BALTIMORE—When fans enter Oriole Park at Camden Yards for Thursday’s opener, they’ll immediately look at the scoreboard and be impressed.
It’s much larger and more easily read. How big is it? It’s the size of 800 55-inch large-screen televisions.
According to Catie Griggs, the Orioles’ president of business operations, the old scoreboard was the smallest in baseball. Now, it’s the 12th largest.
“The goal here wasn’t to go crazy,” she said. “It wasn’t to try to have the biggest in the country. That’s not what Camden Yards is. We feel this is rightsized for our ballpark in allowing us to do the things that we wanted to do.”
Fans who came to Sunday’s exhibition game saw the board but didn’t see its full features. That will be saved for Thursday, when the Orioles open the regular season at home against the Minnesota Twins.
Fans also have been dissatisfied with the sound system. That shouldn’t be the case any longer.
A year ago, the Orioles added speakers in center field as a temporary fix. They helped somewhat, but there were still complaints from fans who couldn’t hear well enough.
Griggs said there are now more than 900 speakers around the ballpark.
“We actually have the ability to hear what people are saying,” Griggs said. “Whether it’s a lineup, whether it’s an announcement, whether it’s music. All of these things come together to tell a story, create the experience and make sure fans have an incredible time here at Camden Yards.”
It was important to Griggs that the essence of the ballpark didn’t change.
“We know that we were already in one of the most iconic and most special ballparks in baseball,” she said. “The goal this offseason was not to change that. The goal this offseason was to take all those things that make this ballpark special and make sure it’s special for years to come.”
Griggs came to the Orioles in August 2024 and said that all the improvements that were allowed with the $600 million in state funding weren’t going to be completed in one offseason.
There’s still more to come. After this season, the suites that were built for the ballpark’s 1992 opening will be updated.
“Those are due for a cosmetic facelift,” Griggs said. “On the club level, most of the restrooms have not yet been updated. The reason was truly we could not do that much work in a single offseason.
“Right now, it’s looking at a variety of projects and figuring out what make sense.”
Since the Orioles’ final home game last September 25th, there have been other important changes in addition to the scoreboard and sound system.
There’s the fancy new club where the old press box was. The Truist Club, featuring upscale food and drink, has dazzling views of the action. It’s not meant for average fans.
Memberships in the club are sold for 40 and 81 games. If you’d like a 40-game plan, it will cost $15,000, according to Don Rovak, the club’s chief revenue officer. That’s $375 per fan, and it includes A Lot parking.
“We think this is really going to be incredible as a place to grow business,” Rovak said.
Fans who want to splurge can purchase single games in the club on the secondary market, according to Rovak.
There’s also the PureWager Pavilion in center field with great views of the ballpark. It’s ideal for group outings and can accommodate about 300 people, with bleacher seats to watch the game. There’s a bar and a menu of ballpark fare.
Rovak said that most of the bookings are for Monday-Thursdays, and if fans want to sample the experience, their best bets are on the weekends. The average price is about $80 per game.
Another new feature is the right-field bar on the renovated club level. When fans enter the club level, they’ll see exhibits highlighting great moments in Baltimore baseball. The Babe Ruth Museum has helped. There’s also a new team store on the club level.
Ten suites have been removed to allow space for the right-field bar, which will feature some tasty food.
Fans attending in suites and in club tickets can go to the new bar, which has sweeping views. Birdland members will be able to exchange their points earned for admission to the bar.
On Tuesday, I sampled two of the new offerings offered in the bar, the Crab Smash Tacos and Kat’s Japanese Cheesesteaks. Both are highly recommended.
For fans watching in the lower deck, there are five new Just Walk Out Stands, which will allow for quick selection and automatic charging of concession items.
“Ultimately, the funding is not intended to be spent in the first two years,” Griggs said. “This is about making sure that Camden Yards is incredible for fans today, fans tomorrow and for many, many years to come.”
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