Photos by David Welch, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 4.00
Toyota Field 500 Trash Panda Way Madison, AL 35758
Year Opened: 2020
Capacity: 7,500
Toyota Field – Rocket City Trash Pandas
Professional baseball had a few brief incarnations in the Huntsville, Alabama area during the first half of the 20th century, but none lasted more than two seasons. It was not until 1985 that affiliated baseball found a stable home in Huntsville with the arrival of the Huntsville Stars at Joe W. Davis Stadium.
The Stars served as the Double-A affiliate of both the Oakland Athletics (1985-1998) and then the Milwaukee Brewers (1999-2014). Names such as Jose Canseco, Nelson Cruz, Jason Giambi, Mark McGwire, Tim Hudson, Ryan Braun, and Prince Fielder would move through Rocket City before establishing themselves as some of the top players in Major League Baseball during their careers.
Huntsville would go without professional baseball following the 2014 season when the Stars would move to Biloxi and become the Shuckers, but the sport returned to the area in 2020 when the Mobile Bay Bears relocated to the Huntsville suburb of Madison as the Rocket City Trash Pandas.
However, the debut of the Trash Pandas would be delayed until 2021 due to the cancellation of the 2020 Minor League Baseball season. Nevertheless, once the Trash Pandas took the field their popularity soared, much like a rocket from the nearby U.S. Space and Rocket Center.
Food & Beverage 5
Rocket City gives fans numerous options that rival those in major league parks. Toyota Field has three traditional concession stands which each serve a common base menu, but each also hasitsr own unique concession items – the “Dumpster Dive” stand features Rocket City Hot Fries, while “Gravity Grille” has ballpark cheesesteak fries and “All Stars” serves up wings and pizza. A fourth concession stand, “Sweet Space”, specializes in sweet treats, primarily ice cream. Complementing an already strong base menu, concessions here also regularly rotate specialized menu items throughout the season.
In addition to the traditional concessions, there are also three carts located around the concourse. The most impressive of these is Lucile’s at Bullpen Bar and Grill, which serves a variety of BBQ, smoking their meat on site.
Toyota Field offers a full menu of alcoholic beverages. Options include canned wine from Archer Roose, seltzers from High Noon and Truly, and Surfside hard peach and iced teas. In addition, along with typical national brands, local Huntsville brewers Yellowhammer Brewing and Straight to Ale are featured – fans can enjoy Yellowhammer’s Belgian-white and red lager, Straight to Ale’s Monkeynaut IPA, and Birmingham-based Good People Brewing’s Muchacho.
Self-service, automatic tap stations are available on each side of the stadium. If those options are not enough, Toyota Field also has three separate bar areas, the most prominent being the Inline Electric Rock Porch situated just beyond the right field wall, which overlooks the field and appears to ever so slightly overhang the right field fence.
Toyota Field boasts one of the most complete and creative concession menus in the minor leagues, offering a diverse selection that caters to all tastes, from main meals and snacks to beverages.
Atmosphere 4
Toyota Field has a bit of a minimalist feel to its design; there is no grand entry plaza fans walk into nor state-of-the-art features, but the ballpark makes the game experience as enjoyable as any other minor league stadium.
The configuration of the outfield wall has typical distances down each of the lines and to center field, but everything between those points is anything but typical – the wall has several areas that angle back rather sharply or go from 8’ immediately up to 10’.
Fans are kept entertained throughout the game with on-field activities and scoreboard games. Sound drops and in-game ad reads are frequent, almost to the point of being a bit too much. Team mascot “Sprocket” is part of the pregame introductions, and also makes another appearance to take photos with fans following the 7th inning stretch. Also entertaining the crowd is the astronaut race as four cartoonish astronauts, Buzz (Aldrin), Neil (Armstrong), Mae (Jemison), and Sally (Ride) race from the left field corner to just beyond home plate.
There are several seating options throughout Toyota Field; the grassy berm down the right field line is popular with families. The back three rows of the seating bowl behind home plate and in the sections down each line feature high-top bar seating, while standing room drink rails are limited to just behind home plate, as the concourse level suites are situated where drink rails along each side of the field typically would be. However, the limited drink rails on the concourse are made up for by the bullpens each having their own, giving fans places to stand and interact with players during the game.
