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Home > Baseball > MLB Stadiums > PNC Park
PNC Park
Although the Pirates have struggled on the field for many years, one thing that fans of the Pirates can never complain about is PNC Park as it is one of the most beautiful ballparks in baseball. As the landscape in baseball changed in the 1990s many small market teams began seeking new ballparks to create additional revenue. The Pirates began drawing plans for a new ballpark that would be similar to their previous home before Three Rivers Stadium, Forbes Field. Bonds were approved for 216 million dollars to build a ballpark for the Pirates in 1997 and construction began in April 1999. The ballpark was named PNC Park after PNC Bank bought the naming rights.
The Pirates christened PNC Park on April 9, 2001 when they played the Cincinnati Reds. From the outside PNC Park looks like a classic ballpark from bygone years. Fans walk to PNC Park from various parking facilities around the ballpark, walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge from downtown Pittsburgh or even drive their boat to the ballpark. Once outside the main entrance of the ballpark, fans see a brick front, steel structure, terra cotta tiled pilasters, dramatic masonry arches along the home plate entryway, and a flat green steel roof. Statues of Honus Wagner and Roberto Clemente are also outside the ballpark.
With a capacity of 38,496, PNC Park is baseball’s second smallest ballpark. The ballpark has only two decks of seats that extend from the right field foul pole to home plate and around to the left field foul pole. Club seats, located on the lower section of the upper deck; and the press box, located at the top of the upper deck, allow for the upper level seats to be much closer to the field. Luxury suites are wedged between the lower and upper decks.
The outer promenade at PNC Park is known as the River Walk and gives fans views of the city, the river, and the field. A life-size replica of a pirate ship contains virtual reality pitching and batting cages, rope courses and other games gives parents and their children another form of recreation other than the Pirates game. The Roberto Clemente Bridge which is next to the ballpark is closed on game days to allow fans to walk from downtown Pittsburgh across the river to the ballpark. Since 2001, multiple ballparks have opened throughout baseball and none compare with the views that fans receive at PNC Park.
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