Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a stadium that inspired nearly all of the new ballparks across baseball these past two decades. But at 30 years old, the stadium has been in dire need of upgrades for years.
That made the Orioles’ decision to dedicate resources into moving back the left-field wall so puzzling.
This past offseason, the Orioles leadership pushed the left-field wall back 30 feet and raised it to 13 feet tall. Aesthetically, it looked awful with an awkward corner jetting out into left-center field. And sure, the team wanted to make it more difficult for opponents to hit home runs, but by doing so, they made it more difficult on themselves.
Just ask Ryan Mountcastle.
This ballpark change is terrible pic.twitter.com/QETEK2WzBO
— Jeremy Frank (@MLBRandomStats) May 8, 2022
During the fifth inning of Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Royals, Mountcastle smoked a hanging breaking ball from Zack Greinke to left field. Dead baseball aside, it should have been a home run. But because of the new wall, the baseball remained in play, and Mountcastle had to settle for a long double instead of a game-tying home run.
And just to put that 407-foot double into perspective, that hit would have been a home run at every other ballpark in baseball.
Ryan Mountcastle vs Zack Greinke#Birdland
Double 🏃💨
Exit velo: 104.6 mph
Launch angle: 23 deg
Proj. distance: 407 ftThis would have been a home run in 29/30 MLB ballparks.
Only Oriole Park at Camden Yards would've held this one in.KC (3) @ BAL (2)
🔻 5th pic.twitter.com/lne1qN22v6— Would it dong? (@would_it_dong) May 8, 2022
The Orioles ended up losing, 6-4, and they can partly thank that dumb left-field wall for that.
