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Franklin Rogers
Park / Mankato MoonDogs
(click on the image
for a larger photo)
| Capacity | 2,000 (give or take) |
| Dimensions | 320L, 388LC, 386RC, 330R |
| Playing Surface | Grass |
| Last Visit | 2007 |
| Web Site | mankatomoondogs.com |
| Online Broadcasts | Yes |
| Online Ticket Sales | No |
| Phone | 507/625-7047 |
| Ticket Prices (2007) | Premium, $6; Reserved Adult, $6; Reserved Child/Senior, $4; General Admission Adult, $5; General Admission Child/Senior, $4. Dog Pound (all you can eat): Adults, $23; Children, $14. |
| League | Northwoods League |
| Parking | Free and abundant. |
| Address/Directions | Hope Street and Caledonia Street, Mankato. Madison Avenue runs east-west from downtown Mankato. The stadium is north of Madison Avenue, where it meets Long Street. As you head north on Long, the park will be right in front of you; hang a left and then a right to get to the parking lot.. |
| Written by: | Kevin Reichard |
| Rating |   |
(click on the image
for a larger photo)
Franklin Rogers Park is one of those older ballparks you can find scattered across the United States: too small to house a minor-league baseball team but large enough to attract the attention of entrepreneurs looking to bring in a summer collegiate team. Such is the case with Franklin Rogers Park, home of the Mankato MoonDogs. Even though Franklin Rogers Park has been around for thirty or forty years (no one could give me an exact age, but one fortysomething spectator told me he played ball there as a high schooler, and it was old then), the park's been renovated several times during the past seven years, so there's very little to Franklin Rogers Park that's really old. It's not especially distinctive in any way, but it is a comfortable place to watch a ballgame.
And intimate. We have no idea what the capacity of the park is anymore; at one point it was 1,100, but over the last several years the MoonDogs have added seating here and there as well as a party deck over the right-field concession stand. The grandstand has two sections, with five rows of backed seating followed by nine rows of bleachers. (The backed seating, by the way, was moved from Milwaukee's County Stadium before it was razed.) There are also some picnic tables down the first-base line and a spacious party patio down the third-base line, and there were also some folks who just wandered in the open areas beside the grandstand.
(click on the image
for a larger photo)
New in 2006: upgraded lighting. Franklin Rogers Park was a dangerous place for outfielders straining to find the ball during the late innings of night games, but the new lighting improves this situation immensely.
History
There is a long history of amateur baseball in Mankato,
and Franklin Rogers Park has served as home to local amateur teams. In 1967-1968 the Mankato Mets of the original Northern
League played its only seasons at Franklin Rogers. At that time the
ballpark was known as Key City Park; the current
grandstand was constructed when the Mets came to
town. (Franklin Rogers was a Mankato sports
booster and former editor of the Mankato Free
Press.)
(click on the image
for a larger photo)
Concessions
The MoonDogs keep adding new food items to the
Franklin Rogers Park lineup. Affordable Culver's frozen
custard ($2/$4 for cones and sundaes), available in cones and sundaes, is new
this season. Kettle corn remains a favorite;
meanwhile, you can find Schweigert hot dogs,
popcorn and a great assortment of candy at the
main concession stand. And then there's the
ever-popular taco in a bag for $3.50.
Sadly, the beer selection is limited to Bud, Bud Light and Michelob Golden -- but at $3 a glass, we're not complaining too much.
Parking
The ballpark is located between Reed Street
and Hope Street, and there are parking lots on
both sides of the ballpark. Most fans head to the
smaller Reed Street parking lot and end up parking
on the street. However, the Hope Street parking
lot -- which is much larger -- is usually wide
open and much more accessible, even when there's a
large crowd at the ballpark.
For the Kids
Franklin Rogers Park is a magnet for kids.
That's partially because of its location -- on the
edge of a residential area -- and partly because
parent don't need to be afraid to let their kids
wander the ballpark.
For younger kids, there's a playground directly to the west of the ballpark. You can't see the game action from there when you bring the kids out, but you can easily follow the action and you have a pretty good chance of claiming a foul ball.
Before/After the
Game
Mankato is a college town, so there are a good
number of bars in the area. Franklin Rogers Park
is on the east side of town, where Madison Avenue
has been a main drag for many years. Three spots
are worth checking out: Charley's (920 Madison
Av.), where the specialty is prime rib; Tav on the
Av, within spitting distance of Franklin Rogers on
Madison Avenue; and Bandana Brewery, located on
Victory Drive south of Madison Avenue.
Downtown Mankato also features a fair number of watering holes, both in the Old Town area and in the region of the Civic Center, where you can find Buffalo Wild Wings and Finnegan's Pub (520 S. Front St.), where wood-fired pizza is the specialty.
Farther east on Madison Avenue is the River Hills Mall (which is nothing really remarkable, unless you like hanging out at JC Penny's) and a Barnes and Noble bookstore.
Older Photos
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