Fansided

MLB Power Rankings: Top 30 stadiums of all time

By Joshua Sadlock

Aug 14, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; The sun sets over Wrigley Field during the game between the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 14, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; The sun sets over Wrigley Field during the game between the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports /
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FLUSHING, NY – APRIL 16: The old Shea Stadium ‘Home Run Apple’ sits outside Citi Field, home of the New York Mets baseball team in Flushing, New York on April 16, 2016. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
FLUSHING, NY – APRIL 16: The old Shea Stadium ‘Home Run Apple’ sits outside Citi Field, home of the New York Mets baseball team in Flushing, New York on April 16, 2016. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images) /

14. Shea Stadium

  • Year Opened: 1964
  • Year Demolished: 2009
  • Capacity: 57,333
  • Defining Features: Home run apple, blue and orange paneling and neon ballplayers on the facade, orange foul poles

Although it was constructed during the rise of the multi-purpose cookie cutters, Shea Stadium stood out for its unique design characteristics and finishing touches. The Mets first official home (because a scrapped together and run down Polo Grounds doesn’t really count) had more character and lasting power than some of its contemporaries like County Stadium in Atlanta, RFK in Washington, or Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

Shea Stadium was in fact a multi-purpose stadium, but it is known most for baseball. The circular bowl did not fully enclose the field, leaving empty space behind the outfield fences in center field. The 57,000-seat stadium was wide and airy underneath the seating bowl, and had 21 escalators to help carry fans around the park. There was a massive scoreboard, measuring over 15,000 square feet in the outfield.

In its heyday, Shea Stadium had several of the more unique features in baseball. Rather than the standard light towers, the bowl was ringed by hundreds of lamps that illuminated the field like a long row of headlights. The famous home-run apple that rose every time the Mets hit one out was preserved and taken to the new Citi Field.

There were a few issues with Shea Stadium, most notably its location in the backyard of LaGuardia Airport. In the early years, the sound of passing airplanes was so loud that is was picked up on radio and television broadcasts. Eventually, flight paths were changed to deal with this issue. Overall, Shea Stadium was a park that stood out from its contemporaries and was the home of the Mets when they rose to MLB relevance after being known as the Lovable Losers early in their existence.

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