Met Park (1970-1992)

Kevin Geisert, SMC Research Librarian. July 2024

Metropolitan Memorial Park (aka Met Park or the Met) was an outdoor minor league baseball stadium located at 6000 Northampton Boulevard near the airport in Norfolk, Virginia.[1] The Tidewater Tides, a New York Mets International League affiliate, played their home games there for twenty-three seasons from 1970-1992. New York-based firm Praeger, Kavanagh and Waterbury, known for its design of Shea Stadium in Queens, New York, collaborated with Leavitt Associates of Norfolk on the layout. Sheldon Leavitt worked as lead architect. Over the course of about eleven months, E.V. Williams and Luke Construction built Met Park at a cost of $1.35 million. This project was financed in part with a loan from the Mets organization. One unique feature that customers enjoyed on game day was the Diamond Club, which the team billed as a modern restaurant. Throughout its history, Met Park maintained a small seating capacity, which only listed as 6,216 in 1990.[2]

Minor league baseball returned to Norfolk for the first time in fifteen years when Met Park made its debut. The community had been waiting for this moment ever since the Norfolk Tars (see local wiki: Norfolk Tars) folded in July 1955. Following an inaugural 1969 season hosted by Portsmouth’s Frank D. Lawrence Stadium, the Tidewater Tides moved into Met Park, which was their home for the next two decades. International League opponents included the Richmond Braves (Atlanta Braves affiliate), Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers affiliate), and Rochester Red Wings (Baltimore Orioles affiliate). Work crews rushed to make the stadium ready for Opening Day in 1970 and put on the finishing touches just hours before game time. The Tidewater Tides began their IL schedule on Friday, April 17, 1970, with a 4-1 win over the Buffalo Bisons, a Montreal Expos affiliate. Mayor Roy B. Martin kicked off this new era of Norfolk baseball by throwing out the ceremonial first pitch. A crowd of 5,029 cheered the home team to their first victory at Met Park.

Source: City of Norfolk, Communications Archives, RG 5, Photographs - "Met Park"

Tidewater manager Chuck Hiller watched as his team broke a scoreless tie with Don Engber’s fifth inning double to right field that put the Tides in front 1-0. Then they added some insurance runs during the seventh inning, which proved decisive in such a close game. The Tides enjoyed a successful first year at their new ballpark by finishing with a 74-66 record and qualifying for the IL Playoffs. Even an early postseason exit could not put a damper on Norfolk’s outlook going into next season. The Syracuse Chiefs who were affiliated with the New York Yankees blanked Tidewater 10-0 at Met Park to complete a three-game sweep. During the 1970 regular season, Met Park welcomed over 142,000 paying customers and averaged 2,033 per game.[3]

The Tidewater Tides played some exciting baseball at Met Park and many of their players would go on to have success at the Major League level as well. Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, and Lenny Dykstra are just a few of the standout players to suit up in Norfolk during this period. Contending for an International League championship became a regular occurrence for the Tides. Tidewater teams hoisted the Governor’s Cup five times in 1972, 1975, 1982, 1983, and 1985. The 1983 club followed up its IL Championship by winning the Triple-A World Series in Louisville, Kentucky against three other playoff opponents. They could then rightfully be called Triple-A Champions. Norfolk fans also witnessed playoff appearances in 1971, 1973, 1977, 1979, and 1981.[4]

As the 1980s ended, it was clear that the small seating capacity needed to be addressed. Other International League stadiums could accommodate several thousand more baseball fans than Met Park. The Triple-A governing body had recently notified member franchises that any expansion teams must abide by newly implemented stadium specifications, which included a minimum of 10,000 seats. Met Park fell far short of these up-to-date standards and had simply become obsolete in a modern age of luxury boxes and technological innovations. Economic concerns remained a limiting factor too with attendance figures lagging the IL on a year-to-year basis. Norfolk risked losing professional baseball once again unless the Tides got a new facility. Although the New York Mets hoped to keep its top farm club in Norfolk, they also realized the current stadium situation was no longer tenable. In 1992, the Tidewater Tides played their final season at Met Park, which was demolished less than a year later. They moved into their brand-new waterfront ballpark by the following April. Now known as the Norfolk Tides, they continue to entertain fans at Harbor Park during baseball season.[5]

