May 26, 2014
Calvin Falwell Field (Capacity: 4,281)
Lynchburg, VA
Lynchburg Hillcats vs Winston-Salem Dash
Final Score: 7 – 6
* The ballpark has been renamed Bank of the James Stadium
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Returning from a weekend in West Virginia, we crossed over the Blue Ridge Mountains into the central part of Virginia, where the city of Lynchburg is located. Named after founder John Lynch, the City of Seven Hills has a population of 75,000 and is the fifth largest metro area in the state. The Hill City moniker is quite apparent even in downtown, which steeply goes uphill from the James River. The baseball team has been a rock in the city as Lynchburg has played in the Carolina League since 1966. After taking on nicknames of their many major league affiliates, the team became the “Hillcats” in the mid 90s and the nickname has even survived their current affiliation with Atlanta, a franchise that always forced the Braves name on farm teams. Lynchburg has won seven league titles, including a pair of recent championships (2009 and 2012). City Stadium has been their long time home field and a relatively recent renovation modernized the park and renamed it to Calvin Falwell Field (though it is still widely referred as City Stadium). The ballpark was built in 1940 and sorely needed changes recently transformed this stadium into one more commonly seen now in the minor-league baseball world. Judging by old pictures, it looks like the nostalgia factor was lacking and I’m content with the renovation.
Prestige Ranking: 3 out of 5
Location
City Stadium is in the Fort Hill neighborhood, about 10 minutes away from downtown. We enjoyed our afternoon in the middle of Lynchburg earlier in the day, where we walked the stairs of Monument Terrace and visited the museum at the top, in the refurbished old courthouse building. However, the surroundings of the ballpark are not as enticing. The area differs quite a bit with a mix of stuff, for lack of a better word. A cemetery, a maintenance yard, various businesses and mixed housing units make up the area.
Location Ranking: 6 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Lynchburg is not simple to get to as the Interstate system eschewed this part of Virginia. Be prepared for looking at a map to figure out the best route no matter what direction you come from (and if using I-81, you are likely to need some hilly, two-lane roads). US-29 is the main road and this also has a business route that goes thru Lynchburg. Both act like highways and Exit 4 or 5 off US-29 (business) leads to the stadium. Signs are clear and the appropriately named Stadium Road goes right to the facility. Parking is in front of the ballpark and in clear danger of foul balls that exit behind the field. The two-tiered parking area is not all that big and with a capacity of 700-800 cars, parking looks like it can be an issue on nights with a big crowd. It’s also not maintained all that well as I watched multiple cars bottom out at the exit. Side street parking looks allowable, but regardless the team’s lot is too small.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Exterior
The first signs of the renovation are on the outside, where the brick layout with green awnings gave the ballpark a needed introductory face. The brick exterior has subtle designs incorporated, like the diamonds that run along the side. At the very top is a modern “Lynchburg City Stadium” sign, while the overhang to the box office says “Calvin Falwell Field”. The entrance gate behind home is cut into the ballpark and a number of stairs lead up to the concourse.
Exterior Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Concourse
It’s hard to tell what the ballpark may have looked like 70+ years ago, but the recent changes made this a modern stadium, especially in the concourse. Here, the covered space is flanked by brick on the left and a field view to the right, except near home plate where the press box lies. It is decorated sufficiently and there is decent space for a team store (The Catty Shack) as well. Once walking past the covering, the opening extends down slightly past each base and the area is utilized with picnic tables and party spaces. Only one bathroom each for Men, Women and Family is available in the park and you can’t walk around to the outfield.
Concourse Ranking: 3.5 out of 5
Food
Two primary concession stands offer the same food, which are the classics. The snacks and sweets were pretty standard as well. Popcorn Shrimp and Turkey Burgers were a little different, while Domino’s supplied the pizza. Overall, nothing all that enticing. The “Hot at the Plate” stand, which looked to offer more pizzazz for food, was not open nor did it look ready to open. A popular item was the $17 pitchers of beer and a refill was $13.
