MLB’s best playoff ballparks: Ranking the top environments for postseason madness

By Chad Jennings, Stephen J. Nesbitt and C. Trent Rosecrans

No major-league ballpark holds more fans than Dodger Stadium. Its 56,000 seats blend high-wattage celebrities with anonymous diehards to create one of baseball’s loudest, most intense atmospheres. It’s intimidating. Especially in October.

Just not for Jurickson Profar.

Home crowds always have their say in the playoffs, and after a wild-card round in which home teams generally struggled, the postseason intensity finally bubbled over in good ways and bad on Sunday.

In Los Angeles, Profar robbed a home run and taunted the Dodgers faithful, hopping up and down in left field before revealing the ball secure in his glove. The San Diego Padres were on their way to a rout. Dugouts chirped. Fans delayed the game’s conclusion by throwing items on the field.

“It’s definitely wild out here,” Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. said. “But at the same time, it’s a good environment for baseball.”

Across the country at Citizens Bank Park, the Philadelphia Phillies rallied, and rallied, and rallied again, turning the home crowd’s audible frustration to feel-it-in-your-bones euphoria. “Momentum in this place is everything,” reliever Matt Strahm said. “You can’t explain it in words. You just have to feel it. When we get them going, it gets us going.”

But which playoff ballpark gets going the most? As the division series shift to the second stops, we ranked the home-field environments of the eight remaining playoff teams.

The Phillies and Dodgers are the only returners from last year’s ranking. They were first and second, respectively. How do the playoff environments at Citizens Bank Park and Dodger Stadium stack up against the other six? Here’s our ranking.

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Memorable postseason moment: In Game 4 of the 2006 ALCS, with the Tigers trying to sweep the Oakland A’s, Magglio Ordoñez homered in the sixth inning to tie the game. In the ninth, Ordóñez came to the plate again with two on and two outs. A’s closer Huston Street delivered, and Ordóñez clobbered a three-run, walk-off home run to left. Comerica Park quaked. Three years after losing 119 games — and more than a decade since their last winning season — the Tigers had won the pennant.

Our take: Truthfully, it’s hard to know what to expect when Comerica Park hosts its first postseason game since Oct. 5, 2014. The Tigers did not draw well for most of this season — their average home attendance ranked 23rd in the majors — but then they saw home crowds regularly swell past 40,000 in September. If Tigers fans send the Guardians fleeing in fear in Game 3, we’ll update these rankings to reflect that.

The city and fan base have embraced the Gritty Tigs. Comerica Park has roared in postseasons past, and Tigers fans have been champing at the bit to go wild once again behind this young, exciting and underrated roster.

We could find a video for each of these ballparks extolling its excellent playoff environment. But someone had to be ranked last. That’s how these things go. Take heart, though, Tigers fans: The teams we ranked seventh and eighth in last year’s ranking wound up together in the World Series.

7. Cleveland Guardians

Memorable postseason moment: Before you dismiss Cleveland as just another sleepy city in the middle of the country, try remembering Nov. 2, 2016, when Rajai Davis — choking up on the bat — homered in Game 7 of the World Series and Progressive Field shook to such a degree it must have rattled John D. Rockefeller’s bones. Even LeBron James lost his mind. It was a monumental moment (but two innings later it was the Chicago Cubs — not the Cleveland Indians — ending a championship drought).

Our take: These people have been through a lot. The Decision. The Shot. The Browns. They deserve better, and if they sense an opportunity to get it, they’re going to show up. The Guardians haven’t won a World Series since 1948. They’ve come close three times in the past two decades — Albert Belle and Jim Thome, Klubot and Mr. Smile — and now they have José Ramírez and Emmanuel Clase leading the charge. The Guardians had the sixth-best record this season, but the third-best record at home. They have enjoyed a meaningful home-field advantage, especially in front of a hungry crowd that’s been waiting to celebrate. Outfielder Lane Thomas, who joined the Guardians via trade in July, called Game 1 “electric.” “Everything I had thought and more,” he said.

If the Guardians win a ring, Progressive Field will make the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame feel like a folk festival. (Let’s keep in mind, though, that Cleveland had home-field advantage in the 2016 World Series and 2017 ALDS and lost both.)

Memorable postseason moment: There’s always nerves when a team comes home down 2-0 in a series, and it’s even worse when the visitors take a lead in the first inning of Game 3. Mets fans didn’t have to worry long in Game 3 of the 2015 World Series as David Wright hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning to give the Mets a lead. New York would go on to win, 8-3, with Wright driving in four. It was the only game the Mets would win in that World Series, but it gave them hope — and a moment to remember. (They also remember Matt Harvey going back out for the ninth inning of Game 5, but let’s not talk about that.)

