May 2, 2018
Grainger Stadium (Capacity: 4,100)
Kinston, NC
Down East Wood Ducks vs Buies Creek Astros
Final Score: 15 – 3
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During our vacation in North Carolina, we made a pit stop on the Coastal Plain in the eastern part of the state to the tiny city of Kinston (population: 21,000) for a school day game. How one of the smallest markets in the country came to have a professional sports team is quite remarkable, especially given the economic challenges and struggles with poverty that Kinston has. With nicknames like “Eagles” and “Indians”, the city had an uninterrupted Carolina League franchise starting in 1978 and they made numerous playoff appearances to go along with winning 5 league titles. Then in 2012, the team moved to Zebulon to replace the departing MudCats. One would think baseball was gone for good, but a league switch in 2017 brought two teams from California to the Carolina League. Amazingly, MiLB went back to this small town with an old ballpark, creating a heartwarming success story. How long it lasts remains in question, especially with the parent team (Texas Rangers) owning both the club and stadium. Kinston’s longtime home, Grainger Stadium dates back to 1949 and it has been spruced up making it one of the great, historical stops in the league.
Prestige Ranking: 4 out of 5
Location
We’ll get the bad out of the way by saying that Kinston is not all that desirable of a place to live or visit. Driving through the main road in town (Queen Street) is a very sad, desolate ride that features vacant storefront by vacant storefront. However, there have been success stories as the baseball team is back, plus there is now a craft brewery (Mother Earth) and a luxury boutique hotel (The O’Neil). I sincerely hope for more good things to come for Kinston.
Location Ranking: 3 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Not helping is that the area is off the beaten path, located a good distance from I-95. There is a pseudo-highway though that goes into this part of Eastern North Carolina as US-70 leads right into town. Take it to US-258 and that leads to Grainger Stadium, which is just a bit to the northeast of the town’s center. Like many from its era, the ballpark sits amongst housing developments. Across the street is a fire station, church and gas station. Two paved parking lots are in front of the ballpark and they are enough to hold a decent sized crowd. We had no problem getting in or out of the area as traffic was minimal.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 7 out of 8
Exterior
The outer frame of the seating bowl makes up the exterior and there is a lot of dark green involved between the roof, seats and beams. The color fits with the team logo. At the base, is brick and that material is used for various columns around the main entrance area. Still can’t get away from the brick and kelly green despite a 70-year old ballpark. There are a few separate brick structures before the entrance and these contain ticket offices and concessions. I do like the large banner high up on the ballpark that welcomes fans and includes a team logo. However, there is no stadium name visible. Something interesting seen from the outside is the tripod structure that holds up the light towers on top of the roof.
Exterior Ranking: 7 out of 10
Concourse and Food
There is a lot of open space and it begins with a large plaza that was very useful on this day where school kids were lining up all over. A little landscaping and large baseballs make the area look nicer. Beyond the gates, are varying spaces of open area and walkway. This is all behind the field until it opens up along the first-base line with a ton of space again. This section also includes picnic tables, a playground and the Mother Earth Pavilion in the corner. This double-decker space is a terrific area to hang out and watch the game and it is like a trendy restaurant, just that it doesn’t have food, only a bar. Beer on tap is after the Pavilion’s namesake as the brewing company has four varieties (it’s also available in other parts of the park). Food-wise, Grainger features standard ballpark offerings. I’m still trying to figure out what the difference is between a “Grilled Hot Dog” and a “Grilled Red Hot Dog”.
Concourse Ranking: 4 out of 5
Food Ranking: 5 out of 8
Interior
Oh, you swept me off my feet Kinston. All of the idyllic old-time ballpark features I cherish are here. A roof that covers most of the seating bowl, ceiling fans, obstructive support beams, a water tower beyond the outfield (even with a Wood Ducks logo painted on it!). The historic seating structure only extends to each corner base and it is done at an angle, so that there are three straight sides to it. Not the most ideal as it is set a bit further from the field, especially since the main seating is behind a lower walkway. Ahead of that walkway are true box seats. These “suites” are really just a space between two railings with a bunch of folding chairs. Back in the bowl, seats are all green and relatively new, making for a comfortable older park. Slope is average. One back row of old wooden seats remains, a nice nod to history. The green color scheme is very consistent through the place and quite nice as it goes with the team logo. A small press box is at the back of the bowl and underneath the roof. There is a set of metal bleachers down the right-field line while on the opposite side is unique seating that is natural with the terrain and shape. Just two rows of seats are lined up below a hill with a little grassy area. This section is complimented so well by the aforementioned Mother Earth Pavilion, which is a nice addition to the ballpark as of this year. I really liked watching the game here. As for the view, although I played up the outfield water tower, the rest of the outfield appearance is rather blah.
