| To try to compare Hoover Metropolitan Stadium
to its predecessor, Rickwood Field
, is like comparing apples and oranges. They are both baseball parks,
but the comparisons end there. It seems that when they designed Hoover
Met, they tried to make it as opposite to Rickwood as possible. So
what they ended up with is a spacious, antiseptic stadium that is both clean
and comfortable, but neither interesting nor unique. The stadium is
built way out in the suburbs, some 12 miles from where Rickwood is located
and has an exterior that resembles a spaceship more than a ballpark with
its futuristic look. The inside features a covered concourse set above
the seating area, but out of view from the field. The seating is cut
in half by a useless center concourse meaning many seats are too far from
the field for a minor league park. The seats, while somewhat cramped,
do offer good sightlines. There is also a small roof which extends over
the last 6 rows of seating. While there are plenty of concession stands,
the variety is limited and quality only average. A small gift store
is also situated off the concourse behind home plate. Because the sound
system was not functioning correctly the night I was here, I can't comment
much on the atmosphere. Parking is plentiful and costs $2. It's
a shame that the Barons ever moved out of Rickwood Field. While there
is nothing particularly wrong with Hoover Met, there is nothing to recommend
it either - it's just a big boring park. In 2013, the Barons moved to a new ballpark in downtown Birmingham. What becomes of Hoover Met is yet to be determined, though apparently it will continue to host some amateur games at least.
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