Food Ranking: 5 out of 8
Interior
Eleven sections of seating around the infield make up the stadium built into a hill, making a natural amphitheater for baseball. A large overhang covers much of the seating bowl, a bonus on the sunny and warm 5 PM start for the game I attended. This overhang contains many skyboxes, while the press box is almost part of the seats at the back of home plate. Wide, green seats are used about two-thirds of the way through and as bleachers are used beyond that, certainly a downgrade. Ticketing is confusing for first-time visitors as most say “General Admission”. The only reserved seats are near the dugouts, so some (me) may not realize that they can actually sit in the individual chairbacks throughout Sections 4-8. The seats themselves are ok, however the bowl is set further from the field as there is a lot of foul territory. Combine that with periodic support beams and the view isn’t the best. Annoying double-decker ads make up the outfield wall, while off in the distance, one can vaguely sees the hills and mountains of the region. Too bad that the ballpark could not take advantage of Lynchburg’s terrain and provide a much better elevated view. The spire of the West Lynchburg Baptist Church can be seen if you are in the right seat.
Interior Ranking: 6 out of 14
Scoreboard
A scoreboard buried by ads sits on top of the wall above left-field. The green space is almost hard to find and it includes a box score, with a very small display board and clock at the top. The display provides the batter’s name and three main stats. Another graphics board in right field is virtually useless.
Scoreboard Ranking: 1 out of 4
Displays
Somewhat hidden by appearing as a suite entrance, the area leading to team offices features walls decorated with history. Lynchburg Sports Hall of Fame members take up much of the space, while a glass display off to the side features quite the mish-mash of collectables and memorabilia. Unfortunately, this area is only accessed from outside the ballpark. Also on the exterior, are three dedication plaques on the walls near the box office. Lynchburg’s Carolina League championships are displayed with a small banner at each end of the concourse. Curiously, only their recent four titles (out of seven total) are noted. There is also a “Road to the Show” display in the concourse with pros that started as a Hillcat. Lynchburg has one retired number and on the outfield wall is a “Bibby 26”, which is for Jim Bibby, who was a longtime pitching coach and former major leaguer.
Displays Ranking: 3.5 out of 6
Cost
Free parking, free programs and tickets going for $9 – $10, sounds good to me! Concessions are fine too with a hot dog costing $3.25, fries for $3.00 and a 16oz fountain soda for $2.75.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support
Announced attendance of 2,436 actually seemed close to the actual number of fans and they may be a bit of an anomaly. The team consistently ranks last in the league for attendance and the playoffs fail to garner much attention either. Just 1,203 came to their championship winning game two years ago. This is all in spite of what seems like great media coverage that I noticed in both the newspaper and on TV.
Fan Support Ranking: 3.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
The crowd reactions were standard and there was a lot of background noise throughout the game. Cheering came when you would expect it and a home run generated decent noise (the roof helps) as a spattering of people stood up for it. Despite the game ending around 7:30 PM, about half of the crowd left by the time the game was over, which was too bad as they missed a terrific finish.
Atmosphere Ranking: 6.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
I never know what exactly to official call this stadium as it seems interchangeable between the new name and the old “Lynchburg City Stadium”. I went with the Falwell moniker because there is actually another “City Stadium” right next door that is referred to by the same name. That one is a football stadium built at the same time and it is home to a pair of local high schools. The 9,000-seat stadium has plans for a renovation soon……We were treated to an excellent rendition of the National Anthem by Jay Daniels……One note if spending the night in town, the region is a noted historical area and close to Lynchburg are several sites for history buffs, including where the Civil War ended in Appomattox and the National D-Day Museum in Bedford.
Game
It was a rough start for the home side as Winston-Salem jumped out to a 4-0 lead and Lynchburg only managed one hit for the first four innings. What looked like a second consecutive dud of a game for me was turned around when the Hillcats out of nowhere pounded out some hits and eventually tied the score on a three-run homer by Joe Odom. The Dash jumped back in front and we went to the 9th with Lynchburg down 6-4. Aided by a pair of walks, the Hillcats loaded the bases and with one out, Jose Peraza came to the plate. Peraza ripped a single to left field and a misplay by Courtney Hawkins led to three runs scoring as the jubilant Hillcats celebrated on the field. It was an awesome game that also marked the first come from behind walkoff win that I have seen live.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
