Ballpark Profile: Minute Maid Park
Name: Minute Maid Park
Location: Houston, Texas
Opened: 7 April 2000
Architect: HOK Sport
Cost: $250 Million
Capacity: 40,950 (original)
41,168 (present)
Surface: Platinum TE Paspalum (natural grass)
Minute Maid Park -- like several of the other parks we've profiled -- was once our home ballpark.
Thinking about it, here's the complete list of 'home' ballparks:
Oakland Coliseum (1985-1994)
Candlestick Park (1995-1999)
PacBell/AT&T/Oracle Park (2000-2002)
Riverfront Stadium (2002)
Great American Ball Park (2003)
Minute Maid Park (2004)
Coors Field (2005-2006)
New Comiskey Park/Wrigley Field (2006-present)
Citizens Bank Park (future)
So, some personal experience here.
When Minute Maid Park (then called Enron Field) opened, it was universally (and fairly) panned. It was gimmicky to the extreme, with the ill-fated "Tal's Hill" and in-play flagpole in center field -- which originally extended to an eye-popping 436 feet.
Both the hill and the flagpole seemed to be there just for the sake of being there, and both were (thankfully) scheduled for removal during the 2015-16 offseason. (The Astros made the postseason in 2015, which disrupted the timeline, and the hill was not removed until the start of the 2017 season.)
Like Camden Yards and Petco Park, the design for the ballpark incorporated an existing structure, in this case Union Station, a train station built in 1911, which was one of the busiest rail hubs through the end of World War II. The station is now the main entrance foyer for the ballpark, with team offices upstairs.
The train motif continues with a larger-than-life steam engine that runs along the tracks of the large retractable roof. The train runs and sounds its horn after Astros home runs. Sure, it's gimmicky, but fans (especially kids) love it. And the guy who runs it is the best kind of hometown fan.
And so we get to it: the roof.
First, the outside aesthetics. The roof and supporting structure of acres of glass wall are not unatrractive to look at; but the color scheme is. Scroll back to the previous ballpark profiles of Chase Field, Citizens Bank, Miller Park . . . it's like MLB got an unlimited supply of weird turquoise/teal paint and they just can't stop using it.
I don't get it. I don't like it.
As for the criteria that makes a good ballpark: Minute Maid checks many of them: it's right downtown, which is good. It's easily accessible with several public transit options. It fits the aesthetic of the neighborhood (after a fashion), and the fan experience is better-than-average, especially the outstanding food options.
And, when the roof is open, it's a really nice place to see a ballgame.
But. The. Roof. Is. Never. Open.
It's funny; if you search for images of Minute Maid Park, a number of in-game shots with the roof open show up, and they look great. But I lived there for two years, and never once was the roof open for a game. Nobody I've talked to has ever been to a game with the roof open.
It's a completely different feel with the roof closed. It's dark, it's artificial-feeling.
Believe me, having lived there, I know Houston has some incredibly unpleasant, even unsafely hot summer days. And, by all means, the roof should be closed in those events. It also gets more than its share of summer rainstorms.
But, if it's just a warm/hot day? Open the dang roof. People across the country love sitting out on a warm evening watching baseball. It gets plenty hot in Cincinnati, and St. Louis, and . . . almost everywhere baseball is played. I've been to some extremely warm games in the bleachers at Wrigley.
That's part of the fun.
Just because you can close the roof doesn't mean you should.
Have your own thoughts and feelings about Minute Maid Park? Put them in the comments below for a chance to win a FREE PRINT from Ballpark Blueprints!
