Lance Berkman bashes Miami Marlins new stadium

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Lance Berkman gave a brutally honest assessment of the Miami Marlins new ballpark after the Cardinals defeated the Marlins 4-1 on opening night. - Photo courtesy of Getty Images

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Lance Berkman is never shy when it comes to expressing opinion about things.  He rarely gives politically correct answers and often times stirs controversy with his brutal honesty.

Just a few weeks ago Berkman stirred the pot when he accused Bud Selig and Major League Baseball of extorting the Houston Astros and forcing them to move to the American League.  Last season Berkman got into a verbal exchange with the Texas Rangers and their former pitcher C.J. Wilson through a radio station in Dallas. 

Now, after the Cardinals season opening win over the Miami Marlins, the first official MLB game played in the stadium, Berkman is letting his thoughts be known on the new stadium.  To the surprise of few, his thoughts on the new stadium are not so rosy.

First Berkman ripped the atmosphere and some of the nostalgia of the Marlins opening night.

“I wasn’t real sure we were playing a baseball game, to be honest with you.  It seemed more like an SEC football game for a while. But they did intend for us to play baseball. I found out about 15 minutes before first pitch.”

“There were a lot of shenanigans.  The thing about it is, if I was building a new ballpark ... one of the things about baseball that people gravitate toward is nostalgia. That’s why people love Wrigley Field. They love Fenway Park. You can kind of step back in time."

"What they tried to do here is step forward in time. A lot of the things you normally associate with baseball ... you don’t see cheerleaders at baseball games. They were there tonight. You don’t see flamenco dancers. They were there tonight. You don’t see DJs and bands during the game. You saw that tonight. ... I’m not sure baseball fans embrace that kind of change.”

Then Berkman ripped the size of the Marlins new stadium, which is among the most spacious in baseball.

“It’s huge ... the biggest ballpark in the game,” Berkman said. “If they don’t move the fences in after this year, I’ll be surprised. I’ll go with two years with the over/under on that."

“People have tried this big ballpark deal and it never works.  Detroit moved the fences in. New York moved the fences in. There’s a reason why it’s 330-375-400. That’s a fair baseball game. You try to get too outrageous, you end up with something that I think will be detrimental to their ballclub.”

Finally, Berkman did manage to complement the architects of the stadium, but still was unclear as to what the Marlins were thinking about the new stadium.

“I think the stadium itself is really pretty. It’s got some good architecture. But the dimensions leave something to be desired.”

So what do you think?  Is Berkman right?  Are flamenco dancers and DJs appropriate for baseball games?  Is the stadium too big as Berkman entails or just perfect for the Marlins speedy lineup?  Lets here your thoughts.