Rogers Centre, the home of the Toronto Blue Jays since 1989, is one of the most notable stadiums in the league. Despite its older age the stadium has retained a modern feel due to several refurbishment projects.
Recently, I had a chance to visit Rogers Centre in a game on Sunday June 30 vs. the Yankees. There were several things that stood out about the stadium.
Rogers Centre roof
As stated earlier, Rogers Centre first opened in 1989. The stadium debuted with a retracted roof, which makes it the oldest stadium in use by an North American sports team that has a retractable roof.
When I first got to the game, the roof was open. However, in the middle of the game rain started to pour. The roof was able to fully close in about 20 minutes. Globe Life field, a stadium opened in 2020, has a retractable roof that needs about 15 minutes to open and close. Considering the 30 year age gaps of the stadiums, only five extra minutes to close the roof is pretty impressive.
Once the roof is fully closed the stadium feels like a completely different place. I think most fans would agree that outdoor baseball is better than indoor baseball, but indoor baseball is better than no baseball. Seeing the roof close in real time is one of the coolest things you’ll see.
Photo via Matthew Mendives
Rogers Centre pre game
Rogers Centre is located in the downtown area of Toronto. This allows for easy walking access from several hotels nearby. This includes the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel, which is located inside of Rogers Centre. Certain rooms even give you a direct view of the field.
One thing to note is that there are a lot of stairs outside of the stadium. Unless you’re sitting all the way on the first or third base sides you will need to walk up a lot of these stairs to get to your gate. Inside the stadium there is a ramp you can use to get up to the upper decks. The ramp was a little hard to walk on.
On weekdays, Rogers Centre opens 90 minutes before first pitch. Meanwhile on weekends Rogers Centre opens two hours before first pitch. Regardless of if you go to the stadium on a weekend or weekday both of these times allow you to get to the stadium early to see pregame preparations and avoid large lines. Lines for security and food were minimal before the game.
The food was solid. Refills on non-alcoholic drinks are free, which would be very helpful on a hot summer day. There could have been more variety in the food, and the alcohol menu at the concession stands was limited.
Photo via Matthew Mendives
Rogers Centre in game
Sunday is the “junior jays” day at the ballpark. Children get a chance to walk out on the field with the players. They also get a chance to run the bases after the game. I believe these interactive activities are good for helping younger fans get into the game and the baseball atmosphere.
The jumbotron in center field is very clear and gives a lot of interesting and important information. In right field there is a smaller board that gives stats about how the pitcher is doing in the game and how they’ve done in the season.
Rogers Centre is currently going through several refurbishment projects. In 2024 the next set of these refurbishments debuted on the home opener. The first change was to make sure all seats were oriented towards the infield and to get rid of views that were obscured. The second change was to add cup holders to every seat, make seats more comfortable and have less seats per row. Lastly, new infield bar rails have been added. All of these changes are positives for the baseball viewing experience.
Despite some accessibility issues, seeing a baseball game at Rogers Centre was a truly fun experience. If you want to see more baseball content keep checking out respectmyregion.com.
