Boston, Mass and Detroit, Mich – This summer we had the good fortune to watch back-to-back baseball games, one weekend at Comerica Park in Detroit and the next weekend at Fenway Park in Boston. Good times with good friends and dear family (despite the mediocre baseball). Ultimately, these two parks offer very different experiences. So here is my assessment of Comerica Park vs Fenway Park.
Comerica Park
As everybody knows, Comerica Park is the home ballpark of the Detroit Tigers. That’s right, Detroit–the notorious 3-1-3, Murder City, the dirty D, the roughest and toughest city on the block. But Comerica Park belies this reputation. It opened in 2000, alongside the Detroit Lions’ new Ford Field, as the centerpiece of the city’s latest revitalization plan. It still feels shiny and new, with monumental tiger sculptures at the entrance (which the twins refused to pose in front of), a ferris wheel and a carousel inside, and fireworks on Friday nights.
Our seats behind the left-field dugout were $40 each We also paid $5.50 for a beer, $5.50 for a hot dog, and $30 to park about five minutes from the ballpark. We attended the game with a large group of family members, and several strangers traded seats so we could all sit together. The whole experience was pleasant, fun, and easy-peasy.
Fenway Park
Meanwhile, Fenway Park is the oldest ballpark in America. The seats are cramped, the food lines are long, and there is no entertainment except for the baseball game. (That’s what you came for, right?) Despite the “Friendly Fenway” moniker, the staff maintains an East-Coast brusqueness (which I had never noticed before, but I definitely noticed it after the game at Comerica Park). The famous Sox-fan energy was somewhat dampened by the rain–or maybe it was the impressive turnout of Houston Astros’ fans (or the rather rather humiliating loss by the Sox).
Grandstand seats behind the third-base dugout generally go for $60 to $75 for a Friday-night game, plus $6.50 for a hot dog and a whopping $10.50 for a beer. I have no idea about parking because I have never and will never drive to a game at Fenway Park. In fact, Fenway tops some lists of most expensive ballparks in the MLB.
Despite all of these strikes against, there’s really nothing like Fenway Park, with all of its historical quirks. It’s cramped, it’s old, it’s dirty, but that’s all part of the chaaaahm (as they say). And like the city itself, the Red Sox organization values its history (even the darker side of it) and Fenway Park is integral to that.
Incidentally, both games were disappointing in that my teams suffered rather ignominious defeats. On the way into Boston, I noted that I can’t remember the last time I saw the Red Sox win at Fenway Park. V responded “Way to go, Mom. Thanks for jinxing the game tonight.” And so it was.