Stadium Minor League History:
Ohio-Indiana League
1948-1951
Frontier League
1995-present
Current Status:
Home of the Richmond Roosters of the Frontier
League (independent)
What's Good: Forty-four years after it was last used for professional ball, old McBride Stadium got a new lease on life when the independent Frontier League came to town. This is a funky old stadium, full of the quirks that ballpark purists enjoy but that many modern fans find irritating. I liked it a lot -- the roofed grandstand provides some welcome shade, while the bleachers down the lines offer an open-air alternative. The area the bleachers are set in on the third base side has a grassy incline that goes all the around towards left field, providing plenty of additional room for kids to run around after foul balls or simply to watch the game stretched out on a blanket. Besides the 60-year old grandstand, the old-fashioned (OK, they were just old) light towers and the multiple layers of dark green paint further added to the old feel of the place.
What's Not So Good: The chain-link fence around the front of the grandstand impedes the view of fans in the first several rows of the grandstand, and the music and sound effects were turned up pretty loud when I was there. Also, foul territory is quite large, pushing many of the seats a good distance from the field.
This Photo:
June 18, 1997 Richmond Roosters vs. Johnstown Steal