Pro Player Stadium

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Pro Player Stadium

Location	Miami, Florida
Opened	August 16, 1987
Capacity	\nBaseball: 47,662 (1993) 42,531 (2001) Football: 75,000
Owned By	\n?????
\nArchitect:	\nHOK Sport\n
\nDimensions:\n \n Left\n Left-Ctr\n Center\n Right-Ctr\n Right\n Backstop\n	\n \n 330 ft.\n 385 ft.\n 404 ft.\n 385 ft.\n 345 ft.\n 58 ft.\n

Pro Player Stadium (originally named Joe Robbie Stadium) is a baseball and football stadium in Miami, Florida. The stadium has been home to the Miami Dolphins since 1987 and to the Florida Marlins since 1993. Pro Player, a division of the Fruit-of-the-Loom clothing company, bought the naming rights in 1996. The stadium underwent a $10 million renovation before the 1993 season so that the football stadium would be able to host baseball games. The lower deck in left field was converted to retractable stands, dugouts were built, and small temporary stands were added in front of the bullpen areas. The upper deck seats beyond the outfield are generally too far from the field to be in regular use, and are generally covered with canvas during the regular season. The seats have been used for playoff baseball games, however. Some sections in right field have occasionally been covered over and used as a picnic area for baseball games as well. Because of the need to fit a football field in the stadium, the field of play is larger than in most other new baseball stadiums. The 33-foot tall left field fence, nicknamed the Teal Monster - a play on the Green Monster at Fenway Park - further limits the ability of players to hit home-run. Foul territory is also fairly large in comparison with most new stadiums. Since winning the World Series in 1997, the Marlins management has regularly argued that Pro Player Stadium is an insufficient stadium to host a major league baseball team on a regular basis, arguing that too many of the seats are too far from the field and angled for football rather than baseball, and that a retractable dome is needed to prevent rain-outs. The stadium did not prevent the team from winning another world championship in 2003, however. Category:Baseball venues\nCategory:Stadiums