If you’re going to build a ballpark in the middle of the sweltering Arizona heat, you’ve got to have two things: air conditioning and a swimming pool. Chase Field, the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, has both.
The designers (Ellerbe Becket with architect Bill Johnson) of Chase Field wanted it to mesh the best of a historical ballpark with modern conveniences. As soon as you hand over your Diamondbacks tickets and walk into the stadium, you’ll notice the first example: it’s the only stadium in the majors with the traditional dirt path between the pitcher’s mound and home plate.
On most days, you’ll notice something else, too-a blast of cool air providing a welcome respite from the steamy Phoenix heat. Bank One Ballpark features a retractable roof-which closes in a lightning-fast four minutes-that is closed for approximately half the Diamondbacks’ home games. But D-Backs ownership wanted to play their games on natural turf. An essentially domed stadium with natural turf? Could it be done?
Eventually, yes. The turf wasn’t great in 1998, the inaugural Bank One Ballpark season, as Diamondback ticket holders noticed spotty patches throughout the field. But groundskeepers found the right recipe in 1999, going with a Bull’s Eye Bermuda grass that was installed over the All-Star break in 1999. The Bank One Ballpark roof is left open at every opportunity to provide sunlight, and the stadium also employs incandescent growth lights for those days when an open roof isn’t a possibility.
Bank One Ballpark seating is some of the best in the majors. 80 percent of Diamondbacks tickets are between the foul poles, and the seats down the foul lines are slightly rotated so fans don’t have to twist to see home plate.
Of course, not everyone inside Bank One Ballpark is sitting in a seat. Approximately 35 fans per game can squeeze into the swimming pool located beyond the right-center wall. At roughly 415 feet from home plate, the pool is an occasional target for home run balls. Home runs were an issue early in Bank One Ballpark’s existence. Because of its elevation (at just over 1,000 feet above sea level, it’s the second highest park in the majors next to Coors Field, the home of the Colorado Rockies), balls fly a little farther in Phoenix. So the fences can be challenging-the deepest parts of right-center and left-center measure a whopping 413 feet.
Capacity: 49,033
Year Built: 1998
2004 attendance: 31,105 per game average; 2,519,560 total
Dimensions: 330 to left, 374 to left-center, 407 to center, 374 to right-center, 334 to right
Hotels Nearby: Hyatt Regency Phoenix, Wyndham Phoenix, San Carlos Inn, Springhill Suites Phoenix Downtown, Ramada Inn Phoenix Downtown
Thrill of victory: November 4, 2001: The World Series moved into November for the first time because of the September 11 attacks on America. The New York Yankees advanced to the World Series as the sentimental favorites for perhaps the first time in franchise history, but they were met by one of the majors’ up-and-coming teams. World Series tickets were as hot as the Arizona weather in Phoenix, and 49,589 fans crammed into Bank One Ballpark for Game Seven of the World Series. They saw a classic. Arizona rallied against Mariano Rivera and got a Series-winning hit from Luis Gonzalez, who drove in Jay Bell with a bottom of the ninth single up the middle to earn the 3-2 victory.
Agony of defeat: October 5, 1999: The first postseason game in Bank One Ballpark history was a downer. The New York Mets opened the National League Division Series with an 8-4 victory, defeating Randy Johnson in front of 49,584 fans. Johnson pitched into the ninth with a tie game, but the Mets posted four runs in the final inning, with the key blow a grand slam home run by Edgardo Alfonzo.
Diamondbacks Ticket Tips: Diamondbacks seating is exactly what you’d expect from a newer, baseball-only facility. Clubhouse Level seats, located directly behind home plate, are the priciest, but the seats down the foul lines also provide good views of the game and are much more economical. But if you’re looking for a more unique Phoenix baseball experience, your group of 35 can rent out the swimming pool in right center field. With plasma televisions and a private bar area, every need it accounted for-you only have to be alert for incoming home run balls. Big Diamondbacks series include the Chicago Cubs, who train in Mesa and have a big fan base in Phoenix, and any of the NL West rivals like the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, or San Diego Padres.