Interior Ranking: 9.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard in right-center is adequate as it features a dark blue base and multiple advertisements. Visibility is the main issue as it is a struggle to see, especially in direct sunlight. The digital line score portion is at the bottom, while above that is a video screen. Its display is small and not the clearest as I saw it mainly used for batter information. I did love the giant Wood Duck logo to the left of the board.
Scoreboard Ranking: 1.5 out of 4
Displays
Down East really did a great job making this feel like their ballpark as they added a lot of character with green paint and Duck logos all over the place. Probably the coolest thing I’ve seen at a stadium in a while are the “Did You Know” quotes coming out of the Duck’s mouth on the concourse walls. There’s a good handful of them and they offer interesting facts about the Wood Duck. Elsewhere, a couple of ballpark dedication plaques are near the home plate entrance. Historical information is lacking and I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: if your facility or team has a lot of history, show it! The team kinda won a championship last year as they were deemed “co-champions” after the Finals was called off after the threat of some regional rain from a weakening tropical system. Just goes to show what a joke the postseason is in minor-league ball. Anyway, that “accomplishment” is displayed on the opening banner and a flag in centerfield.
Displays Ranking: 2.5 out of 6
Cost
Variable pricing has made its way to most of the sports world and it has even trickled down to minor league baseball. On Fridays and Weekends, tickets are $10 or $12, while the rest of the week, they are $2 cheaper. The average cost is very similar to the rest of the league. Parking is free, a nice plus. Concessions are priced similar to other low-minor parks that I’ve seen in this region, but I read a lot of comments on expensive they are. It may be too high for the market. A burger basket with chips is $8, hot dog: $4 and a bottled soft drink goes for $3.50. A craft beer is $6, which is not bad at all.
Cost Ranking: 7.5 out of 8
Fan Support and Atmosphere
This game occurred on Education Day. I avoid going to these games like the plague, but I’m not sure I’ll ever be near Kinston again, so we contended with thousands of screaming kids. The loud speakers didn’t help matters. Overall, the Wood Ducks did well in their first season back as their paid attendance outdrew the Kinston Indians’ final seasons. However, within the context of the league, they did struggle as they finished near last place (ahead of only the temporary Buies Creek team). An opening night sellout was followed by a crowd of around 1,000. Come playoff time, the team had 1,188 on hand for their lone home game. It is important to note that if you take the percentage between attendance and market size, Kinston does well as this is one of the smallest cities to have full-season ball.
Fan Support Ranking: 3 out of 8
Atmosphere Ranking: 8 out of 14
Other Stuff
Many locals were not happy with “Down East” as the club name. They understandably wanted “Kinston”, especially since Down East is more appropriate for locations further to the east and closer to the coast. The team argued for regional branding……As for the Wood Ducks nickname, that was more receptive. It refers to a colorful duck local to the area…..The city began as “Kingston”, but the G was later removed after the American Revolution as they did not want to show respect to England…..Kinston has had to contend with flooding from the Neuse River many times and unfortunately they suffered a record, devastating flood from Hurricane Matthew in 2016…..Kinston has basketball in their blood with a high school powerhouse and several people making it to the NBA…..Before heading out of town, make sure to eat at Kings Restaurant for BBQ that dates back to 1936…..The ballpark is named after Jesse W. Grainger, a local truck farmer that donated money to the town for school. His family name is on many things in Kinston……John Rowland (no relation!) was the stadium architect……As owners, the Texas Rangers make themselves known with the State Flag flying in the outfield and an advertisement board that says “Visit Arlington”……The mascot is named DEWD, an acronym used often for Down East Wood Ducks.
Game
This was a blowout as the Wood Ducks used big innings to build a huge lead. 5 runs in the 2nd, 6 in the 5th and 4 in the 7th gave Down East all 15 of their runs en route to a double-digit win. Every batter had a hit with Josh Altmann and Blaine Prescott contributing 4 RBI each.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