13660 comments
https://telegra.ph/ih6wdkb2-1dbjslvx-06-19
https://rentry.co/i9xeyzzd_csbftmpb_1lk
https://paste.ee/p/dYc8S
https://paiza.io/projects/FI7-hkhWfUAn74aeWz5rBg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/lezaruviye/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/m31bv25p/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/Jowui9H2
https://anotepad.com/notes/jw2d42hj
https://paste.mozilla.org/7whabXyX
https://pastelink.net/q55tq7pv
https://telegra.ph/3fq6938n-9xznn6mp-06-19
https://rentry.co/b6f2r3gj_383w5psx_sht
https://paste.ee/p/zobBr
https://paiza.io/projects/xKFW_MkCVBNetuP57eyxzA?language=php
https://jsbin.com/gaculifapi/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/tof4cw9a/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/qWYQPaOq
https://anotepad.com/notes/m4saws9q
https://paste.mozilla.org/RL8doHK0
https://pastelink.net/8wcoi5yn
https://pastebin.com/LbUFE13R
https://telegra.ph/70ghpe79-35wvzsdv-06-19
https://rentry.co/3okc9g0h_s39tni0k_n8g
https://paste.ee/p/3Hjyu
https://paiza.io/projects/MRJqT9RykKzK075TQSRccg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/namiyayahi/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/s4d1xk90/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/HARhOLEG
https://anotepad.com/notes/2kraj575
https://paste.mozilla.org/ezNPDqTZ
https://pastelink.net/3mxri6lp
https://telegra.ph/9s0ew0yf-nrdg1082-06-19
https://rentry.co/7iuo9oy4_37lpvwcf_yxk
https://paste.ee/p/OpUhh
https://paiza.io/projects/Be_acjAqat2QadQjRjyVCA?language=php
https://jsbin.com/xowagujequ/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/h987rbvc/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/VpyNcyiK
https://anotepad.com/notes/a73xhp32
https://paste.mozilla.org/3G70c4yB
https://pastelink.net/ft2fwc5d
https://www.artstation.com/watch-monkey-man-2024-full-movie-free-online/profile
https://www.artstation.com/fly-me-to-the-moon-2024-fullmovie-download-online-free/profile
https://www.artstation.com/watch-dangal-2009-full-movie-free-online-on-english/profile
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831623/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831624/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831202/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831253/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831264/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831222/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831476/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831478/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831954/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547831959/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833683/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833689/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833246/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833248/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833460/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833461/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833972/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833910/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833985/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547833983/
https://www.artstation.com/watch-the-bikeriders-2024-full-movie-online-free/profile
https://telegra.ph/plf6vhc9-h7vxim15-06-19
https://rentry.co/lcxm1ulf_chd7y41k_vez
https://paste.ee/p/kOKEi
https://paiza.io/projects/v19KUcJ3BVz9imsY4FMMUw?language=php
https://jsbin.com/famaluhuqi/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/gqzpsc7e/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/dTCrZA3M
https://anotepad.com/notes/w9qbrrhg
https://paste.mozilla.org/BxRogrZj
https://pastelink.net/2kqv6sgs
https://pastebin.com/90ySaA3T
https://telegra.ph/k254ov7n-rmirk9ol-06-19
https://rentry.co/z7s229be_ujqh5zc0_fg6
https://paste.ee/p/2ItQc
https://paiza.io/projects/88Joa5YM98OTF_NaxieVkg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/pukoliguru/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/9zt6gpLm/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/0qRSHgM4
https://anotepad.com/notes/jttg8w8j
https://paste.mozilla.org/kmmOVBfT
https://pastelink.net/t56u4mwq
https://pastebin.com/Udnr3kMW
https://telegra.ph/ssasmt8q-9d5duquj-06-19
https://rentry.co/pfkxxmwo_g2v8y0vi_87a
https://paste.ee/p/kPbFm
https://paiza.io/projects/QJW_fTrbZ3wxT2svxYGMUg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/pivuhexuho/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/nce5ws2y/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/jtQDKHr6
https://pastelink.net/kmd723m1
https://www.artstation.com/extraction-2020-fullmovie-free-online-on-english/profile
https://www.artstation.com/watch-winnie-the-pooh-blood-and-honey-2-2024-full-movie-online/profile
https://telegra.ph/iteamiak-n1ebzan9-06-19
https://rentry.co/f3xhhh7r_bz4supq0_q3m
https://paste.ee/p/dbqNG
https://paiza.io/projects/pARgI9u48qz_2-Sb3jjayA?language=php
https://jsbin.com/bitosodadu/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/cds9ymb6/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/Q2ySwiSe
https://pastelink.net/evxzwg8o
https://www.artstation.com/watch-3-idiots-209-full-movie-free-online-on-english/profile
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814655/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814652/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814671/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814610/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814612/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814436/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814437/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814414/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814460/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547814462/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819528/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819543/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819542/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819590/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819592/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819130/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819134/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819167/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819162/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819168/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819402/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819404/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819409/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819408/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819450/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819853/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819852/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819854/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819875/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547819877/
