Opened: April 14, 2017
Capacity: 41.149
SunTrust Park
After seeing a game at Turner Field I did not know when I would be back in Atlanta. With the Pirates coming to town early in the season and my godfather still in town and not retired yet I invited myself back down. Took in two games of the four game set against the Pirates at the new stadium.
How did I get there?
The first time I came down I-75 and followed the signs. The second game I took the Cobb County Parkway. No issues getting to the stadium, traffic or otherwise outside of a set of three lights on the Cobb County Parkway. The only problem was that the lot I had prepaid to park in did not open until 6, despite being empty and with Braves parking attendants in the lot. I wish that had been mentioned to me. The first game I went and found a restaurant and had dinner so that cost the Braves concession dollars. The second time I just altered my schedule. It cost $18 to park if bought in advance which ain’t cheap but it’s not like I could go anywhere else. Oh, you could park in one of the stadium garages and then move when the lot opened but that seemed silly to me.
Ticket prices
I did not expect $1 tickets like at Turner Field. I paid $14 for each game and wound up standing for some of them on the lower deck.
Finding my seat and amenities
Easy to find the seats and I had my section just about to myself. One game it was me and a police officer. The Braves built the stadium in The Battery, which is supposed to be an entertainment district. I didn’t walk around it but I did see several bars and restaurants when driving through it. Inside the park they have anything and everything so that you can come to a game and not watch it. They have gloves available to rent. And life-size bobbleheads of their greats. There is a museum and a display for Hank Aaron too.
In game experience
This had a lot of the same in game entertainment as Turner Field. Of course the new thing is racing the Freeze. They did that both games I was at. Guess that will be all over baseball now.
Getting out
I don’t really know exactly where I am going here. I had a vague idea where I was going and did find my way out here. The area was poorly marked, though still under construction at the time, so that might have changed. The walk back to my car took me over a bridge and across two major streets, quite a hike for $18 and in the rain for one game.
Wrap
I don’t know if this is the new direction baseball is taking, but if this park is an indication I don’t like it. People have short attention spans now and giving them all kinds of other things to do instead of watching the game seems counterproductive. Not my money though, so to each their own I guess. The Braves just want to get you in the door. One other thing, when Nationals Park opened games were sold out for the first few months. Here both games I went to drew barely over 20,000 fans.