Rochester Red Wings (WAS) @ Lehigh Valley IronPigs (PHI)
May 25, 2024
HR: Travis Blankenhorn (ROC), Carter Kieboom (ROC)
Attendance: 10,100
Time of Game: 2 hours, 20 minutes
Stadium Facts
Location: Allentown, PA
Opened: 2008
Capacity: 10,178
Level: Triple A
League: International
Attendance: 10,100
Time of Game: 2 hours, 20 minutes
Stadium Facts
Location: Allentown, PA
Opened: 2008
Capacity: 10,178
Level: Triple A
League: International
When I originally scheduled out this Eastern PA trip, I was unaware that the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Final Four would be going on in Philadelphia that same weekend. Once I learned that was the case, I decided I would try to squeeze in a lacrosse game on this trip should defending champion Notre Dame qualify. They did indeed, so I made the relatively short trip from Reading to Philadelphia on Saturday morning for the national semi-final game between Notre Dame and Denver. To say I'm a casual lacrosse fan would be an understatement. This was my first ever in person game at any level. But I'm very glad I was able to make this game as it was fun watching my Irish dominate it on their way to the title game. They would go on to win their second straight national championship on Monday afternoon.
Soon after the lacrosse game, I drove up to Allentown for an evening game at Coca-Cola Park, home of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Due to a passionate fan base, the close proximity to the parent club in Philadelphia, the large population of the area and the quality of the stadium, the IronPigs routinely lead all of Minor League Baseball in attendance. Similar to Reading, this stadium is located on the edge of its home city of Allentown, a fair distance from downtown which I never actually saw. This is definitely one of the nicest minor league parks I have visited. Its the first one on this tour that has a second level with a decent amount of seating and a premium seating area right behind home plate. There is a very large party deck and patio area in left field and ample GA lawn seating in left-center. The concourse circles the entire stadium and provides standing room viewing areas pretty much everywhere. This came in handy for me as there was a light rain for a few innings late in the game. This park has an impressive array of concession options throughout. With a team name of IronPigs, yes, bacon and pork are heavily featured at these stands.
This was my first AAA game in many years. It was a nice reminder how different the rosters tend to be at that level, a mix of prospects on the verge of making it to the big leagues and MLB veterans just trying to hang on and get another shot. Rochester, the Nationals' AAA club, only had two players in their starting lineup without MLB experience. One of them was Darren Baker, son of recently retired long-time MLB manager Dusty Baker. Dusty was in the house for this game. I had hoped to get my first look at one of the top prospects in baseball in this game, Rochester outfielder James Wood. Unfortunately, he went down with a hamstring injury a couple days earlier and missed several weeks of action, causing me to miss him in both this game and my later trip to Rochester. Yesterday, news broke that he will be called up by the Nats for Monday's game in DC. I happen to have tickets for that game, so I should finally get to see Wood play then. As for this game, Rochester wasn't able to do much against Lehigh Valley's starting pitcher David Parkinson. The lefty pitched 6 2/3 innings with the only damage done on solo home runs by former big leaguers Travis Blankenhorn and Carter Kieboom. Red Wings' starter was former Nats first round pick Jackson Rutledge, who has struggled in his couple cups of coffee in the majors. He was cruising in this game until the fifth inning when it all fell apart. In consecutive innings, he was unable to put away hitters and got knocked around a bit. Iron Pigs' outfielder Cal Stevenson had a two run triple in the fifth to take a 3-1 lead. They scored three more runs in the sixth, highlighted by an Esteban Quiroz RBI double. That would be more than enough for Lehigh Valley. Rochester added a couple of runs late to make it a 6-3 final.
If judging ballparks simply by what is within the walls, this might be the nicest minor league stadium I have been to. Some others have arguments to be made based on location and external scenery though, including the one I would visit the following afternoon a bit up the road in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area.
Next ballpark: PNC Field in Moosic, PA
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