A comparison of the two parks of the 2024 World Series

Text and photos by Joe Mock
All rights reserved

THE 1970s CALLED AND THEY WANT THEIR WORLD SERIES BACK!!

OK, I couldn’t resist writing that. But the Yankees faced the Dodgers three times in a five-year period starting in 1977. In fact, these two teams have faced off in the Fall Classic more than any other matchup in history, as this year marks the 12th time. Seven of the times, the Dodgers represented the borough of Brooklyn, then starting with the 1963 Series, they repped Los Angeles.

So in 1963, 1977, 1978 and 1981, the Dodgers’ home WS games against the Bronx Bombers were in Dodger Stadium. In all 12 face-offs, the Yankees’ home games in the Series were in Yankee Stadium … BUT this year’s Fall Classic will be the first time the Dodgers and Yanks have faced off in these exact two ballparks.

How can that be? It’s because going all the way back to 1923, the Yankees have called Yankee Stadium home. But it’s not the same stadium they play in now, as it was rebuilt in 1974-75, and was completely replaced (across the street) in 2009 … yet the name remained the same. This year’s Series will be only the second in the current version of Yankee Stadium, as the first was in the stadium’s inaugural season (2009).

Interestingly, the teams with the three highest payrolls in 2024 appeared in the two League Championship Series: Mets ($305 million); Yankees ($303 million); Dodgers ($249 million). One has to wonder how in the world the Guardians made it that far with a payroll of only $93 million — 28th out of the 30 teams.

For over two decades, we’ve provided a comparison of the two ballparks being used in that year’s World Series.  It’s time for the 2024 edition! We call it our “tale of the tape,” which references the way two boxers used to be compared in generations gone by.

But these two heavyweights have been going at it in the Fall Classic since 1941, when New York beat Brooklyn four games to one.

Let’s take a look now at this year’s knock-down, drag-out fight for the WS title — well, as it relates to their ballparks! As always, our comparison is a little tongue-in-cheek.

	Inside
Yankee Stadium		Dodger Stadium
Well, the first Yankee Stadium (you know, the House That Ruth Built) opened in 1923. This version made its debut in 2009.	Year opened	After a four-year stint at the LA Coliseum, the team moved into the shiny new stadium in Chavez Ravine in 1962.
The current version was constructed directly across 161st Street from the previous park in the southern part of The Bronx.	Site	Controversy swirled about the way eminent domain was used in the 1950s to clear out residents in this choice ravine near downtown LA
I rank it at #19 out of 30. My USA TODAY baseball-writing brethren have it at #20.	Our ranking among 30 MLB parks	My USA TODAY coworkers have it at #7. I rank it #11 (probably lower than it deserves)
46,537. Despite having the 2nd highest ticket prices in MLB, they finished 2nd in attendance	Seating capacity	56,000. The Dodgers led the Majors in attendance, averaging 6,761 more than NYY (with a bigger park of course)
Kentucky Bluegrass covers the field here	Playing surface	Santa Ana Bermuda grass
No doubt it’s Monument Park. Arrive early to get in line to check it out.	Special feature	Janet Marie Smith led the design effort to remake the area beyond the outfield. Visit it!
Populous, which designed this while simultaneously designing Mets’ Citi Field	Architects	Praeger-Kavanagh-Waterbury (particularly Emil Praeger, who also designed Shea Stadium)
$2.3 billion is the estimate, but who knows?	Cost to build	Exactly 1% as much as Yankee Stadium. Of course, it was 47 years earlier
318′-399′-408′-385′-314′ … the same as at old Yankee Stadium	Outfield dimensions	Perfectly symmetrical: 330′-375′-400′-375′-330′
This is the second, as the Yanks won it over the Phils in 2009 in the park’s first year	World Series hosted	Starting in its 2nd season (1963), this is the 11th Fall Classic at Dodger Stadium
That win in 2009 is the most recent	Last World Series won by home team	The Dodgers won it all in 2020, but it was in Arlington, TX because of COVID
Never, as the old Yankee Stadium hosted it in its final season in 2008	All Star Games hosted	After the LA Coliseum hosted in 1959, it didn’t come back around to LA until 1980 and 2022
Across the street is where old Yankee Stadium was, or you can cross the Macombs Dam Bridge to visit where the Polo Grounds used to be	Landmarks	From the parking lot at the top of the hill behind home plate, you can see downtown LA. Elysian Park has a gorgeous view down at the stadium
There were two NHL games in 2014, and over 20 college football games. Jay Z, Justin Timberlake & Bad Bunny have packed the place	Other events	Pope John Paul II in 1987 and the NHL in 2014. There have been dozens of huge concerts, with Elton John’s perhaps the most famous
Far fewer doubles or triples were hit here than the average MLB park, but 19% more HRs.* The runs scored here were average.	2022-24 park factors Source: Statcast	No longer a pitchers’ park, 22% more HRs* were hit here than in the average MLB park, yet only an average number of runs scored
Don’t look for bargains on the secondary market, because Yankee fans pay lots of $$$ to see their team. They’re rabid.	Filled with	Don’t be fooled by the reputation of late-arriving, laid-back fans. This place rocks, especially in the postseason.
	Outside

* If you stop and think about this for more than half a second, it will dawn on you, “Well, the Yankees have Soto, Stanton and Judge, so of course Yankee Stadium has more home runs.” And “well, of course Dodger Stadium yielded so many homers because the first three batters in their line-up are future Hall of Famers.” While these facts are inescapable, the folks at Statcast claim that their ballpark factors take into account how the players fare when on the road, so that negates the aspect of bigtime sluggers inflating the HR factor for their home park. Who am I to argue? It’s been nearly half a century since I took my lone statistics class in college!