Commerce Bank Ballpark

Infobox_Baseball_Stadium
stadium_name = Commerce Bank Ballpark
nickname = The Jewel of the Atlantic League


location = 1 Patriots Park
Bridgewater, New Jersey 08807
broke_ground =
opened = June 7, 1999
closed =
demolished =
owner = Somerset County Improvement Authority
operator = Somerset Patriots
surface = grass | construction_cost = $18 million
architect = Hintz and SSP Architecture
tenants = Somerset Patriots (AL) (1999-present)
New Jersey Pride (MLL) (2002-2003)
New Jersey Fire (PC) (2004)
seating_capacity = 6,100
dimensions = Left Field: 317 ft (96.6216 m)

Center Field: 402 ft (122.5296 m)

Right Field: 315 ft (96.012 m)

Commerce Bank Ballpark is a 6,100-seat baseball-only stadium in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey that hosted its first regular season baseball game on June 7, 1999, as the tenants of the facility, the Somerset Patriots defeated the Newark Bears. It was designed by Clark Caton Hintz and SSP Architecture, and built by Epic Construction.

Commerce Bank Ballpark is named for Commerce Bank, which purchased the naming rights in July 2000. The stadium was originally known as Somerset Ballpark.

History

Commerce Bank Ballpark was opened by Governor Christine Todd Whitman and other New Jersey officials on June 7, 1999, with the Patriots defeating the Newark Bears. Since its inception, the ballpark has seen one of the highest attendance averages in the Atlantic League, second only to Citibank Park in Central Islip, New York.

Commerce Bank Ballpark is also the home of the Somerset County Baseball Tournament and was the home of the Big East Baseball Championship. In the off-season, the Ballpark is the site of the Big Apple Circus, and the former home of the New Jersey State Fair.

In 2004, Commerce Bank Ballpark was the home of the short-lived New Jersey Fire of Pro Cricket. The team only played for one season.

In 2000, the Ballpark hosted the Atlantic League All-Star game, with a crowd of 7,035. Commerce Bank Ballpark also hosted the 2008 All-Star game on July 16th, 2008, breaking the All-Star Game and ballpark attendance record with 8,290 fans. The famous billionaire, Donald Trump, threw the first pitch of the game.

Ballpark Attractions

*Executive Party Deck-A deck for staging birthday parties or other special occasions with groups of 30 to 100.
*Patriots Gift Shop-The place to buy Somerset Patriots merchandise.
* Picnic Area-A place to eat while watching the ballgame with a group of 30 to 350.
*Lawn Seating-An open area where fans can sit on the grass or bring beach towels to sit on to enjoy the game by the Patriots bullpen.

External links

* [http://www.somersetpatriots.com/ballpark/about/ Commerce Bank Ballpark]
* [http://www.minorleagueballparks.com/comm_nj.html Minor League Parks visit to Commerce Bank Ballpark]