Ranking the best in-game experiences for each MLB team

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 29 : Freeze races during game one of the 2019 Major League Baseball London Series between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees on June 29, 2019 at West Ham London Stadium in London, England. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /

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KANSAS CITY, MO – MAY 05: General view of the stadium from behind the fountains in right field during the game between the Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees at Kauffman Stadium on May 5, 2012 in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals won 5-1. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Kansas City Royals: The Fountains

Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City is one of only two baseball-only stadiums built in the 1960s and 1970s left standing today. Along with Dodger Stadium, The K is one of the final holdovers built before the rise of the retro stadiums of the 1990s and 2000s. With the Royals beginning play at Kauffman in 1973, the stadium leans more heavily on what were considered modern/futuristic design features at the time.

When it comes to timeless design, Kauffman Stadium isn’t comparable to Dodger Stadium, and it certainly won’t be thought of like Fenway or Wrigley if it lasts another 50 years, but it is a nice ballpark. Considering the era in which it was built, Kauffman holds up quite well. At the time, there was a shift away from cities to a more pastoral setting, and the Royals leaned into that with a wide, sweeping expanse of grass and park space behind the stadium and an open feel with no upper deck behind the outfield.

Kauffman Stadium does offer a very intimate experience for watching a baseball game. It is one of the smallest ballparks in the league, with a seating capacity of just 37,903. The upper deck is quite vertical, but the fact that it does not wrap all the way around the field means there are no bad seats in the corners where it is difficult to see the whole outfield. It does seem to loom menacingly over the lower level like a hovering spaceship. Essentially, the Royals built a cookie cutter stadium but left off the seats that would only benefit fans watching football.

The most recognizable feature of Kauffman Stadium is the outfield fountain and waterfall array. The Royals fountains are the largest privately-funded fountains in the world. The display bubbles pleasantly all game and shoots water higher between innings. In an effort to generate more revenue from their smaller, outdated stadium, the Royals turned the fountain space into the Pepsi Porch. It offers great views, but the clean modernist feel is slightly corrupted by a sprinkling of ads all over what was supposed to function as a giant park behind the field.

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