Neighborhood 3
Toyota Field is the centerpiece of the Town Madison development in the rapidly growing Huntsville suburb – the area around the stadium already features a variety of regional and national restaurants, hotels, apartment buildings, and housing, with much more in progress. As Town Madison continues to develop, it will offer even more to visitors.
The main attraction in the area is the U. S. Space and Rocket Center, less than 10 minutes from Toyota Field up I-565, roughly 10 miles from downtown Huntsville. Early-season games might be paired with a visit to Propst Arena to catch the Huntsville Havoc of the Southern Professional Hockey League.
As construction continues, the area surrounding the stadium will become an even more attractive destination, offering visitors a wide range of amenities just steps from the stadium.
Fans 4
The Trash Pandas do a good job drawing fans out to their games, consistently finishing in the top 10 for AA attendance and leading the Southern League. Typical attendance numbers exceed 5,000 fans on any given night, with weekend games often attracting 6,000 fans and occasionally surpassing 7,000.
Fans are actively engaged, responding enthusiastically to stadium audio prompts and call-and-response sound clips. This involvement early in the game helps in creating an environment where fans get loud in response to big plays later in the game.
Access 4
Toyota Field is relatively easy to get to as interstate bypass I-565 runs just beyond the third base side of the field. The ballpark is also roughly a 12-mile trip from the I-65 junction that runs between Nashville and Birmingham.
If attending a weekday game, use GPS for the current best route to take. Madison Boulevard often backs up a great deal leading up to the first pitch, so it might make more sense to drive past the stadium on I-565 West, and then get back on the interstate in the opposite direction, as Toyota Field has its exit for those heading eastbound.
There are two primary entrances into Toyota Field: one up the right field line, the Pepsi Gate, and another well beyond center field. Lines at both entrances move quickly, even on stadium giveaway nights. The concourse is divided into an upper and lower level – the upper level, accessible from the Pepsi gate, runs along the top of the seating bowl from foul pole to foul pole. Stairs and an elevator in the left field corner provide access to the outfield plaza, while stairs and a long ramp in the right field corner complete the circuit around the field. The concourse is fairly wide, allowing groups of fans to pass through with little to no interference from concession lines.
After the game, despite there being just two main routes out of the parking lot, traffic flows well to get fans home; exiting via Town Madison Boulevard leads directly back onto I-565.
Return on Investment 4
Trash Panda tickets are quite affordable, with berm seating down the right field line available for just $8, and seats behind home plate starting under $18. To save on parking purchase it online for $6.75, which is a $3.25 discount from the drive-up rate of $10 – these prices include service fees.
Concession prices are slightly high but consistent with what might be expected for stadium food and drinks. Given the reasonable rates for tickets and parking, the higher concession prices at Toyota Field are not much of a disappointment.
Extras 4
Almost immediately upon passing through the right field gates, fans are greeted by the familiar thwack of bat to ball. The concourse also has an open view of the batting tunnels, allowing fans to watch players take some pre-game cuts while making last-minute game preparations.
Rocket City pays homage to Huntsville's baseball history with the concession stand down the left field line, "All Stars", named in honor of the Huntsville Stars. The stand also uses the retro Stars logo as part of its signage.
Baseball is known for its "unwritten rules" – the parts of the game not in the rule book, but that players are supposed to understand and play by. What is not talked about much are the “unwritten rules” for fans; one of the most overlooked of these rules is not moving through the aisles during play. To prevent this, at Toyota Field, the ushers at the top of each section ask spectators to wait until between at-bats to take their seats.
An extensive play area makes up most of the outfield plaza beyond the center field wall; multiple inflatables and games are spread out around this area, providing kids with many options if watching the game is not at the top of their list.
Final Thoughts
When a city loses a baseball team, it often leaves a void in the community that can be difficult to fill, but the return of baseball to the Huntsville, Alabama area has been a resounding success so far. What has been created at Toyota Field and in the surrounding Town Madison development creates a minor league baseball experience that builds on the local support from the community, and gives visitors all they need to make a trip to see the Trash Pandas as convenient, affordable, and enjoyable as possible.