TD Bank Ballpark - Somerset Patriots

Portland Sea Dogs (BOS) @ Somerset Patriots (NYY)

July 25, 2024

Sea Dogs 7, Patriots 6

W: Zach Bryant
L: McKinley Moore

HR: Nick Decker (POR), Alexander Vargas (SOM), Rafael Flores (SOM)

Attendance: 4,721
Time of Game: 2 hours, 51 minutes

Stadium Facts

Location: Bridgewater, NJ
Opened: 1999
Capacity: 6,100
Level: Double A
League: Eastern

My last multi-stop minor league trip of the year took me through New England by way of the New York City metropolitan area.  This is one region of the United States where baseball is still very much at the forefront of the sports scene.  Pretty much without exception, all of the stops on this trip featured passionate fanbases, not only for the local minor league team, but in most cases for the affiliated big league club as well.  I got the trip started with a renewal of the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry at the AA level in New Jersey.

TD Bank Ballpark is located in Somerset County, New Jersey.  Situated pretty much in the middle of the Garden State, this is very much part of the New York City metropolitan area, and a hotbed of Yankees fans.  Interestingly enough though, the Somerset Patriots have not always been an affiliated team.  They got their start in the independent Atlantic League and were such a success at the box office that the Yankees eventually moved their AA squad from Trenton to Somerset in 2021.  I'm sure most people arrive to the park by car, but there is a train station just beyond the outfield wall, which I visited the next day to catch a ride into the city.  While I have nothing to compare it to, I assume TD Bank Ballpark was overqualified as an independent league stadium because it is a very nice home for an AA team.  The red brick exterior of the park provides a classic look.  While there are no outfield seats, standard seats surround most of the foul territory with the concourse above providing views of the field from most locations.  The second level is mostly suites, but there is a uniquely situated party deck on the upper level down the third base line.  Another distinct feature of the ballpark is the enormous U.S. flag beyond the wall in straight away center field, a nice touch for a team named the Patriots.  There was a very nice crowd on hand for this Thursday evening game.  A common cheer throughout the game would be started by one boisterous fan yelling "SOMERSET", followed by the rest of the crowd chanting back "PATRIOTS".

This was my second look of the summer at the Somerset squad and the first of two Portland games on this trip.  Prior to the week I'm writing this, the Sea Dogs might have had the most elite prospect talent in all of Minor League Baseball.  Three of MLB.com's Top 25 prospects were on their roster at the time, although the top rated of the bunch, shortstop Marcelo Mayer did not appear in this game.  Outfielder Roman Anthony (DH in this game) and catcher Kyle Teel did though.  Mayer, Anthony and Teel were all promoted to AAA Worcester together this week.  For Somerset, just as was the case when I saw them play in Binghamton in June, outfielder Spencer Jones was the Yankees top prospect in the lineup.  And just like that previous game, he was the leadoff hitter and in the DH slot for this one.  It did not go well for him.  He went 0 for 5 with four strikeouts, continuing a season long problem for the tall left handed hitter.  To be fair, his one out was a flyout to the wall.  Jones' teammates got the Patriots into a good spot early though.  In the bottom of the second inning, Portland starting pitcher Isaac Coffey couldn't find the plate, walking three consecutive hitters to load the bases with one out.  That brought up #9 hole hitter Alexander Vargas who belted a grand slam homer to right to give the Patriots a 4-0 lead.  It was just Vargas' second homer of the year, but amazingly I have seen both of them in person as he also hit a homer as a late inning substitute in the game in Binghamton in June.  He maybe ought to get me to drive up to Jersey more often.  A few innings later, the Sea Dogs answered with four of their own in a bit less dramatic fashion:  four singles with one walk mixed in.  Anthony knocked in the first two with a single to right and Teel tied the game with a single of his own.  The Patriots regained the lead in the bottom half with a run and doubled their lead on a mammoth home run by catcher Rafael Flores in the eighth.  Portland had something left for the ninth though.  After a leadoff walk, the Patriots made a pitching change.  McKinley Moore was rudely greeted by Nick Decker who launched Moore's first pitch over the center field wall for a game tying home run.  After a hit batter and a stolen base, the first of three Sea Dogs steals in the inning, Anthony delivered another run scoring single through a drawn in infield, giving Portland a 7-6 lead.  Vargas got another hit in the bottom of the ninth, but was erased by Teel attempting to steal second.  Somerset did not score, so Portland hung on for the ninth inning come-from-behind victory.

That was quite a ballgame to get this trip started.  It would not be the only exciting finish to a game.  Not even the only exciting game involving Portland.  Up next was a trip into the Big Apple and my first ever visit to Coney Island in Brooklyn.

Photo Album

Next ballpark:  Maimonides Park in Brooklyn, NY