Coordinates: 39°31′51″N 76°11′10″W / 39.530873°N 76.185985°W / 39.530873; -76.185985

The entrance of Ripken Stadium.

An inside view of Ripken Stadium.

Ripken Stadium is the home of the Aberdeen IronBirds, Class A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles in the New York-Penn League. The stadium is located in Aberdeen, Maryland. The 6,000-seat Ripken Stadium held its first game on June 18, 2002. Despite selling out every home game since its opening in 2002, the town of Aberdeen is losing money on its investment ^[1].

In 2009, The Maryland Redbirds of the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League, (the CRSCBL), will play all weekday games and one weekend doubleheader at the stadium. The CRSCBL previously used the stadium for the annual all-star game in 2005 and 2007.

The stadium is part of Cal Ripken, Jr.'s Aberdeen Complex in his hometown of Aberdeen, Maryland, located just off Interstate 95 at Maryland Route 22. The complex also includes several smaller fields for local youth sports leagues, as well as an adjacent Marriott hotel. The stadium is the closest structure of the complex to the highway, with the right field fence and scoreboard visible from it. The stadium also hosts soccer matches as well.

The expansive parking lot of Ripken Stadium is frequently used as a venue for SCCA autocross racing for many racers on the East coast. The stadium itself has also served as a concert venue for bands such as Collective Soul, Def Leppard, Jo Dee Messina, .38 Special, Counting Crows, Live, Steppenwolf, Willie Nelson, John Cougar Mellencamp, and Bob Dylan.

[edit] External links

• Ripken Stadium Views - Ball Parks of the Minor Leagues

[edit] References

1. ^ Minor League, Major Problems

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