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Jacobs Field - Buy Cleveland Indians tickets for Jacobs Field at TickCo.com!

Jacobs Field / Cleveland Indians

 

Year Opened	1994
Capacity	43,863
Dimensions	325L, 370LC, 405C, 375RC, 325R
Last Visit	2004
Web Site	cleveland.indians.mlb.com
Online Broadcasts	Yes
Online Ticket Sales	Yes
Phone	216/420-HITS
Ticket Prices (2004)	Diamond Box (row 1), $50; Diamond Box (rows 2-6), $45; Field Box, $40; Infield Lower Box, $27; Baseline Box, $27; Lower Box, $25; Corner Lower Box, $20; Lower Reserved, $20; Mezzanine, $15; View Box, $27; Upper Box, $19; Bleachers, $12; Upper Reserved, $10; Upper Outfield Reserved, $7; Corner Reserved, $5.
League	American League
Parking	Over 30,000 parking spots in local parking lots.
Directions	2401 Ontario St., Cleveland. The ballpark is located on the southeast corner of downtown Cleveland. There are many signs pointing the way to the ballpark from both I-90 and I-77; as long as you're headed toward downtown Cleveland you should see the signs and the ballpark.
Rating

Most people don't remember what a great baseball town Cleveland has been over the years. Despite playing in a cavernous old park -- Municipal Stadium was known as the "Mistake by the Lake," in a not-so-fond manner -- at one time the Cleveland Indians at one time major-league attendance records when fans showed up in droves to see Bill Veeck's team compete for world championships. But the Muni was also a cold behemoth seating 74,000 -- the most of any major-league ballpark -- and fans suffered through chilly winds coming off the lake, seating so remote that the center-field bleacher inhabitants never caught a home-run ball, and management that didn't care much about putting a winning team on the field.

So it's fitting that Cleveland is now home to the ballpark it deserves for suffering so many years with the Muni, the team's home from 1932 through 1993. Jacobs Field is rightly regarded as being one of the best ballparks in the majors; HOK started the retro craze with Oriole Park at Camden Yards and then perfected the formula with the Jake. Couple a great ballpark with good front-office management that stresses the ballpark experience and you have a winning formula. Though it's easier to get a ticket to an Indians game than it was in the opening years of the Jake, it's still a must-visit for any baseball fan.

(click on the image for a larger photo)

Even after 10 years, a night at Jacobs Field is still an event. If you go, head to the ballpark as early as possible and wander through the concourses. For the most drama, enter through the left-field gates and take in the crowd that can usually be found gathering two hours before game time. A great advantage to Jacobs Field are the many nooks and crannies where fans are expected to just hang out and watch the ballgame with their friends; the informality afforded by these spaces makes a ballpark a true community builder.

To your left will be the bleacher and a bat-making stand; spend a moment watching a bat being created on a lathe before heading down the corridor behind the bleachers.

(click on the image for a larger photo)

Your next stop is the center-field plaza next to the pavilion bar, where the party atmosphere can be found on a Saturday night as a live band serenades fans sipping their mixed drinks. The expansive center-field area is also a good spot to grab some food: the pizza is decent, while the Mexican burritos are highly recommended -- and affordable (by ballpark standards, anyway) to boot. A slew of picnic tables and some bar-style seats overlooking the field makes for a nice respite.

(click on the image for a larger photo)

While you're hanging out in center field, stroll down the center-field bleachers (as shown below) and take a gander at the scoreboard, the largest in the majors. It is truly state of the art.

Continue your walk through the right-field concourse, where you'll pass by a variety of concession stands until you reach the right-field corner. There are three noteworthy features there: a larger children's play area, a kid-oriented gift shop and another concourse where standing fans can watch the action (as shown below).

