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Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George / Staten Island Yankees


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Year Opened	2001
Capacity	6,000 seats; 7,171 with stranding room and handicapped seating
Dimensions	322L, 390C, 318R
Playing Surface	Grass
Architect	HOK Sport
Last Visit	2007
Website	siyanks.com
Online Broadcasts	No
Online Ticket Sales	Yes
Ticket Prices	Reserved Box: $13; Reserved: $7 to $11; Picnic: $7; Reserved Grandstand: $5 to $7.
Parking	$5.
League	New York-Penn League.
Parent	New York Yankees.
Address/Directions	74 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY. Staten Island is accessible by the Goethals Bridge via the NJ Turnpike, the Verrazano Bridge from Brooklyn, or ferry from Lower Manhattan.
Written by:	Michael Pastore
Rating

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The view of the Manhattan skyline from the ballpark.

As the New York Mets and New York Yankees prepare to open new ballparks at the start of the 2009 season, it's worth noting this isn't the first time they've done this sort of thing. Both teams, with the help of the baseball-friendly Giuliani administration, opened ballparks within New York's city limits in 2001 for New York-Penn League affiliates. In Brooklyn, Keyspan Park is named for an energy company. In Staten Island, the park is named for a local bank and is located in the St. George section of the island, leading to a name that's quite a mouthful: Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George.

Staten Island is the outermost of New York's outer boroughs, it's geographically and geologically closer to New Jersey than New York, and Richmond County is the New York county that sits on the land mass known as Staten Island. From time to time in the past, Staten Islanders have made noise about trying to secede from New York City, but with things going pretty well in the Big Apple these days, there's hasn't been a lot of talk about that lately.

It probably won't make either team very happy, but comparisons between the minor league parks in Brooklyn and Staten Island are inevitable. It's been about a year since we visited Brooklyn, and the same things that stood out there stand out in Staten Island. Both parks are clean, feature wide concourses, comfortable seats, and all the amenities of modern ballparks, and the best thing about a visit to either isn't so much the ballpark itself as it is where they put it. In Brooklyn, it's Coney Island, where the ballpark sits in the middle of an amusement park. On Staten Island, it's New York Harbor. The Ballpark at St. George isn't just in the harbor, it's practically built in a shipping lane.

If skylines are your thing, or if you're into watching large ships, then the Ballpark at St. George has the best view in baseball. Over the leftfield fence you'll recognize the Statue of Liberty, in center is the lower Manhattan skyline, and out to right sits Brooklyn and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, at one time the longest suspension bridge in the world. So proud are the Staten Island Yankees of their view that the batter's eye in centerfield is retractable, and there is limited signage on the outfield fence. A video signboard was installed in right field this past offseason, and improvements to the scoreboard are due for this winter, but there isn't much to block the view.

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The new Staten Island Ferry terminal.

Getting to Staten Island is actually part of the fun. You have to hand it to your humble Ballpark Digest correspondents: if you're headed to Staten Island from north of New York City, as we were, the recommended directions call for a trip down the New Jersey Turnpike to the Goethals Bridge. That brings you through the backdoor of Staten Island, then you head to St. George via expressway. Instead, we took the Metro-North commuter rail into the Manhattan, took a subway down to Battery Park, and boarded the Staten Island Ferry for a trip across New York Harbor. For years, the Staten Island ferry was proud of its 5 cent fare, but then the city removed the fare completely. The trip is free, and it's among the most scenic rides you can take in New York. In fact, the Staten Island ferry is the third most popular tourist attraction in New York.

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The Manhattan skyline from the ferry.

Crossing the harbor by ferry takes only 25 minutes and takes you from Battery Park, past Governor's Island (a former Coast Guard base), right by the Statue of Liberty and into the terminal in St. George. The efficiency with which the ferries (which range in size from very large to somewhat cozy) load and unload is remarkable. Once at the ferry terminal in St. George, follow the signs that send you to the ballpark, which is a short walk to your right. There's a nice walkway along the shore that brings you to the right-field gates of the ballpark.

Once you're at the ballpark, your hosts are one of the better stories in minor league baseball. This incredible piece of real estate they occupy was a gravel parking lot for ferry commuters a few years ago. The Staten Island railroad was then extended right under the stadium, the ballpark was built, and the "Baby Bombers" were ready to go. Simple plan for success, right? Wrong. The owners of the team had trouble paying the rent and attendance wasn't what everyone expected. The team won back-to-back NY-Penn League championships in 2005 and 2006, and the Yankees then stepped in as the new owners, with Mandalay Baseball Properties managing the team.

