Wrigley Field Ranks 10th on MLB Ballpark List – What?!

I guess today is just a bad day for rankings.

Over at our Bears’ sister-site, The Ten-Yard Line, we were flummoxed by NFL.com’s top 32 QB rankings, which did NOT feature Mitch Trubisky anywhere on the list … like, at all. And if you’re thinking there was some sort of playing time cutoff or recent draft-pick bias, there was not. It was definitely a whiff, and, frankly, it ticked me off quite a bit.

But if I thought that was going to be the only vexing set of rankings today, I was wrong!

Forbes Magazine recently ranked all 30 MLB ballparks, and somehow, Wrigley Field just barely made it into the top 10. To quote your friendly neighborhood teenger, I literally can’t even. 

Here’s a look at the top ten:

1. AT&T Park (Giants)
2. Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Orioles)
3. Busch Stadium (Cardinals)
4. Dodger Stadium (Dodgers)
5. PNC Park (Pirates)
6. Coors Field (Rockies)
7. Fenway Park (Red Sox)
8. Kauffman Stadium (Royals)
9. Petco Park (Padres)
10. Wrigley Field (Cubs)

Before getting started, the author, Maury Brown, reminds folks that the list is subjective and that many others might have completely different opinions. And to that, I say … coward. (I’m mostly kidding.)

But until we know his methodology, it’s hard to judge too severely. So let’s try to understand how he ranked each stadium, and see where Wrigley might’ve fallen off: “I look at the overall aesthetics of the ballpark design, including integration with additional structures such as in Baltimore and San Diego; its setting; the visuals from within the seating bowl or surrounding views, the amenities offered at the facility, and historic relevance; as well as external development that adds to the experience.”

Well …

1. Overall Aesthetics: Very few ball parks in baseball are as uniquely identifiable as Wrigley Field – the ivy, the Marquee, the brick, the Old Scoreboard. Everyone knows Wrigley and it’s absolutely beautiful.
2. Integration with additional structures: Maybe they would’ve been docked here in the past, but with the Park at Wrigley attached on the Clark Street side and the Ricketts Family’s recent purchase of most rooftops, the Cubs actually have some unique and interesting “additional structures” now – and that’s not including the existence of Hotel Zachary or all of Wrigleyville, for that matter.
3. The Setting: In the middle of a neighborhood, no team in baseball can rival the unique setting of Wrigley Field.
4. The Visuals: I’ll give this one to the author. Although there’s nothing wrong with the view out of Wrigley from within, it doesn’t match the Cardinals, Pirates, or Giants, just off the top of my head. It’s not bad, but it’s not the calling card for sure.
5. Amenities offered at the facility: While the Cubs are doing their best to improve the amenities at Wrigley, do we really need more than bathrooms, beer stands, and hot dog vendors?
6. Historic Relevance: Only Fenway could hold a candle.
7. External Development: See #2 and #3 (Wrigleyville, Hotel Zachary, The Park, the rooftops, my apartment is nearby and you can use the bathroom if there’s a long line at Wrigley)

Based on these criteria, I could understand Fenway and AT&T ahead of Wrigley, but the rest? Busch Stadium and PNC Park have killer views, but is that enough? Dodger Stadium? Petco? Coors? That last one must’ve been added by Norman Arenando.

I know you didn’t ask, but here are my revised rankings, just so we’re clear:

1. Wrigley Field
2. Everywhere else

There’s no better place in the world to watch baseball, and I’ll leave it at that.