April 14, 2012
Yale Field (Capacity: 5,000)
West Haven, CT
Yale Bulldogs vs Harvard Crimson
Final Score: 3 – 2 (8)
* The ballpark has been renamed Bush Field
.* The arena has been renamed Scotiabank Arena
We took advantage of a nice Spring day to not only check out Yale Field, but to also tour some of Yale University. The historic school is intertwined with the city of New Haven, Connecticut’s second largest city. With a population of 129,000 the city is close to the Long Island Sound on the central Connecticut coast. New Haven has become known for its highly rated restaurants, which are eclectic and diverse, though none are likely more famous as some of their distinctive pizza places (better known as apizza). Mixed amongst the city are the historic buildings on the Yale campus. The third oldest university in the country started in 1701 and can count five American Presidents as part of its alumni. Athletic-wise, most sports teams compete in the Ivy League and despite the poor spring weather in the Northeast, all Ivy schools play baseball. The Bulldogs have only taken six league titles and made five appearances in the NCAA Tournament (the last one coming in 1993), however two recent Major Leaguers started at Yale. Home for baseball is Yale Field, a ballpark barely tinkered with since its development in 1927. Many things are lacking at a game, but the ballpark remains a relic.
Prestige Ranking: 3.5 out of 5
Location
Technically, Yale Field is located in West Haven, but it is just barely over the city line from New Haven. Most of Yale’s outdoor athletic facilities are in this complex and the section includes the famous Yale Bowl and the 15,000-seat Connecticut Tennis Center. Since this area is devoted to athletic facilities and little else, it makes for a generally bland location. Good news is that downtown is a 5-10 minute drive away and New Haven is a great place for a visitor. Campus features an interesting walking tour, while other time can be occupied by visiting museums or eating at one of the many fine restaurants.
Location Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Getting here from the east or west via I-95 is simple enough, where as those using the North-South running I-91 have to travel through the city, which can be busy with both cars and pedestrians (not that 95 is a picnic). The big problem at the ballpark is parking. Don’t expect any noticeable lots or signage as you come upon the area. The only spots available for cars is a tiny area on the side of the field, followed by a grassy section. Not quite sure where cars go if more than a few hundred attend the game.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 2.5 out of 8
Exterior
The stadium is short in height and features a very old stone façade as it wraps around in an oval shape. The top layer of the structure features open archways and the stadium is so low you can even see the last row of seats through these openings. It’s a plain, but fitting introduction to the historic ballpark.
Exterior Ranking: 5 out of 10
Concourse
Fans coming in through the front entrance will first see a sign on the side wall saying “Welcome to Historic Yale Field”. That’s the only thing really welcoming about the concourse as this might be one of the darkest, tightest spaces I’ve ever seen. It’s a good thing it was sunny, so natural lighting through the openings was brighter. Bathrooms were surprisingly expansive, however.
Concourse Ranking: 1 out of 5
Food
Fans are much better off bringing their own food into the stadium. There’s only one cart here and the offerings are a plain hot dog, pretzels, various snacks and candy, along with assorted beverages. A couple parts of the concourse looked to once house concession stands, but they seem to have closed a long time ago.
Food Ranking: 1.5 out of 8
Interior
Inside, Yale Field retains a lot that makes a ballpark historic. I wouldn’t go so far to call it charming, but there are rare things that are nice to see. The one level seating bowl broadly wraps around the field, extending a bit past the infield. Was not a fan of the gently sloped pitch of the seating, nor I did I like how the shape made it look more like a cricket ground as opposed to a ballpark. I did however enjoy that there was a roof that covered most of the seats. Old-school character is maintained by the support beams in the seating bowl and the open air arches at the back. Seats are interesting in that the lower sections are cozy and there is even a little table between pairs of seats (perfect for purses according to the wife). They were colored blue near home plate and green further out. Bleachers with backs comprise much of the middle section. The last row features the original seats when Yale Field was built. Excellent touch! I also saw these large boxes at the end of even-numbered sections and my guess is that they were used for the press way back in the day? As for the current media section, there are two boxes built into the seating bowl behind home plate. An unassuming picnic area is located on the right-side after the seating bowl and these have wooden tables, which are not all that inviting to sit on. The view is OK as some trees are beyond the outfield and shrubs beyond the wall help shield seeing the limited parking behind the stadium.
Interior Ranking: 6.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
The “scoreboard” looks more temporary than anything else. It is located on the Batters Eye behind Center Field and it features a very simple hand-operated box score on the right side. The left side has the balls, strikes and outs, lit up by a lightbulb. All of the text is in white against the black background. It’s at least fitting for this setting.
