Stadium Report Cards: Rogers Centre

I recently wrote for Stadia Arcadia, a blog run by Michael, who also runs Sports Logo Spot. Both blogs are listed in the "Other Cool Sites to Check Out" section on the sidebar. I highly recommend checking them out.

Here is is, straight from Stadia Arcadia:

Stadium Report Cards: Rogers Centre

Our good friend Bmac recently went up to Toronto for vacation. I saw he posted some pics at a Jays game. So I asked if he wanted to do a report card on the Rogers Centre.



Team: Toronto Blue Jays
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
League: Major League Baseball(AL)
Built: 1989
Capacity: 49,539
My event: Regular season game, vs Boston Red Sox

1. Outdoor Design



It has a modern look to it, but does not fit in with the way most ballparks do. The roof looks cool when it is open, but kind of awkward when it is closed. It looks really cool next to the CN Tower.
3/5

2. Indoor Design



Other than the hotel and scoreboard in center field, nothing really stands out. It is all just circular patterned seating. Also, the roof design does not look too great from inside.
3/5

3. Prices
Everything is a little more expensive in Toronto to begin with. The Rogers Centre is no exception. Most of the souvenirs, for example, were about $3-4 more than most of the other MLB Stadiums I have been to.
3/5

4. Food
The food selection was very good. They had the regular ballpark classics, as well some more interesting stuff. The Muddy York Market and Roundhouse Carvery and Bar were pretty unique for a baseball stadium. They both had some interesting food.
4/5

5. Staff
There were no issues, and everyone was very nice. Nobody really went out of their way to help you though, compared to other stadiums.
3/5

6. Cleanliness
Everything was extremely well-kept and clean. The entire city was, and the Rogers Centre looked great.
5/5

7. Parking
We didn’t need to park, as we walked from our hotel. Most people around the stadium were also walking to the game. I didn’t see any parking garages nearby, though.
2/5

8. Atmosphere
On the one hand, there was not a whole lot of support for the Jays until towards the end of the game. It wasn’t exactly a dead atmosphere though. Everyone was in a good mood, too, even though the Blue Jays lost.
3/5

9. Playing Surface.
It looked great for being indoors.
4/5

10. Scoreboard



The Rogers Centre scoreboard is pretty good. It is a great size, and has very good quality. The graphics were nice.
5/5

35/50 as a total score, tying it with the Trop.

Here is a look at the Stadium Standings:



Be sure to check out Michael's blogs.

NHL 2012: Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes

2011: The Hurricanes roll out new home and road jerseys. They feature a new design, and more gray, a tribute to the late Hartford Whalers. A similar black alternate jersey is also introduced.

2012: A new alternate jersey, also black, is unveiled. It features a new logo and is modeled after the All Star Game jerseys from a few years back.

NHL 2012: Calgary Flames

Calgary Flames

2011: As expected, the retro 3rd jersey from the previous season becomes the full time alternate. A few slight changes are made in the transition to the RBK Edge template. The Flames also bring out new home and road jerseys. They are a mix of the pre-Edge and the current sets.

2012: A new alternate jersey is introduced. Hated by traditionalists, it features some new piping designs and a sublimated flame pattern, and the old alternate logo.

NHL 2012: Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo Sabres

2011: In 2011, the Sabres will celebrate thier 40th anniversary. The Sabres come out in new, matching home and road uniforms. As expected, they are based off of the previous year's 3rd jersey. A royal-blue alternate jersey is also intorduced, feautring the old Buffalo Bisons Hockey wordmark. This jersey also has the Sabres' crossed swords below the wordmark. The 40th Anniversary logo I created is on all three jerseys.

2012: The team removes the anniversary patches from all jeresys and unveils another alternate jersey. Theoretically, this new alt jersey replaces the Buffaslug as Sabres fan's symbol of blame and hatred. I wouldn't expect this jersey to be well-liked for real, but I tried to keep a bit of the Sabres modern look while keeping some of the classic aspects.

Wild About Design Gets an Upgrade

Thanks to some of the newer features available from Blogger, I decided to give Wild About Design a major upgrade. The blog has always been modeled after Bmac's Blog, with the same layout and basically the same colors and features. Now Wild About Design has a new look, aimed at making the blog more hockey-related and easier to follow. I hope everyone likes it!

NHL 2012: Boston Bruins

Boston Bruins

2011: The Bruins change their 3rd jersey, using the yellow Winter Classic design.

2012: New home and road jerseys are unveiled, modeled after the team's 1974-1995 uniforms. A second alternate jersey based on the Bruins' early jerseys is released as well.

NHL 2012: Atlanta Thrashers

Atlanta Thrashers

2011: The Thrashers come out with a matching home and road jersey (finally), with an emphasis on light blue.

2012: Atlanta unveils two new alternate jerseys, one a navy version of the home and road, with a look that goes back to the team's early years. A new maroon jersey is also released, with a design similar to the previous home and road jerseys.

44th & Goal

Be sure to check out 44th & Goal, a blog run by Bowen Hobbs. It includes some pretty neat stuff about sports logos and uniforms. One of my favorite parts in the concepts. There are concepts from various sports and leagues, all of which are very well done. I would highly recommend you take the time to check it out. The link is under my "Other Cool Sites to Check Out" section.

Bowen Hobbs recently did an awesome Nebraska football concept and posted it on his blog. I think it looks great! The screen grab is posted above.

NHL 2012: Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim Ducks

2011: The Ducks intorduce an alternate jersey, a throwback to the Mighty Ducks days. It is widely popular amoung the fan base, and the Ducks plan a switch back to the old look for the upcoming year.

2012: The team unveils it's new (or old) look, the old colors and a modified version of the original Mighty Ducks logo. The Ducks keep their current logos and uniform design, just altering the colors. A black alternate jersey is also released, using the Ducks wordmark to keep some ties to the previous era look.

NHL 2012 Project

I have been working on this project, NHL 2012, for quite some time now, and I am finally ready to start posting some of the teams. NHL 2012 is a project I put together that takes a look at how teams might look in a few years. I have done a lot of research on NHL uniform trends and marketing over the years, as well as gathered information about possible upcoming changes for this project. In time for the 2012 NHL season, the league expands it's rules to allow teams to have a 4th jersey. This is mostly for marketing purposes. There are several new trends and fads introduced during the next few years, things like wordmarks on the hems of jerseys and other little things like that.

Enjoy the project!

-And that NHL Logo is updated, as part of the project.