TD Bank Ballpark is a 6,100-seat

baseball park 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 ...

in Bridgewater,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, that is the home of the

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American professional Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team based in Bridgewater, New Jersey. They are the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League (EL), known as the Double-A Nort ...

, a Double-A level

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 ...

(MiLB) team affiliate of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

in the Eastern League (EL). The Patriots previously competed in the independent

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

(ALPB). The ballpark hosts 70 Patriots games as well as Patriots playoff games, in addition high school and corporate events are held each year. TD Bank Ballpark is named for TD Bank, N.A., which purchased Commerce Bancorp in 2009. Formerly called Commerce Bank Ballpark, the original naming rights were sold to the institution in July 2000. The ballpark was originally known as Somerset Ballpark. Its first regular season baseball game was held on June 7, 1999. Since its opening, more than eight million fans have attended games at the stadium.

History

Construction on the ballpark commenced on April 28, 1998, with Epic Construction as the general contractor. TD Bank Ballpark was opened by then–

New Jersey governor The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The ...

Christine Todd Whitman Christine Temple Whitman (; born September 26, 1946) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001 and as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President George W. Bush ...

and other New Jersey officials on June 7, 1999. TD Bank Ballpark is the home of the Somerset County Baseball Tournament and was the home of the Big East Conference baseball tournament from 2000-2005. In the off-season, the ballpark has been the site of the Big Apple Circus, most recently in 2016, and other big events. In 2002 and 2003, TD Bank Ballpark was home to the New Jersey Pride of

Major League Lacrosse Major League Lacrosse (MLL) was a men's field lacrosse league in the United States. The league's inaugural season was in 2001 Major League Lacrosse season, 2001. Teams played anywhere from ten to 16 games in a summertime regular season. This w ...

. In 2004, the New Jersey Fire of

Pro Cricket The history of United States cricket begins in the 18th century. The first international game was between the US and Canada and held in 1844 in front of an audience of 5,000 spectators in New York. Among early Americans, cricket was as popular ...

played their only season of existence at TD Bank Ballpark. In 2013, the NY/NJ Comets of

National Pro Fastpitch National Pro Fastpitch (NPF), formerly the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL), was a professional women's softball league in the United States. The teams battled for the Cowles Cup. The WPSL was founded in 1997 and folded in 2001; the NPF revive ...

played part of their one and only season at TD Bank Ballpark. In 2000, TD Bank Ballpark hosted the Atlantic League All-Star Game, with a crowd of 7,035. The venue also hosted the 2008 Atlantic League All-Star Game on July 16, breaking both the All-Star Game and ballpark attendance records with 8,290 fans. In 2007 and 2015, the

(ALPB) granted TD Bank Ballpark the Atlantic League Ballpark of the Year award. For two consecutive years in 2015 and 2016, TD Bank Ballpark was named Ballpark Digest's Best Independent Minor League Ballpark in the nation. The 2017 Atlantic League All-Star Game was held at TD Bank Ballpark on July 12. It was the 20th playing of the All-Star Game with the Freedom Division All-Stars topping the Liberty Division All-Stars by a score of 10–3 in front 8,175 fans. This was the third time that the ballpark hosted the Atlantic League All-Star Game. In September 2021, the ballpark was flooded after heavy rains from Tropical Storm Ida. TD Bank Ballpark also flooded in 1999 during

Hurricane Floyd Hurricane Floyd was a very powerful and large tropical cyclone which struck the Bahamas and the East Coast of the United States. It was the sixth list of named tropical cyclones, named storm, fourth hurricane, and third major hurricane in the 1 ...

. On April 8, 2023, the Patriots celebrated welcoming their eight millionth fan to TD Bank Ballpark with numerous prizes during a single admission double header against the

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team who play in the Eastern League, and are the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. The team is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at FNB Field on Cit ...

. On June 4, 2024, the Patriots played the

Hartford Yard Goats The Hartford Yard Goats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Hartford, Connecticut. The Yard Goats, which play in the Eastern League, are the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. The team was founded in 2016 when the New Britain Ro ...

in front of a Double-A era (2021-present) record crowd of 8,260 fans with the Yard Goats winning 5–4. Reigning American League

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...

winner

Gerrit Cole Gerrit Alan Cole (born September 8, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros. Cole played for the bas ...

started the game pitching 3.1 innings allowing 2 hits, no runs, no walks with 5 strikeouts on a rehab assignment for the New York Yankees.