From this point you'll enter the main concourse, where you'll encounter something fairly unique: dual concourses. Behind the seating you'll find a fairly narrow concourse with its own set of concession stands. Behind that is another wider concourse with yet more concession stands and gathering areas, such as a picnic area near first base next to the gift shop and a food concourse. (Interestingly, the team souvenir shop is on the smaller side, especially for a major-league park.) There's a large-screen television showing the game action for those waiting in line for a beer or a dog. Both the narrow and the wide concourse run from foul line to foul line. As you walk through them, stop to the right of home plate and take in some action from yet another standing-room-only area, as shown below.

(click on the image for a larger photo)

As you walk down the third-base line, you'll eventually make your way back to the left-field corner. This truly is one of the best places to view the action. If you're in a more formal mood, you can dine at the glassed-in restaurant in the left-field corner (you can see it in the reflected scoreboard in the photo below).

We viewed the ballpark from almost every vantage point; our tickets were for the last row of the left-field bleachers (we would highly recommend sitting out there), but because of a long rain delay we ended up wandering throughout the entire park and spending time in our own seats, the expensive seating behind home plate and the back of the upper deck. The outfield bleachers are their own world: it's here you find the more rabid fans as well as John Adams playing the Wahoo drum. (The big disadvantage: you can't see the scoreboard.) The upper deck was a pleasant surprise: while they are very high above the action, the pitch is pretty extreme, so you feel like you're looking directly down on the game. And for $5, they may be the best deal in major-league baseball. You also get a good view of the Cleveland skyline, both in front of you and behind you.

Concessions
Yes, there are concession stands everywhere, with a wide variety of offerings. (Except for beer, oddly enough; you have to work pretty hard and head for the right-field concourse or the center-field marketplace to find anything that's not corporate swill.) We're not going to get into the specifics of multitude of concession offerings (sushi, panini, pastries, Reuben sandwiches) here except to note three things:

• The hot dogs are excellent. Go ahead and fill up on them, even at $2.75 a pop, and top them off with Bertman's Ball Park Mustard.

• Pierogies!

• Prices are low. It's probably because the Cleveland market is not exactly affluent (during our visits the local headlines were all dominated by news about the poverty rate in Cleveland, the highest among large cities in the United States), but you won't go broke or need a home-equity loan every time you visit a concession stand.

(click on the image for a larger photo)

Parking
Jacobs Field is next to Gund Arena, the home of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, so they both share a large pool of parking resources. The Indians say that 30,000 parking spots are located within an easy walk of the ballpark. Most lots and ramps in the area charge between $8 and $20 -- with the price going down the farther you move from the ballpark, of course. Here's a tip: the lot directly next to Gund Arena on Ontario Street west of the ballpark charges only $8. Enter from the west and then drive to the east end to be only a long block from the ballpark. Here's another tip: if you're willing to walk a few more blocks from the ballpark, you can find parking between $5 and $10 near Playhouse Square for $5-10. Specifically, there's a parking deck on 14th at US Bank Plaza that's particularly cheap.

For the Kids
As mentioned above, there is a dedicated kids play area located in the right-field corner concourse area (look for the Ms. Pac Man game), as well as a children-oriented souvenir ship.

Before/After the Game
Cleveland rocks -- or at least it does at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, located north of downtown Cleveland on the waterfront. Any museum that celebrates an countercultural movement runs the danger of homogenizing the presentation, and that tension runs throughout the museum. A prime example: a permanent display on teen idols. Did David Cassidy and Tiffany really rock? You decide.

Among the highlights: a listing of the the most important rock and roll songs, specific displays on important bands like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, and correspondence from the files of Rolling Stone magazine. Disappointments: too much emphasis on San Francisco bands from the 1960s (Rolling Stone's Jann Wenner is a big financial contributor to the museum, and his personal preferences shine through in some unfortunate ways, including the induction of overrated sapster Jackson Browne into the hall of fame) and not enough information on the movements that made rock and roll such a subversive force, including bluegrass and country and western.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, One Key Plaza, Cleveland; 216/781-ROCK. Adults, $20; seniors (60+), $14; children ages 9-12, $11.