Our take: It’s tough not to compare the two New York stadiums when both opened in the same year, and there are pros and cons in favor of both. The Citi Field crowd is closer than at Yankee Stadium, and although there was a certain history and charm to the old Shea Stadium, the new place is just so much nicer. If the crowd at the Mets’ watch party at Citi Field for Pete Alonso’s homer against the Brewers is any indication of what it’s going to be like for a real game, Citi Field is going to be a madhouse for Game 3 against the Phillies.

CITI FIELD IS ELECTRIC! pic.twitter.com/Wzbb224CUW

— Metsmerized Online (@Metsmerized) October 4, 2024

This ballpark can get wild, and if the Mets keep going — they’ll be home for two of the final three games of this series against the Phillies — the home-field advantage of Citi Field is going to get stronger and stronger, moving them higher and higher up this list. And, at this point, there’s no telling what Mets magic can accomplish.

Memorable postseason moment: There’s hardly a baseball fan in the state of Missouri who doesn’t know the name Don Denkinger. Cardinals fans curse his name, and Royals fans, well, they’re thankful. With the Royals facing elimination in Game 6 of the 1985 World Series, Denkinger called Jorge Orta safe when replays — before they were used to correct calls — showed he was clearly out. Of course, Cardinals fans who blame Denkinger conveniently forget it was just the first out, Jack Clark dropped an easy fly ball, Darrell Porter had a passed ball and Orta was actually forced at third in the inning. The Royals won Game 6 and then beat the Cardinals in Game 7 (with Denkinger behind the plate).

Our take: We’re about to see the first playoff game at Kauffman Stadium in nine years, since the Royals took the first two games of the 2015 World Series at home and then finished the job in Queens. It’s an almost entirely different roster for the Royals, but the energy is the same. Bobby Witt Jr. is a superstar. Vinnie Pasquantino is beloved. Salvador Perez is a franchise icon. And the rotation is about as good as anyone’s.

The Royals had the fifth-lowest home attendance in MLB this season, ahead of only the White Sox, Rays, Marlins and A’s. They might be a surprising pick at No. 5. But the proof of concept was laid in 2014 and 2015. The playoffs are a different beast.

“What are you watching?”

Oh, just 9 minutes and 41 seconds of Kauffman Stadium playoff crowd pops. #Royals pic.twitter.com/4X2BlTo4gP

— Jack Johnson (@JohnyJ_15) August 27, 2024

Kauffman Stadium offers something few other places do, and that’s ample room in the parking lot for tailgating. Just as the Chiefs have one of the best home-field advantages in football, the Royals will benefit from a rowdy crowd assembling in the parking lots before a playoff game. With the recent history of the Chiefs’ success, it’s easy to forget that Kansas City has been a baseball town.

4. Los Angeles Dodgers

Memorable postseason moment: We included Kirk Gibson’s iconic home run with last year’s list. No one would tire of that video. But instead let’s go back to the only World Series the Dodgers have won at Dodger Stadium: 1963. In Game 1, facing a Yankees lineup led by Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, Sandy Koufax struck out 15 in a complete-game win. He went the distance again in Game 4 to complete the sweep. The two complete games — 18 innings, three runs — earned Koufax a World Series MVP.

Our take: It started out playfully Sunday when Profar sonned 50,000 Dodgers fans. It ended with a tense delay as beer rained onto the warning track. It was not Dodger Stadium’s finest moment. (It was, however, a testament to the Padres’ ability to get underneath the skin of their opponents and the opposing crowd.) Setting Sunday aside …

There’s no other setting like Dodger Stadium. The ballpark is massive, sprawling and picturesque. When filled to the brim in October, it is deafening. Tommy Edman knew that before being traded to the Dodgers this summer. He lost a wild-card game at Dodger Stadium a few years ago. “Every time I’ve come here when I was with St. Louis, I always noticed how loud it was,” Edman said. “It’s nice to be on this side of things.” So, Profar may have single-handedly knocked Dodger Stadium down a spot on this ranking Sunday, but it’s still a special environment for postseason baseball.

3. New York Yankees

Memorable postseason moment: The Yankees have won 27 championships, but only one in the current ballpark. On Nov. 4, 2009, they clinched No. 27 at home in a game started by Andy Pettitte and closed by Mariano Rivera. Derek Jeter had three hits and Hideki Matsui went deep. They were nearly a decade removed from the late 1990s, but it was a championship still rooted in that iconic dynasty. Great playoff moments come and go, but for the Yankees, the only moments that matter come with rings.