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?sefdsg
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?dsfdsg
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?sdfdsg
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?sdsdgs
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?dsgsdg
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?sfsgdf
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?dfdsgdg
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?dsfggdd
https://github.com/Gru-i-Minionki-Pod-przykrywka?dgdsgdgg
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812665/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812661/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812696/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812694/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812279/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812210/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812229/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812240/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812408/
https://m.imdb.com/list/ls547812402/
https://telegra.ph/1g7zrxxr-4oxc4947-06-19
https://rentry.co/hy06qcf4_3gvfzlk6_n3f
https://paste.ee/p/7b6a4
https://paiza.io/projects/cOKYtWm8MD9zMiAo6fjPNA?language=php
https://jsbin.com/qunusekozi/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/m7knsu4j/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/CvX1QveW
https://anotepad.com/notes/36beqs9i
https://paste.mozilla.org/ZrG8Qy0R
https://pastelink.net/6jlr43zd
https://telegra.ph/3zh36kgv-0vp3t17r-06-19
https://rentry.co/6p5wl5ww_izgvzwe8_33f
https://paste.ee/p/z1Frw
https://paiza.io/projects/HNEnLrmAPmsH7o_QV2TE5A?language=php
https://jsbin.com/qogefigewo/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/bcjy98p0/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/JitPtzi5
https://pastelink.net/6vul0jgd
https://www.artstation.com/the-northman-2022-fullmovie-download-online-free/profile
https://telegra.ph/79fxqwml-zdtq7e1b-06-19
https://rentry.co/ysyco2q4_xnr5uksl_dvk
https://paste.ee/p/Gnj58
https://paiza.io/projects/XgWa_9SnoEyqP3lQKaTteg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/qecoteroxe/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/djpcswu7/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/V1HZLmLp
https://anotepad.com/notes/d3anitt6
https://paste.mozilla.org/YyPVVrCs
https://pastelink.net/gsh6z3ac
https://telegra.ph/v5ckd99g-jjf2yt0d-06-19
https://rentry.co/052osum4_ph0wmicy_bm4
https://paste.ee/p/OduLc
https://paiza.io/projects/5uY6gk__P7dnqbOzRYgADg?language=php
https://jsbin.com/rokamotene/1/edit?html,output
https://jsfiddle.net/nm1h3gr6/
https://www.toptal.com/developers/paste-gd/0rDPlbZj
https://pastelink.net/548tjx0t
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3533
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3533?DERy7ut
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3533?Tyi
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3533?tui
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3533?tygui
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3534
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3534?rut6u
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3534?ftruiy
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3534?gokuil
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3534?frtu
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3536
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3536?ytiky7u
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3536?RDEyut
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3536?Esrytrf
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3536?yurtyi
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3537
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3537?rdyu
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3537?DERyrt
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3537?RXFyht
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3537?FTYjiky
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3538
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3538?RFTu8i
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3538?RFTyuitgy
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3538?fgik
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3538?FRTyiuy7
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3539
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3539?drfgjhu
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3539?yfhjik
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3539?Fgju
https://github.com/TheRealJoelmatic/RemoveAdblockThing/issues/3539?dgtjuyh
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?sdfh
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?sdfsd
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?dgdfh
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?fdgdh
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?dsfsg
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?hthgf
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?dgfdh
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?dhdff
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?dfref
https://github.com/W-glowie-sie-nie-miesci-2?sdsf
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?fgfh
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?hfghfg
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?sdsg
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?dfdgh
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?fgfh
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?dfdsg
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?dsfsdg
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?sdfdg
https://github.com/W-g-lowie-sie-nie-miesci-2-Caly-film?dfdg
https://www.artstation.com/moana-2-2024-fullmovie-download-free-in-english/profile
https://www.artstation.com/the-business-of-pleasure-2023-fullmovie-download-online-hd/profile