Ballpark features

TD Bank Ballpark was designed by architectural firms Clarke Caton Hintz and SSP Architectural Group. It is designed and maintained to meet or exceed Triple-A standards per the Atlantic League's facility requirements. The ballpark's wine-colored brick and green exposed steel façade and gabled metal roof is designed to evoke the historic character and elements reminiscent of some of the country's older stadiums. The

press box The press box is a special section of a sports stadium or arena that is set up for the media to report about a given event. It is typically located in the section of the stadium holding the luxury box and can be either enclosed or open to the ...

on the concourse level is intentionally located at a slightly lower height and down the first base line so fans have an unobstructed view of the field as they enter the ballpark. The wide concourse runs from foul pole to foul pole. The ballpark was honored for its outstanding design with a New Jersey Golden

Trowel A trowel is a small hand tool used for digging, applying, smoothing, or moving small amounts of viscous or particulate material. Common varieties include the masonry trowel, garden trowel, and float trowel. A power trowel is a much larger ga ...

Grand Design Award. TD Bank Ballpark includes 6,100 fixed seats and additional lawn seating, by the Patriots' bullpen. Additional options include a series of hospitality suites, the Diamond Club, for company meetings and special catering services, the SK Club (formerly the Party Deck) for company outings or other special occasions, and the Ballpark BBQ picnic area that can accommodate a group of 30 to 350 fans. There is also a children's Fun Zone near the lawn seating. Concessions at TD Bank Ballpark include traditional ballpark fare,

health food A healthy diet is a diet that maintains or improves overall health. A healthy diet provides the body with essential nutrition: fluid, macronutrients such as protein, micronutrients such as vitamins, and adequate fibre and food energy. A hea ...

and

gluten-free A gluten-free diet (GFD) is a nutritional plan that strictly excludes gluten, which is a mixture of prolamin proteins found in wheat (and all of its species and hybrids, such as spelt, kamut, and triticale), as well as barley, rye, and oats. ...

options. The official hospitality provider is HomePlate Catering & Hospitality. The Patriots Team Store, located at the main gate, is the Somerset Patriots' official merchandise and souvenir store. TD Bank Ballpark features 3,465

solar panels A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...

. The solar panels are expected to produce 1,140,000 kWh annually and supplement 88% of the consumption used at the ballpark. They are located in the ballpark's Red and White parking lots. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital has a

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

and

sports medicine Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the ...

center at TD Bank Ballpark that also serves as the official health care provider of the Somerset Patriots.

Upgrades

Ahead of the 2020 season, the Patriots replaced and extended protective netting behind home plate and down the first and third base lines. The new netting is the same used at

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...

and is made from

Dyneema Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE, UHMW) is a subset of the thermoplastic polyethylene. Also known as high-modulus polyethylene (HMPE), it has extremely long chains, with a molecular mass typically between 2 and 6 million amu. The l ...

fibers that have a special green coating that allows for 95% see through visibility from the seating bowl and is 15% stronger than steel and 40% stronger than

aramid Aramid fibers, short for aromatic polyamide, are a class of heat-resistant and strong synthetic fibers. They are used in aerospace and military applications, for ballistic-rated bulletproof vest, body armor cloth, fabric and ballistic composites ...

fibers. This was the second netting extension the Patriots have done since 2017. In October 2020, a sculpture of Manager Emeritus

Sparky Lyle Albert Walter "Sparky" Lyle (born July 22, 1944) is an American professional baseball pitcher who spent sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1967 through 1982. He was a relief pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Texa ...

and Chairman Emeritus Steve Kalafer was unveiled in a newly renovated area in front of TD Bank Ballpark and recreates an early picture of a conversation between Kalafer and Lyle. The sculpture was created by world-renowned sculptor Brian Hanlon of

Toms River, New Jersey Toms River is a Township (New Jersey), township and coastal town located on the Jersey Shore in Ocean County, New Jersey, Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its mainland United States, mainland portion is also a census-designated ...

. In November 2020, the Patriots were announced as the new Double-A affiliate of the

. As a result, ahead of the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons, the ballpark under went several renovations to meet the new

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 ...

