Peoples Natural Gas Field is a 7,210-seat baseball-only stadium in

Altoona, Pennsylvania Altoona ( ) is a city in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 43,963 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Altoona Metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan area, w ...

, that opened in 1999. It is the home

ballpark A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into two field sections called the infield and the outfield. The infield is an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined in part ba ...

of the Eastern League's

Altoona Curve The Altoona Curve are a Minor League Baseball team based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, named after nearby Horseshoe Curve (but also alluding to the curveball, a type of pitch). The team plays in the Eastern League and is the Double-A affiliate of ...

Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...

team.

History

The groundbreaking ceremony for the stadium, then known as Blair County Ballpark, was held on March 7, 1998. The addition of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

teams in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, and

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the List of municipalities in Florida, fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the sta ...

, in 1998 also created room for

to expand. Two additional teams were added to the Eastern League for the 1999 season: the

and the

Erie SeaWolves The Erie SeaWolves are an American professional baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They compete in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) as a member of the Eastern League's Southwest Division, serving as the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Ti ...

. The city of Altoona won the favor of the Eastern League over a bid from

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...

. The stadium hosted its first regular season baseball game on April 15, 1999, as the Curve defeated the

Bowie Baysox The Chesapeake Baysox are a Minor League Baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League. Their home ballpark is Prince George's Stadium. From 1993 to 2024, th ...

, 6–1. From 1999 to 2002, total seating capacity was listed at 6,176. Prior to the 2003 season, an additional 1,034 seats were created with the construction of the new left-field reserved bleacher section, the third-base picnic pavilion, and the left-field party deck. Blair County Ballpark hosted the Eastern League All-Star Game on July 12, 2006, before a then-record crowd of 9,308 fans. The current attendance record was set on August 26, 2023 when 10,164 fans witnessed the Double-A debut of Altoona's

Paul Skenes Paul David Skenes (, born May 29, 2002) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2024. Skenes played college baseball for the Air Force Falcons baseball, Air ...

against the

Akron RubberDucks The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park (Akron, Ohio) ...

. On January 31, 2012, it was announced that Peoples Natural Gas had signed a naming-rights deal, making the new Peoples Natural Gas Field name official. In addition, Peoples Natural Gas is conducting a study for on-site green energy.

Features

Peoples Natural Gas Field has a façade that resembles an old-fashioned railroad roundhouse that are prevalent throughout the city of Altoona. The stadium is double-decked, with the Diamond Club seating section making up the lower level. The main concourse with concessions and restrooms sits behind this section, and is covered by the upper levels of seating. Peoples Natural Gas Field is unique because of its

roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...

located beyond the right-field wall. This ride, called

Skyliner The is an airport limited express train service between Tokyo and Narita Airport in Japan. It is operated by Keisei Electric Railway and runs on the Narita Sky Access route. This article also covers the and services. Service The ''Skyli ...

, is actually part of the

Lakemont Park Lakemont Park is an amusement park located in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The park opened in 1894 as a trolley park and became an amusement park in 1899. It is one of only thirteen trolley parks still operating, and the 8th oldest amusement park in ...

amusement park located next door. The ridges of the

Allegheny Mountains The Allegheny Mountain Range ( ) — also spelled Alleghany or Allegany, less formally the Alleghenies — is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the Eastern United States and Canada. Historically it represented a significant barr ...

can also be viewed from inside the stadium. The ballpark's picturesque view earned it a runner-up position in the "Best View in the Minors" competition in 2018. It finished behind only

Southwest University Park Southwest University Park is a ballpark in El Paso, Texas. It is the home of the El Paso Chihuahuas, a Minor League Baseball team in the Pacific Coast League, and El Paso Locomotive FC, a second-tier USL Championship team since its inaugural se ...

, home of the

El Paso Chihuahuas The El Paso Chihuahuas are a Minor League Baseball team based in El Paso, Texas. The Chihuahuas compete in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) as the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Sou ...

. In '' MLB 2K13'' the minor league field labeled "AA East Field" is extremely similar to Peoples Natural Gas Field.

Seating

*Diamond club: 1,634 seats *Terrace level: 1,204 seats *Grandstand level: 2,646 seats *Outfield reserved: 744 seats *Third-base picnic pavilion: 250 seats *"Rail Kings" (on party deck): 40 seats *Skyboxes: 292 seats *Bleachers: 400 seats

Gallery

Image:1847-1851 - Altoona - Blair County Ballpark.jpg, Infield of Peoples Natural Gas Field File:BPBallparkINSIDE.jpg, Seating section Image:Field_at_BCB.JPG, Field at Peoples Natural Gas Field from third base side with

roller coaster in the background File:BPBallparkOUTSIDE.jpg, Façade of Peoples Natural Gas Field

References

External links

Altoona Curve
* ttp://www.frontiernet.net/~rochballparks2/altoona/altoona.htm Photographs of Blair County Ballpark - ''Rochester Area Ballparks'' {{Altoona, Pennsylvania Baseball venues in Pennsylvania Minor league baseball venues Buildings and structures in Altoona, Pennsylvania Tourist attractions in Blair County, Pennsylvania Altoona, Pennsylvania 1999 establishments in Pennsylvania Sports venues completed in 1999 Eastern League (1938–present) ballparks