't so much as building a new ballpark as it is fielding a good team with reasonable prices?

Anyway, check out the story on how the Red Sox make do with tiny and out-dated Fenway... can't manufacture history.

OK, the clown show makes a slight return...

OK, I just can't resist. It's so hard to stay away... Anyway, the Phillies will be wearing green caps this evening when they play the San Diego Padres here at the Bank. The reason, in addition to clever marketing, is because the ballclub announced that it had begun a "groundbreaking green initiative," in which it will attempt to "offset its carbon footprint" from being typical wasteful Americans. In order to offset its waste, the Phillies have purchased 20 million kilowatt-hours of Green-e Energy Certified Renewable Energy Certificates, which the team says the EPA reports is the largest single purchase of 100 percent renewable energy in pro sports and is equal to planting 100,000 trees.

According to its web site, Green-e Energy is "the nation's leading independent consumer protection program for the sale of renewable energy and greenhouse gas reductions in the retail market."

Moreover, the Phillies say they are the first Major League Baseball team to join the EPA's Green Power Partnership program, which is a "voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use." The team also reports that according to the EPA, the team is the third largest Green Power Partner in Philadelphia and seventh largest Green Power Partner in Pennsylvania.

So that's why the Phillies are wearing green caps. It also is worthy of a nice kudos for the Phillies for being proactive in a vital issue. However, the cynic in me couldn't help but wonder if the new greening of the Phillies means the team will shut off the lights to the ballpark after the game instead of letting them burn away all night?

Does it also mean that the team will encourage its ballplayers to drive more fuel-efficient automobiles? Perhaps the team will even begin composting some of the waste left in the seats after the game? I'm sure there are many more little peccadilloes we can delve into about the team being truly "green," but in the meantime it should be noted that it is a most worthy effort.

Besides, there are a few more noticeable recycling stations planted about the ballpark, which is nice.

Speaking of the Phillies' ballpark, Sports Illustrated ran a poll of fans and ticketholders ranking the stadiums on several criteria and Citizens Bank Park came in 10^th. The categories are affordability, food, team quality, tradition, atmosphere, fan IQ, hospitality, promotions, traffic and neighborhood.

Amongst those, the Philllies performed well in food (fourth), team quality (ninth), atmosphere (seventh) and fan IQ (seventh). In promotions and traffic the Phillies did OK, checking in 10^th of the 30 teams.

What hurt the team was the ballpark's neighborhood - it was rated 20^th - and the patrons in the ballpark. In that category, called hospitality, the Phillies were dead last.

Hey, it was the home team's fans that responded to the poll. In other words, the Phillies fans are the people who are so self-loathing.

Anyway, for those who did not click on the link, here are the top 10 rankings according to the Sports Illustrated poll:

1.) Cleveland

2.) Milwaukee

3.) Pittsburgh

4.) Detroit

5.) St. Louis

6.) Seattle

7.) Colorado

8.) Chicago White Sox

9.) L.A. Angels

10.) Phillies

Cleveland? Milwaukee? Detroit?

Interestingly, the Phillies and the White Sox are the only teams rated so highly that did not have a ballpark located in the downtown area of the city. The L.A. Angels play in Anaheim, which is a suburb of a suburb so there really isn't a downtown to speak of. Nevertheless, it's worth noting that CBP was rated better than the ballparks in New York City, Boston and Wrigley Field - the so-called traditional ballparks.

Since no one asked and it is my web site, here's how I'd rate the parks:

1.) Coors (Denver) - mostly because if I'm there it means I'm in Colorado.

2.) Camden Yards (Baltimore) - best press box and they have fresh-brewed ice tea in the media dining room. It's also easy to get to and all of the logistical stuff. It was the first of the "retro parks" and still the best.

3.) Fenway (Boston) - sentimental choice, but really, the place is a bit of a dump. It is also cool to walk to and from the park in one of the best "walking cities" in the country.

4.) Yankee Stadium (New York) - sentimental choice, but really, the new park is needed.

5.) Nationals Park (Washington) - OK, I haven't been there yet, but it's in Washington and everyone says it's cool. So there.

6.) CBP (Philly) - I'm here so much and know my way around. Here's a fun fact: I've been covering games at CBP longer than at the Vet.

One more interesting caveat: the bottom three rated parks (Florida, RFK ad Shea) are all in the NL East.

Back to D.C.

A lot has changed with the Nationals since the last time we were in D.C. For starters, the ball club has an owner – that was evident as soon as one walked through the doors. For starters, the old stadium has been cleaned up a bit and the concessions have taken a major and noticeable upgrade. More importantly, those changes have taken affect in the press dining area as well.

Gone is the slipshod and minimalist manner in which MLB ran the Nats. Now we have a pasta station to go along with the regular fare – including staples like veggie burgers for non-meat eaters like me. On Tuesday night I had a delightful penne with grilled broccoli, green peppers and onions with a marinara with a side of green beans and carrots. Good stuff and definitely worth the $10.

Obviously, it was much better than what the Phillies offer at their ballpark.

Maybe because I spend so much time in the antiseptic and characterless Citizens Bank Park, I have developed a soft spot for the old-timey ballparks in Washington, New York, and Boston. Actually, even Baltimore can be considered older at this point especially since it set the standard and has been copied to death since it opened in 1992.

Now there’s nothing wrong with the ballpark in Philadelphia, and it’s definitely nicer than the Vet. Anything would have been better than the Vet. But the park hasn’t developed a personality yet… actually, watching a game at Citizens Bank Park feels like sitting in an airport terminal.

I’m sure I’d have a different opinion of the ballpark if I were a fan sitting in the stands, but I have never had the pleasure of sitting back and watching a game there yet. Some day, perhaps, but most people don’t want to spend a day off going to the office to be a spectator.

Anyway, regular readers of this little site know what I think about the city of Washington, D.C. and of all the time I spent in the city – including time growing up there in the 1970s – nothing compares to the atmosphere I felt in the city when we were there exactly one year ago.

I don’t think I have to explain why.

Walking around on the streets of the Downtown and Foggy Bottom neighborhoods one could feel an entire city unified in its anger. Everyone was on the same page and felt the same way about what was going on along the Gulf of Mexico. Better yet, the outside world even penetrated the insular world of baseball and I even got a knowing and approving nod from one player when I told him I took my iPod on my run that morning and played Kanye West as I dashed down the 1600 block of Pennsylvania Avenue.

On another note, here's a touristy tip for those going to D.C.: the monuments are open 24-hours a day and there is nothing more chilling than walking along the Vietnam Memorial and up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at night. Looking out over the city with Abe Lincoln and imaging Martin Luther King Jr. standing in that spot during the March on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963 is mind scrambling.

And I'm not really a sentimental person.