August 26, 2016
Dodd Stadium (Capacity: 6,270)
Norwich, CT
Connecticut Tigers vs Vermont Lake Monsters
Final Score: 6 – 3
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The city of Norwich lies in Southeast Connecticut, where the Yantic and Shetucket Rivers join to form a harbor and the Thames River. Thus, there is a nautical and importing history to this small city of only 40,000. They have seen better days as the city center is kind of run down with lots of sketchy spots (though the residential areas are pleasant). Professional baseball began with the arrival of a Double-A Yankees affiliate and a new ballpark in 1995. They were known as the Norwich Navigators and they have one Eastern League title in their history before the team moved to Richmond as the team support just wasn’t there. A Single-A team in the NYPL arrived for a seamless transition into the 2011 season and these Connecticut Tigers have made one playoff appearance since joining the league. Dodd Stadium is certainly a large park for A-ball and it is quite typical of ballparks built in that era. Attendance remains low, but fans that came out on the night I attended brought some energy.
Prestige Ranking: 2.5 out of 5
Location
Dodd Stadium can be found on the far northwest side of Norwich and it is located within a massive, spread out business park that takes a good five minutes to drive through. The section is one that visitors will only be coming for the game and then heading home right after. The city of Norwich has a few spots to check out (Slater Museum, Rose Garden), but nothing all that enticing. However, the nearby SE CT region includes two casinos, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, just 10-15 minutes away, while the touristy town of Mystic takes 30 minutes to get to by car.
Location Ranking: 4.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
The ballpark can be reached via I-395 or Route 2 and from there, plenty of signs direct cars up through the winding roads into and around the industrial park before reaching the stadium. The one caveat is that Plain Hill Road is closed to ballpark traffic and can not be used. Follow the signs. Parking attendants do a great job maneuvering cars to their spots in the expansive, gravely parking lot. What I loved seeing was that the final attendant directing you into a spot was the one taking the money and this really speeds up the process. Nice job!
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 7 out of 8
Exterior
A brick wall guards the front of the stadium with an opening for the lone entrance inside, which is located behind home plate. The stadium itself features a rounded exterior and the wall above the entrance opening is made up of siding and colored off-white. On that wall is the full name of the stadium (see “Displays”), flanked by two logos: the old-English D logo for the parent Tigers and a “C” logo in similar script for Connecticut.
Exterior Ranking: 6 out of 10
Concourse and Food
After walking past a statue of “Tator”, the team mascot, fans enter into a covered concourse that initially doesn’t have a view of the field because of the press box location. A few steps on either side then open up to a field view. Concessions are on the left and a lack of portable stands keeps the walkway nice and uncluttered. The space extends outdoors down the line, but stops before the foul pole. Each of those outdoor spaces have a good spot to hang out at. On the right side is the well-decorated “Hole in the Wall Bar”. Folks can sit on stools and enjoy one of eight types of beer (though none of them are locally produced). This area is also next to the “Burger Barn”, which serves quality burgers. Down on the other foul line is a nice picnic pavilion also near a specialty food stand. This time, it is a random but delicious devotion to Philly and it is the place for a great Cheesesteak. Elsewhere in the concourse, a variety of traditional stadium offerings can be found, with the few standout items being a Turkey Bacon Panini and a Meatball Grinder. Though there may not be any local beers, there is a pretty cool “Retro Beer Bar” where fans can taste a blast from the past by getting a PBR, Schlitz, Schaefer or Ballantine. Love that!
Concourse Ranking: 3.5 out of 5
Food Ranking: 6 out of 8
Interior
Given its start as a Double-A ballpark, Dodd Stadium is certainly large for an NYPL facility. A continuous section of seating wraps around the diamond, extending to shallow outfield and a group of sections comprise of about 5 angle changes throughout the seating bowl to improve sightlines. The bowl is broken into three seating types: gray fold-down chairs, burgundy bucket seats and finally, a few sections of bleachers. Too many stringent seats for my liking. The pitch of the rows are average and there are a healthy number of them (18-20) in each section. Not breaking seating up with a middle walkway is nice. As usual, luxury suites are perched over the concourse and a couple of sparsely-used grassy berms are at the very ends of seating sections. Trees can be seen beyond the double-decker, ad-filled outfield fence. Dodd is an adequate ballpark…just certainly nothing special.
Interior Ranking: 6 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard in right field is quite dated and though the perk of a video screen is nice, patrons need to squint from behind home plate to properly make out the picture. Two team logos flank the screen, while underneath is the traditional box score. The entirety of the scoreboard is plastered in advertisements and that makes it hard for the board to stand out. At least an analog clock is a nice touch at the top.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2 out of 4
Displays
Only two small honors can be spotted and they are next to each other near the front entrance, on one of the side walls. The ballpark’s official name is “Senator Thomas J. Dodd Memorial Stadium” and a plaque on that wall details Mr. Dodd’s courageous life. Right next to that is a “Wall of Fame”, which provides a picture and some info on each Tiger who made it to the Big Leagues.
Displays Ranking: 1.5 out of 6
Cost
Parking is $3 and part of that fee is a nice gesture in the form of a donation to a local food bank. Tickets are a reasonable $8 – $10 and the food prices are modest as well. A hot dog goes for $3.50, a cheeseburger is $6 and a bottled water is just over $3. The premium, more filling food items in the ballpark cost about $10.
Cost Ranking: 7.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Norwich did not make a great Double-A market and even down a level in Short-Season A Ball, the fan support struggles. The team often ranks 9th or 10th in the 14-team league standings and on the night I attended, there were maybe (maybe) 1,500 at the game. I saw game photos from the following night (a nice Saturday) with only 500 in the stands. A photo from a very similar game last year revealed the same expanse of empty seats. This is quite bleak and foreshadows the team may not last all that long in the league. One positive is the team’s lone playoff game in 2014 brought in 1,500, not bad for the NYPL.
Fan Support Ranking: 3 out of 8
Atmosphere
A ballpark that features more empty seats than people can expect to have a laid-back, muted atmosphere and that is partially the case here. However, I was pleasantly surprised when the team started to put runs across the plate. Several got on their feet to cheer and there was decent rhythmic clapping to go with the techno song played for each score.
Atmosphere Ranking: 6 out of 14
Other Stuff
For the game I attended, it was Norwich Navigators night! This is a tradition and the nickname of the former Eastern League team that played here is honored annually. I think this is a much more fitting nickname and I don’t believe the team’s rhetoric that after the Oneonta Tigers moved to town, the fans liked Tigers so much, they decided to keep it. Really? This coming from an area that bleeds either Yankees or Red Sox. The fans really want to see an MLB nickname? I highly doubt it and think they update the logo and go back to the Navigators (which honors the city’s maritime history)……Norwich is also known as “The Rose of New England” and it’s good to see a couple places display the city’s stamp in the form of a rose. The flower can be spotted on the scoreboard clock and on the sleeves of the team jersey.
Game
Vermont’s starter A.J. Puk was erratic and he got away with a pair of two-out walks in the second inning, however, he was not as fortunate in the fourth. This time, the Tigers Navigators capitalized in the same lead-up situation as a double by Daniel Woodrow and a triple by Cole Baumi gave Connecticut a 4-1 lead after the inning. That lead got pushed to five later in the game and that cushion kept things comfortable even as Vermont scored a couple in the ninth. The Tigers won 6-3 and Daniel Pinero went 4 for 4 at the plate.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
