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Which park will win?

Since 2000, we’ve presented an award to the best new park for that year. There was no award last year when the Minor League season was canceled, which means there is a bumper crop of new ballparks this year. And since Rangers fans couldn’t attend any games at the new park in Arlington, Texas last year, we’re counting Globe Life Field as a new park this year. (Yes, MLB played playoff games there last fall — and we were there — but attendance was limited, which meant that a bunch of the park’s features weren’t opened.)

Whenever a new pro park opens, we’re there to prepare an in-depth review. That meant that *nine* times this year, we traveled to attend a game or two at the new facility and provide you with a detailed assessment and lots of photos.

So this year’s BaseballParks.com’s Ballpark of the Year will be one of these nine ballparks. The ballpark name is a link to its review:

Globe Life Field — Texas Rangers

Atrium Health Ballpark — Kannapolis Cannon Ballers

Polar Park — Worcester Red Sox

Toyota Field — Rocket City Trash Pandas

Riverfront Stadium — Wichita Wind Surge

FredNats Ballpark — Fredericksburg Nationals

CaroMont Health Park — Gastonia Honey Hunters

ABC Supply Stadium — Beloit Snappers

MLB at Field of Dreams — MLB game between the White Sox and Yankees

So which park will win this year’s award? The announcement will be made in USA TODAY Sports Weekly on September 8, and here on BaseballParks.com. Watch for it!

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Saving baseball in Beloit

It’s not at all an overstatement to say that ABC Supply Stadium saved pro baseball in Beloit, Wisconsin. Without a new ballpark — and one built with private funds and not tied up in government red tape — the Beloit Snappers would’ve been contracted in this year’s reduction in the number of affiliated Minor League teams.

It opened earlier this month, so we spent a couple of days examining the ballpark and the town, and came away very impressed. Because it was designed and built by entities that hadn’t previously tackled pro ballparks from scratch, there are definitely some quirks, and our review points them out to you. But overall, the stadium works. It should serve the fans of southern Wisconsin for many, many years to come.

And the food offerings put many larger ballparks to shame. Brat-chos!

So check out our in-depth review of ABC Supply Stadium, the last new park to open in 2021. We think you’ll like the 30 photos that accompany it.

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FredNats finally found their forever home

The Potomac Nationals used to play in an awful ballpark in a location that was anything but ideal. After years and years of searching and negotiating, they’ve landed in Fredericksburg, Virginia, about 30 miles south of their former home.

The number of sell-outs is racking up, merchandise is flying off the shelves and the owners of the newly renamed Fredericksburg Nationals — or FredNats for short — are finally enjoying a sense of community identity.

Read our just-posted review of the ballpark to learn why.

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The “positively alien” Janet Marie Smith

Janet Marie Smith has no equal when it comes to ballpark planning. From the creation of Camden Yards in Baltimore to the brand-new Center Field Plaza at Dodger Stadium and Polar Park in Worcester, when her fingerprints are on a project, it turns out beautifully well.

In the photo with her is WooSox team president Charles Steinberg.

Check out our essay on her career, and get her perspective as well as thoughts about her from Dodgers President Stan Kasten and Larry Lucchino, former president of the Orioles, Padres and Red Sox.  Lucchino, who has hired and re-hired Smith four times, is the one who called her “positively alien.” Read our article to find out why.

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After 86 years without affiliated ball, Worcester is back with a smile

The last time Worcester, Mass. had affiliated Minor League baseball was in 1934. No doubt, its proximity to Boston — and the Red Sox’ territorial rights — kept prospective teams away. Now, though, the Red Sox are following the lead of teams like the Astros, Twins, Rangers and Yankees in pulling their Double-A or Triple-A affiliates closer to the big-league club.

The Worcester Red Sox — or WooSox for short — are playing in brand-new Polar Park. It took a lot of money to build, but was it money well spent? Check out our in-depth look at the park to learn about its site, its design and its features. And there are 37 photos you won’t see anywhere else!

And did you know the circular, yellow smiley face that you see everywhere was created by a Worcester resident? It’s incorporated in many cute ways at this park. Just one of the many things you’ll learn in our review!

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