Source: City of Norfolk, Communications Archives, RG 5, Photographs - "Met Park"

The Tides played their final game at Met Park on Labor Day, Monday, September 7, 1992. A dejected crowd of 3,213 watched as in-state rival Richmond Braves shutout the home squad by a score of 6-0. Under manager Clint Hurdle, Tidewater finished 1992 with a miserable 56-86 record, which qualified for the worst season in franchise history. During the pre-game ceremony, Norfolk Mayor Mason Andrews, Councilman Paul Fraim, and Former Mayor Roy Martin all reflected on two decades of baseball in this memorable ballpark. Once play began, Richmond quickly took a lead and the Tides never recovered. Starting pitcher Dave Telgheder picked up the loss after allowing two runs in five innings of work. Reliever Doug Cinnella gave up four more runs, including an eighth inning homer off the bat of Richmond catcher Brian Deak. Meanwhile, three Richmond pitchers limited the Tides to no runs on nine hits. It was an unsatisfying end to the remarkable stadium.[6]

Sources:

1. 1975 Norfolk City Directory (Norfolk, Virginia), p. 608; 1991 Norfolk City Directory (Norfolk, Virginia), p. 530.

2. Don Allgood, “New Stadium Taking Shape,” Norfolk Ledger-Star (Norfolk, Virginia), November 4, 1969, p. B1;

"Met Park: Crown Jewel,” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), April 9, 1978, p. I8;

Ken Wheeler, “Designers for Stadium Selected,” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), December 11, 1968, p. 25;

Tom Robinson, “Better Stadium, or Bye-Bye Tides,” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia).

3. “Buffalo Bisons (1886-1970),” Wikipedia, accessed June 12, 2024, Buffalo Bisons (1886–1970) - Wikipedia;

“Tides History,” MILB, accessed June 12, 2024, Tides History | Tides (milb.com);

George McClelland, “Tides Greet New Year by Rapping Bisons, 4-1," The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia),

April 18, 1970, p. B4;

Tom Robinson, “By Fire or Wrecking Ball, Norfolk Ballparks are History,” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia),

April 13, 1993, p. T23.

"1970 International League Season,” Baseball Reference, accessed June 18, 2024,

1970 International League season - BR Bullpen (baseball-reference.com);

“1970 Tidewater Tides,” Stats Crew, accessed June 18, 2024,

1970 Tidewater Tides minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com;

“1970 International League,” Baseball Reference, accessed June 18, 2024,

1970 International League | Baseball-Reference.com.

4. Clay Shampoe and Thomas R. Garrett, Baseball in Norfolk, Virginia (Arcadia Publishing, 2003), p. 114-116, 120;

“1983 Triple-A World Series,” Baseball Reference, accessed June 24, 2024,

1983 Triple-A World Series - BR Bullpen (baseball-reference.com).

5. Shampoe and Garrett, p. 116;

Robinson, p. T23;

Robinson, "Better Stadium, or Bye-Bye Tides;"

Dave Rosenfield, “More Than a ‘Face Lift’ is Needed for Baseball at Met Park,” The Virginian-Pilot

(Norfolk, Virginia), July 24, 1990, p. A8.

6. Tom Robinson, “Tides Finish with a Whimper in Met Park Finale,”

The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), September 8, 1992, p. C1 and C3.

Street Address: 6000 Northampton Boulevard

Name (Original): Metropolitan Memorial Park

Name (Also Known As): Met Park, The Met

Architect: Praeger, Kavanagh and Waterbury

Leavitt Associates

Contractor: Luke Construction

E.V. Williams

Architectural Style: Outdoor Baseball Stadium

Cost (Original): $1.35 Million

Construction Date: 1969-1970

Opening Date: April 17, 1970

Demolition Date: 1993

GPS: 36.878055, -76.204975

Sources:

1) Primary Sources:

1. Books and Pamphlets:

City Directories (Selected):

▪ 1972-1973 Norfolk City Directory (Norfolk, Virginia), p. 608.

