I’m catching up on my backlog of stadium reviews, and thought I’d publish this one on Turner Field. Scott visited this stadium multiple times as a kid, and we visited together in 2011. We really enjoyed the atmosphere (the Chop!) and sunset, but the stadium itself and location were subpar (hence why the new stadium, Truist Park, was built in a new location).

Design

There wasn’t anything extremely unique or amazing about the stadium design. It was originally called Centennial Olympic Stadium in 1996, and utilized for the 1996 Summer Olympics. After this, it was modified to serve as a baseball stadium. Thus, it really wasn’t best suited for baseball; hence, why they’ve already built a new stadium.

There was an amazing sunset the night we were there! The Turner Field sign atop the brick arches is the most prominent feature, and it looked the same from 1999, 2007, and 2011.

Location

This was our least favorite thing about this stadium. It was in Southeastern Atlanta, and quite a ways from the downtown area. There was nothing around the surrounding area but parking lots. Here are some pics of the surrounding area from Scott’s family’s 2007 visit.

Concessions

There’s a special restaurant where you can get McCann’s Burgers, which we unfortunately didn’t get a chance to try. Dan loved the Hebrew National hotdogs, and ate them without a bun. Scott also loves these type of hotdogs! We were introduced to Yuengling beer here, which at the time was not available in the Midwest.

Amenities

We didn’t really check much of these out during our visit, but assume they had typical offerings. We didn’t see anything special that stood out.

Culture

The atmosphere was our favorite part about Turner Field – especially the Chop!

Fireworks shoot out of a Coca Cola bottle which is very fitting since the World of Coke is nearby. We got to see this multiple times since both McCann and Freddie Freeman had home runs.

We even got to meet the mascot, Homer the Brave! There was a fun in between inning tool race. We were pretty silly, and the little girl in front of us thought so too.

It was awesome to get to see Chipper Jones play before he retired! He even switch-hit!

There were a couple of good catches!

We got to see our buddies, Edgar Renteria and Scott Rolen, play for the opposing team, the Reds.

Summary & Scoring

Date Visited: May 28, 2011; Scott & Family: August 23, 1999
Game Played: Braves 7, Red 6 – Neck-and-neck game with home runs by both Freddie Freeman and Brian McCann. Got to see Chipper Jones switch-hit and get an RBI. Former Cardinals, Edgar Renteria and Scott Rolen, played for the Reds. Box Score
Design:  – Not very unique and retro-fitted to be a baseball field from an Olympic stadium
Location: – Southeastern Atlanta with not a lot to do within walking distance
Concessions: – Hebrew National hotdogs (Scott’s favorite), McCann’s Burgers, and Yuengling beer
Amenities: – Didn’t get to check these out
Culture:  – Very energetic experience with the Chop, Homer the Brave interactions, tool race, and fireworks out of the Coco Cola bottle!
Overall:  – We loved the culture – especially the Chop! The sunset was beautiful, but the stadium itself was so-so.

Other 2011 Game Photos

Throwback Family Pictures

Here are some throwback pictures from Scott’s family trips.