Our take: This version of Yankee Stadium doesn’t have the history of its predecessor, but it was built with a Yankees-esque sense of grandiosity. What it lacks in quirks and character it attempts to make up for with size and volume. In October, that’s what matters. The place is raucous when the fans have something to cheer and a reason to believe. Aaron Judge can do that. Juan Soto can do that. Gerrit Cole can do that. (The Bleacher Creatures already are doing their best to woo Soto to stay in the Bronx).

If these Yankees get hot, their ballpark will respond in a way that expects — and even demands — greatness. And the place can be brutal on opposing players.

“There’s almost like a white-out feel to it because there was so much white in the stands,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I definitely think our guys fed off it a little bit (in Game 1), and I would like to think (it) had a factor in us winning the ballgame.”

2. Philadelphia Phillies

Memorable postseason moment: Because we wrote about Roy Halladay’s no-hitter in the 2010 NLDS in last year’s article, we turn this time to Brad Lidge. There are two outs in Game 5 of the 2008 World Series. Eric Hinske at bat. Tying run at second. Here’s Harry Kalas’ call: The 0-2 pitch. Swing and a miss! Struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 world champions of baseball! Brad Lidge does it again and stays perfect for the 2008 season — 48-for-48 in save opportunities. And let the city celebrate!

Our take: We ranked the Phillies first last year, but because the blurb included a few old Philly fan tropes it drew immense reader feedback. So immense, in fact, that we wrote a whole story about it. That kinder, gentler fan base ran the gamut of emotions in Game 2: from booing Nick Castellanos to going bananas when he walked it off.

When you call him dad, it means a little more. ❤️ #NLDS pic.twitter.com/Pbr03XAJmY

— MLB (@MLB) October 6, 2024

That’s the thing in Philly, man. It’s a jam-packed ballpark with all eyes locked in on the pitch, whether that’s a waste slider Castellanos waves at or a sweeper he hits to the moon. The passion in Philly is unmatched. As first base coach Paco Figueroa put it: “F— it.’ It’s Philly? You know what I mean?” Dropping Citizens Bank Park to No. 2 may be an unpopular move, but it’s less about Philly’s environment suffering than about the other guys’ showing out.

1. San Diego Padres

Memorable postseason moment: Petco Park opened in 2004, but it didn’t host a winning playoff game until Oct. 1, 2020 — when there were no fans allowed in the ballpark. The game itself was epic, featuring a season-saving comeback that saw both Tatis (21 at the time) and Wil Myers homer twice. “I feel like we’re back to ‘Slam Diego,’” Tatis said afterward. The Padres went on to win the series the next night. It was an amazing moment that didn’t shine quite as brightly without the full home-field experience.

Our take: Leave it to Tatis to provide a glimpse of what a full Petco Park can do. In Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, the still-just-25-year-old homered on the first pitch he saw to give the Padres a 2-0 lead before they’d even made an out. The ballpark went nuts, like it had been waiting several years to celebrate a home run like that.

FERNANDO TATIS JR. HITS THE FIRST HOME RUN OF THE 2024 #POSTSEASON 🚀 pic.twitter.com/XFqQ06zWTT

— MLB (@MLB) October 2, 2024

So, we have a new No. 1, just in time for the fiery Dodgers-Padres series to head to San Diego. Are we being prisoners of the moment? Perhaps.

But San Diego is having one heck of a moment.

Padres overcame a 5-0 deficit in front of 47,559 fans, the largest crowd in Petco Park history pic.twitter.com/hPmyZvPf9S

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) July 31, 2024

The Padres were the only home team to win in the Wild Card Series. They swept the Atlanta Braves, and Padres fans left little doubt that they believe this roster — which the organization has been building for years — has the goods to make a deep run. Petco Park was even popping for an away game, as thousands of fans showed up Sunday to watch on the big screen as the Padres tied the NLDS in Los Angeles.

The Padres haven’t been to the World Series since 1998, and they’ve never won a championship. The fans cramming Petco Park are primed to do their part to bring home a ring. And that title chase hits a high point in Game 3 on Tuesday. “I can’t wait,” Profar said on MLB Network, then couldn’t resist trolling the Dodgers one more time. “But we don’t throw any stuff on the field. San Diego fans, we don’t do that. We just cheer.”

(Top photo: Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images)