(MLB) standards for minor league ballparks. The first phase of the renovations included several major quality of life upgrades on and off the field. Inside of the ballpark, renovations started with the demolition and cleaning of the home clubhouse which allowed for construction of a better layout and new spaces for players and coaches. A new dedicated dining and kitchenette area was built in the clubhouse area per MLB specifications. The previous gym from inside the clubhouse was relocated to a new gym facility built where the former maintenance yard was located. Approximately of the facility is used for maintenance space and storage of field equipment and materials. An additional multipurpose indoor facility was also constructed that features two retractable batting cages that allow for year-round training. It was built parallel to the first base gate, extending slightly into the Red parking lot. The location of the former batting cage was divided up for several new uses that include a New York Yankees video room, a dedicated female staff

locker room A locker is a small, usually narrow storage compartment. They are commonly found in dedicated cabinets, very often in large numbers, in various public places such as Changing room, locker rooms, workplaces, schools, transport hubs and the like ...

, an umpire's locker room, an instructors locker room, a new grounds crew office and additional storage space. A new multi-camera broadcast and in-game entertainment system was also installed. On the field, the home

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...

was moved off the playing field from right field

foul territory In baseball, a foul ball is a batted ball that: * Settles on foul territory between home and first base or between home and third base, or * Bounces and then goes past first or third base on or over foul territory, or * Has its first bounce occu ...

into a portion of the existing lawn seating area and features a covered area for the players. New safety padding was added on the interior walls and outfield walls of the ballpark. New lighting was installed to make the ballpark both more energy efficient and to enhance visibility of the playing field for the team during night games. The home and visiting dugouts were also refurbished with new benches, racks and flooring. Ahead of the 2023 season, as part of the second phase of renovations, the ballpark installed a new

scoreboard A scoreboard is a large board for publicly displaying the score (sport), score in a game. Most levels of sport from high school and above use at least one scoreboard for keeping score, measuring time, and displaying statistics. Scoreboards i ...

composed of three

Daktronics Daktronics, Inc. is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota, that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems, and related products. It was found ...

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresp ...

video displays that use three times more digital space than their previous one. The scoreboard can operate as one large canvas or as individual displays to show combinations of live video, instant replays, live statistics, graphics, animations and sponsorship messages. This is the third scoreboard in the ballpark's history.

Concerts

TD Bank Ballpark has hosted four major concerts, including

traditional pop Traditional pop (also known as vocal pop or pre-rock and roll pop) is Western culture, Western pop music that generally pre-dates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s. The most popular and enduring songs from this era of music are known ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

musician

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023), known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

star

Jessica Simpson Jessica Ann Johnson (née Simpson; born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, and fashion designer. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, '' ...

, and a 50's festival including The Teenagers, The Duprees, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Chuck Berry.

Accessibility and transportation

TD Bank Ballpark is accessible by mass transit via the Bridgewater station on the

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...

Raritan Valley Line The Raritan Valley Line is a commuter rail service operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) which serves passengers in municipalities in Union, Somerset, Middlesex, Essex, and Hunterdon counties in the Raritan Valley region, primarily in centra ...

. The station is located just beyond the center field wall and was reconstructed in 1999 in conjunction with the construction of TD Bank Ballpark, and the ballpark's White Lot is used for commuter parking. The ballpark is accessible by car via I-287 and U.S. Route 22 with connections to I-78,

New Jersey Turnpike The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of controlled-access highway, controlled-access toll roads in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The turnpike is maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA).The Garden State Parkway, although ma ...

(

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a Controlled-access highway, controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May, New Jersey, Cape May north to the New York ...

and other highways and roads. Parking is $5.00 and is available in three on site lots, labeled red, white and blue, where covered parking spaces are provided by the elevated solar panel arrays.

References

External links

About TD Bank Ball Park

TD Bank Ballpark – Clarke Caton Hintz

Visit TD Bank Ballpark - Home of the Somerset Patriots
{{NewYorksportsvenues Somerset Patriots Minor league baseball venues Sports venues in New Jersey Baseball venues in New Jersey Soccer venues in New Jersey Women's Professional Soccer stadiums Gotham FC Cricket grounds in the United States Former Major League Lacrosse venues Buildings and structures in Somerset County, New Jersey Tourist attractions in Somerset County, New Jersey Sports venues in the New York metropolitan area Sports in Somerset County, New Jersey Cricket in New Jersey 1999 establishments in New Jersey Sports venues completed in 1999 Lacrosse venues in the United States Eastern League (1938–present) ballparks