Scoreboard Ranking: 0.5 out of 4
Displays
All along the concourse wall are baseballs with a name and year on them. This display is called “All-Star Alley”, an impressive overview of the players that once played here (and there are some surprising names of players that didn’t make baseball their career). There is also an old display featuring players that used to play for the New Haven Ravens that made the Majors. It might time to remove this thing.
Displays Ranking: 1.5 out of 6
Cost
Everything is free, which is certainly welcomed. Tickets aren’t even taken for games as folks just walk in and take a seat. The few concessions are cheap, but with fans able to bring in food and drink, this is the very rare sporting event that has no cost.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support and Atmosphere
Yale baseball only averages a couple hundred per game. Given that there are no turnstiles or tickets sold, someone seems to take a stab at the attendance by looking over the crowd (hopefully they count). With the tiny crowd, not much of an atmosphere can result, however there were a couple clusters that made some noise. In fact, as Yale rallied in the game these fans near the Bulldog dugout were standing and then cheerling wildly after the win. Also, in right field is the Dog Pound, which consists of a handful of guys that are a little more vocal than the rest of the normally quiet crowd.
Fan Support Ranking: 1 out of 8
Atmosphere Ranking: 5 out of 14
Other Stuff
Yale Field has been home to minor league baseball, with the most prominent stint coming from the New Haven Ravens, a team that played in the Eastern League for nearly a decade starting in the mid 90s. I can’t believe a Double-A team played in a facility with such issues for parking and concourse space….The mascot made a brief appearance at the game and then randomly left. Then towards the end of Game 1, the pep band showed up…..Adding to the oddities were the amount of people with shirts off in the crowd. I guess a 65 degree, mostly sunny April day is either hot or good for tanning in Connecticut.
Game
Yale and Harvard have had a rough season, however this game didn’t show any of that. After the Bulldogs jumped out to a 1-0 lead early on, Harvard tied it. In the last inning (only seven are played in the first game of a doubleheader), the Crimson scored on a sacrifice to take a one run lead. Yale rallied in the bottom half as they loaded the bases with no out. They only tied it on a sacrifice, however in the 8th inning they finished the rally. Joe Lubanski ripped a triple and then was sacrificed in to give Yale the victory. This win broke a 12-game losing streak and gave the Bulldogs their first Ivy League win (previously 0-8). There was a ton of jubilation after Lubanski crossed home plate and the celebration was great to watch. These kids aren’t playing for much more than pride and the emotion of them just winning a ballgame was something special.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
A few things…
The parking situation was always bad. There is a dirt large lot located down the hill from the stadium, and the Ravens built a wide set of stairs to access it, but last time I drove by there it was badly overgrown. A few houses across from the adjacent cemetery would also allow people to park there for a charge (and still do if “the Game” will attract enough people to the Yale Bowl). Where you parked is where team employees, players, and lucky sponsors once parked.
The concourses were always terribly inadequate, and when the Ravens averaged 5-6,000 in their first few years it was almost intolerable. Still, they managed to fit a team store and a few concession areas down there.
There were once bleachers down the left field line that were added in 1993. They were in front of that building with the arches, which currently conceal a large concession area, with the clubhouses and team offices behind that.
The old scoreboard was constructed out of war surplus metal, and was supplemented by two early-90s modern scoreboards, one in left and one in right. Yale must’ve sold them; in fact, Yale pretty much lets their historic sports facilities go to crap, unless someone donates millions to renovate (like Ingall’s Rink) or the crumbling becomes a liability (as at the Yale Bowl). Yale only let the Ravens come to Yale Field if the Ravens’ owners paid for the renovations, and refused to pay for anything (or even let the Ravens perform upkeep of the field) before the Ravens left. They now have a 1920s stadium renovated in the 1990s and are happy to let it slowly decay. The grass was once so bad that the Ravens were always the last team to gain an affiliate in the biannual affiliate shuffle because no team wanted it’s players to hurt themselves. It’s clear from the pictures the field’s grass is still a mess.
However, the place shined from about 1994 to 2000, the team drew healthy crowds, and in 1998 it hosted the AA All-Star Game and in 2000 the Ravens won the championship there. It was always a fun time; the picnic areas in right field were stocked with great food, the bar by third base was hopping, and the team put on a great show.
There’s a small shack beyond the right field fence that amazingly still exists; it housed a leather couch, tv, and had waitress service as “the best seat in the house.” During “South Park night” in 1998 or 1999, after lucky fans had tried and failed to kill a giant cardboard Kenny, a team employee pushed it out of that little shack, the PA announcer said “Oh my God, you killed Kenny,” and about 5,000 people yelled “you bastard.” Yes, minor league sports in New Haven (just ask anyone about the hockey fans’ antics at the old Coliseum) were always classy and for the whole family.