Arizona Diamondbacks' Chase Field slammed in MLB stadium rankings as among 'worst venues'

Jeremy Cluff, Arizona Republic
·3 min read
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With the 2023 MLB baseball regular season opening on Thursday, several sites are revisiting their MLB stadium rankings.

And some of them are not kind to the Arizona Diamondbacks' Chase Field.

One site that particularly seemed less than enthusiastic about the ballpark in Downtown Phoenix was USA TODAY's For the Win, which ranked Chase Field No. 27 out of MLB's 30 parks.

Only the Chicago White Sox's Guaranteed Rate Field, the Tampa Bay Rays' Tropicana Field and the Oakland A's RingCentral Coliseum were ranked lower than the Diamondbacks' home.

Andrew Joseph wrote of Chase Field: "The Diamondbacks and Maricopa County have been in a standoff over millions of dollars of repairs for the stadium, which has Chase Field quickly becoming one of the worst venues in the league. The roof is no longer safe to open when fans are present (they think the cables could snap and injure people). The air-conditioning system hardly works now, so when the roof is closed, the stadium is a sauna. Random panels on the already-dated videoboard are damaged, so you’re stuck staring at a reminder that the stadium is falling apart. I can go on, but you get the point."

Ouch.

More:Is the roof fixed at Chase Field? What to know for 2023 Arizona Diamondbacks MLB season

Other sites were also rough on Arizona's MLB stadium.

Sportsnaut also had Chase Field No. 27 in its ranking calling it "one of the last places you would want to watch a baseball game."

Matt Johnson wrote: "A state-of-the-art ballpark when it opened in 1998, Chase Field has slipped rapidly down MLB stadium rankings in the years since. It looks more like an airline’s hangar than a ballpark. It’s not located in an ideal location and the interior is just as off-putting as the view from a few miles away. Chase Field shouldn’t be on anyone’s bucket list because it’s one of the last places you would want to watch a baseball game."

Audacy's Tim Kelly had Chase Field No. 28 in its ranking of MLB ballparks.

He wrote: "A stadium with a retractable roof is obviously needed for baseball to be played in Phoenix, but what we still think of as "Bank One Ballpark" has always had an especially dark feeling with the roof shut. Also, a Major League stadium not having either seats or grass in dead-center field is strange. Hey, at least you can go swimming during Diamondbacks home games."

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Is Chase Field really as bad of an MLB venue as some MLB stadium rankings make it out to be?
Is Chase Field really as bad of an MLB venue as some MLB stadium rankings make it out to be?

Not every site was so down on Chase Field, however.

Pitcherlist.com ranked the stadium No. 23 on its list ranking the best stadiums to watch a game.

Stadiumjourney.com had Chase Field even higher, putting it at No. 21.

It wrote of the baseball venue: "Chase Field provides good game day enjoyment and it is easy to reach and traverse. The swimming pool and the retractable roof and panels offer unique elements to the ballpark. A recommendation is to visit early in the season (April) to enjoy a game with the roof open. Phoenix is a vacation destination in early spring and late fall so enjoy a D-Backs game when in town."

How do you feel about Chase Field as an MLB venue now?

More:Could Arizona Diamondbacks leave Chase Field? Team president addresses MLB stadium options

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: MLB stadium rankings 2023 slam Arizona Diamondbacks' Chase Field