▪ 1975 Norfolk City Directory (Norfolk, Virginia), p. 532.

▪ 1991 Norfolk City Directory (Norfolk, Virginia), p. 530.

2. Newspapers/Magazines/Journals:

1968

▪ Wheeler, Ken. “Council at Bat on AAA Ball.” The Virginian-Pilot

(Norfolk, Virginia), November 4, 1968, p. 27.

▪ Wheeler, Ken. “Designers for Stadium Selected.” The Virginian-Pilot

(Norfolk, Virginia), December 11, 1968, p. 25 and 38.

1969

▪ Allgood, Don. “New Stadium Taking Shape.” Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch

(Norfolk, Virginia), November 4, 1969, p. B1.

1970

▪ “Rosenfield Claims Stadium Will Be Ready for Opener.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia),

March 25, 1970, p. B5.

▪ “’Metropolitan Memorial’ Now Official.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), April 1, 1970, p. B3.

▪ McClelland, George. “Tides Greet New Year by Rapping Bisons, 4-1.”

The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), April 18, 1970, p. B4-B5.

1978

▪ Reilly, Charles Vincent. “The Tides: A Pro Baseball Model.”

Tidewater Virginian (Norfolk, Virginia), Volume 2, March 1978, p. 21-25.

▪ McClelland, George. “Charting the Tides: Boxscore of Memories.”

The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), April 9, 1978, p. I1-I2.

▪ “Met Park: Crown Jewel.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), April 9, 1978, p. I8.

1990

▪ Robinson, Tom. “Better Stadium, or Bye-Bye Tides.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia),

July 24, 1990.

▪ Rosenfield, Dave. “More Than a ‘Face Lift’ is Needed for Baseball at

Met Park.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), July 24, 1990, p. A8.

1992

▪ Robinson, Tom. “Tides Finish with a Whimper in Met Park Finale.”

The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia), September 8, 1992, p. C1 and C3.

3. Photographs/Images:

▪ Folders: “Sports I.” Sargeant Memorial Collection Main Photograph Collection, MSS 0000-MPC.

▪ Folders: “Subjects Box 504 (“Memorial Methodist Church-Milhado Homestead”). The Virginian-Pilot Photograph Collection, 1955-2000 MSS 2021-001.

2) Secondary Sources:

1. Books and Pamphlets:

▪ Shampoe, Clay and Thomas R. Garrett. Baseball in Norfolk, Virginia. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing,

2003, p. 114-123.

2. Newspapers/Magazines/Journals:

1993

▪ Robinson, Tom. “By Fire or Wrecking Ball, Norfolk Ballparks are History.” The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, Virginia),

April 13, 1993, p. T23.

3. Websites:

▪ Baseball Reference. “1970 International League Season.” Accessed June 18, 2024.

1970 International League season - BR Bullpen (baseball-reference.com).

▪ Baseball Reference. “1983 Triple-A World Series.” Accessed June 24, 2024.

1983 Triple-A World Series - BR Bullpen (baseball-reference.com).

▪ MILB. “Tides History.” Accessed June 12, 2024. Tides History | Tides (milb.com).

▪ Pro Reference Baseball. “1970 International League.” Accessed June 18, 2024. 1970 International League | Baseball- Reference.com.

▪ Stats Crew. “1970 Tidewater Tides Roster.” Accessed June 18, 2024.

1970 Tidewater Tides minor league baseball Roster on StatsCrew.com.

▪ Wikipedia. “Buffalo Bisons (1886-1970).” Accessed June 12, 2024. Buffalo Bisons (1886–1970) - Wikipedia.

▪ Wikipedia. “Met Park.” Accessed June 6, 2024. Met Park - Wikipedia.

▪ Wikipedia. “Norfolk Tides.” Accessed June 12, 2024. Norfolk Tides - Wikipedia.

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