Attendance was up this season, and the team credits its Pinstripe Plan, which allows 2,000 fans who buy the package to enjoy all-you-can-eat food for $15 per seat and includes tickets to see a major league Yankees game. The Staten Island Yankees also hosted a Yankees Old Timers game this season to drum up fan interest. An area down the right-field line caters to large groups, and each member of a group gets a red Staten Island Yankees hat. In leftfield is the kids' area with baseball-related games.

Here's a tip if you're planning a last-minute trip to Staten Island: the team has never drawn well on Sundays. It's Staten Island tradition that nearly everyone heads to the nearby Jersey Shore on Sundays in the summer, so you'll have no problem getting a seat on a Sunday afternoon. We pulled into seats near third base and were undisturbed for an entire Sunday afternoon game. And one of the nicer things about the Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George is that nearly all the seats from first to third base are in the shade for afternoon games.

From your seats, you'll find the view incredible, especially if you aren't from the area. Large container and tanker ships cross the water behind the outfield, and if you're trying to catch a ferry back to Manhattan, you can just watch the boat leave Manhattan and head your way. It takes less than 10 minutes to get to the newly renovated ferry terminal, so you can time your escape perfectly. For ferry information and the schedule, visit: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/masstran/ferries/statfery.html.

Things seem a little less commercialized in Staten Island than they do at some minor league venues, but we did attend a Sunday afternoon game with a fairly light crowd. There's a Staten Island ferry race on the scoreboard between innings, and we did witness one contest we've never seen before: a race (between a father and son this day) to put on a frozen T-shirt. It looks harder than you'd think.

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The ballpark as seen from the ferry.

Concessions
The $7 cheesesteak is about the most you'll spend at one of the concession stands. The food is edible and reasonably priced. Service was a bit slow at the concessions, but there are plenty of them throughout the park, as well as smaller vendors selling ice cream and fresh lemonade. There didn't appear to be a signature item, but you'll find hot dogs aplenty, burgers, chicken fingers, and sausage and peppers. Solid ballpark food.

Where to Stay
The Staten Island Hotel is a first-class hotel, but it's on the wrong side of the island, which still doesn't mean it's all that far away. A bed and breakfast like the Harbor House is closer to the ballpark, and there's a Hilton Garden Inn if you're into chains. Lower Manhattan has a few thousand hotel rooms, ranging from discount chains to luxury establishments. You're just a ferry ride away, and you're going to pay for it. You'll probably find somewhat more affordable options in New Jersey but you won't have the mass transit options.

For the Kids
There's the play area located near leftfield and there are three popular mascots (cows actually), led by the "Holy Cow" Scooter, who lists his best friend as the late, great Yankee legend Phil Rizzuto. And there's New York City, with museums, musicals, theaters, and about a million things the kids might want to do just across the harbor.

Before the Game
Among the most-visited New York attractions in the area are the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. On a beautiful Sunday the line for ticketholders for the ferries to Liberty Island was about the longest line I've ever seen, and I was at Disney World when they broke an attendance record. It's unlikely you're going to get out there before the game, unless it's a night game and you get up real early. They are both sites worth seeing if you're in the neighborhood, though. As of this review, you can only go to the top of Liberty's pedestal (about one-third of the way up or so) and not into the statue itself. Lower Manhattan also has Wall Street, South Street Seaport, which isn't far from the Manhattan-side Whitehall ferry terminal, and the World Trade Center site, which is still popular with visitors despite looking increasingly like a construction site every day.

Speaking of the World Trade Center, just beyond the leftfield wall at the Ballpark at St. George sits Staten Island's Sept. 11 Memorial (shown below). For the ballpark's first season, the Twin Towers dominated the skyline view. As you walk down the steps from the stadium in leftfield, the memorial, which is designed to look like two postcards floating in a breeze, actually frames the area on the Manhattan skyline where the towers once stood. As you get closer, the names and occupations of the Staten Island victims of the attack (as well as one Staten Island victim of the 1993 World Trade Center attack) are listed, along with a profile of each face. It's worth strolling through on your way to or from the ferry.