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Stadiums
New Comiskey Park
By Wikipedia
U.S. Cellular Field (formerly New Comiskey Park) is a
Major League Baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the
Chicago White Sox of the American League.
1991:
Left Field - 347 ft
Left-Center - 375 ft
Center Field - 400 ft
Right-Center - 375 ft
Right Field - 335 ft
Backstop - 60 ft
Fences - 6 ft
2001:
Left Field - 330 ft
Left-Center - 377 ft
Center Field - 400 ft
Right-Center - 372 ft
Right Field - 335 ft
Backstop - 60 ft
Fences - 6 ft
The park opened for the 1991 season, after the White Sox had spent 81
years at "old" Comiskey
Park. The new park, completed at a cost of $167 million, also opened
with the Comiskey Park name, but became U.S. Cellular Field in 2003 after
the company bought the naming rights at $68 million over 20 years.
The stadium is in the Armour Square neighborhood of the city, at 35th
Street and the Dan Ryan Expressway, just east of the Bridgeport
neighborhood. It was built in the parking lot of old Comiskey Park, which
was torn down and became a parking lot for the current field. Few design
features were retained except for the "exploding scoreboard,"
which lights up in color when a White Sox player hits a home run. The
lowest row of seats in the upper deck at the new stadium is actually
farther from the field than the highest row of seats in the upper deck at
the old stadium.
Fly
to New Comiskey Park!
If you have Google
Earth installed, click here
to be "flown" to the site of New Comiskey Park. (If you do
not have it installed, get
it from Google. It allows you to view virtually anywhere on
Earth in 3D using satellite imagery.)
The stadium was the last built before the recent wave of new 'retro'
stadiums. The stadium has undergone numerous renovations since its opening
in order to retrofit it to the current architectural trends. This has
included building a multi-tiered concourse beyond center field, adjusting
the field of play to create asymmetrical fences and the removal of the
most distant seats at the top of the upper deck, topped by a roof
supported by poles that obstructed the view of a few seats.
The stadium contains 84 luxury suites located on two levels, as well as
thousands of club seats on a mezzanine between the lower deck and upper
deck. There is also a fan deck in the bleachers where you can find your
pitching speed and cool off under a fountain.
In 2001, extensive renovations were started to make the park more
'fan-friendly', and less sterile:
Phase I (2001 season):
Three rows of seats were added along the field between the dugouts
and the foul poles.
Bullpens were moved and replaced with additional bleachers.
Distances to the outfield wall were changed, most noticeably down
the foul lines, where the bullpens and the Bullpen Sports Bar are now
located.
Batter's eye in center field was redesigned.
Restaurant was added in the outfield.
New Comiskey Park!
(Apr. 4, 2005) - A
giant American flag is unfurled at the
Chicago White Sox home opener vs. the
Cleveland Indians at U.S. Cellular Park in
Chicago, Ill.
U.S.
Navy photo by Elijah Leinaar
Phase II (2002 season):
Old backstop was replaced with a new one that allows foul balls to
drop.
Improvements were made to the main and club level concourses.
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Stadiums
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