Isotopes Park

Albuquerque, NM

Number of states: 43
To go: 7

First game: July 12, 2024 (Albuquerque Isotopes 7, Tacoma Rainiers 6)
Most recent game: July 13, 2024 (Tacoma Rainiers 13, Albuquerque Isotopes 5)

The way the chips fell in my decades-long quest to get to a minor league game in each of the 50 states would up leaving a couple of isolated states to hit towards the end. One was New Mexico. The result is that I needed to schedule a special trip to get to a couple of baseball games. As I learned in 2023 when I went to Puerto Rico, I am 100% willing to travel thousands of miles for a couple of ballgames–and this wasn’t even a single thousand. 

Also fortunately, I have some not-often-enough-visited relatives in Albuquerque that I could hang with for a few days. So I booked the flight and zipped down to the desert.

I heard the legend of Isotopes ballpark: it was renovated recently after city residents turned down a tax for a new ballpark. “Renovated” is key–at least according to the version I heard, the only thing kept from the old place was an oblongish baseball sculpture not far from the entrance. This would be like saying we “renovated” my house when we knocked the whole thing down and rebuilt it around my nightstand, which would remain.

In any event, it all worked out for the best, because this was a wonderful place to see a ballgame.

First, let’s talk about the “is there any question where you are” test. In a fairly rare event for me, the massive, expansive food selections were the way that this place screamed “New Mexico.” I don’t think I’ve ever seen quite this level of diversity. Spendy, but impressive. Green chile brats. Green chile nachos. They even had a chile race.

I bet I could have ordered a scoop of green chile ice cream. I tried a flatbread thingy on night one, but it was night two that did it for me.

Pig candy.

Pig candy was delightful. Pork tips cooked (then drizzled again, I think) in maple syrup and brown sugar, then covered in red pepper flakes. It was a wonderful combination of sweet and spicy that made a huge impact on the taste buds. The mini-helmet, usually reserved for ice cream scoops, was a bit big for pig candy (I left over half uneaten), and I probably could have cut the pepper flakes down by at least half, but it was one of the better treats I’ve ever had at a ballpark. Would recommend!

On top of that, the team renamed itself the “Mariachis de Nuevo Mexico” for the Saturday night game. The giveaway was a bobblehead of a Day of the Dead skeleton driving a low rider. It will proudly be displayed on my bobblehead shelf. And the Albuquerque low-rider community brought out dozens of cars around the warning track before the game.

The Isotopes were named originally after a minor-league team in an episode of The Simpsons, and Matt Groening’s characters are spread throughout the park. It’s not quite local color, but it does add a vibe of fun to the proceedings that I enjoyed. 

Once the game got going, they did a good job with the baseball. This crew did as good a job as you could ask with every basebally aspect of the game: pitching changes, lineups, even a couple of tricky wild pitch/passed ball decisions. They did leave the game alone, but packed the between-innings (and occasional between-batters) breaks with a ton of advertising (not so much promotional foolishness as just ads), and I’d rather that be less prevalent in my ballpark, but there is enough good to make up for that.

Because it was a lovely evening. The first night, we had to wait out a ubiquitous evening thunderstorm. Even though the place was packed, we were all able to gather under the stands with some degree of comfort. Some stood and ate the wonderful food, and some sat next to a Simpson. While there, I noticed that Albuquerque is the absolute Platonic ideal of a pavilion area. There are options for food and tons of places to buy Isotope swag, but from every vantage point, I could see the field. So when I go off to get my pig candy or a Dr Pepper, it’s very easy to keep track of the ballgame.

Each ballgame was about what you’d expect. Isotopes Park is, not surprisingly, set up a lot like their parent club’s home field, Coors Field. It’s a highly distant 340 feet down the lines, since the altitude is actually a little higher than a mile high in Albuquerque, and so outfielders have a ton of real estate to cover. This preps the team for the majors. Strangely–and I’m not sure why…maybe one of you can tell me?--the center field wall comes in just a tad in a semicircular fashion. There must be something preexistent out there that creates that weird bite out of the outfield. 

The crowd was great. My first night, solo, I was around some kind people who were willingly shifting to other seats in their rows so a kid who was struggling to see past them could get a view of the game. And the second night, my cousins set up a huge party with a zillion friends and family, and we hung out. I got to watch a 4-year-old taste cotton candy and soda for the first time. Ever. Man, the kid was into that.

Quick note about the heat: it was in the mid-90s each night, but I feel like the “it’s a dry heat” trope holds up reasonably well in the 90s (but not in triple digits). In fact, in the shade, it was quite pleasant. I could never live in a desert climate, but I do understand the appeal of 90-degree nights in the pitch black at a ballpark. Still, if you are planning on visiting on a hot day, do know that the third-base side is the shady one.

Seven states to go. With the competition on the board right now, it’s tough to get near the top, but Isotopes Park does so with its charm and its local color.

BALLPARK SCORE:

Regional Feel: 7.5/10. The ballpark goes out of its way to be New Mexican, most notably in lots of interesting cuisine and a chile race. The Simpsons stuff isn’t technically local, but the “isotopes” name was originally associated with Albuquerque via Springfield, so I can live with the Simpsons love everywhere.

Charm 3/5. A tad overdone.

Spectacle 2.5/5. I like a little less at triple-A–this was pimped out to the gills.

Team mascot/name: 4.5/5.

Orbit above. Trax, the mascot of the New Mexico Rail Runner Express (I suppose it’s a roadrunner), below. The legend of “Isotopes” is interesting. “Orbit” works with the name, and I think Trax and I hit it off pretty well.

Aesthetics 4/5. The view of the outfield is excellent. We can’t argue with the mountains. The only issue is looking back at the stands from center field: they aren’t that attractive.

Pavilion area 5/5. THIS IS WHAT THIS SHOULD BE. As good as they come.

Scoreability 5/5. Great and timely, even getting the oft-neglected PB/WP decisions with alacrity.

Fans 5/5. Thanks for the fun night, Albuquerque clan!

Intangibles 5/5. Relatives! A walk-off! A great solo night!

TOTAL: 41.5/50

BASEBALL STUFF I SAW THERE:

Night one featured a fantastic walk-off. Tacoma led 6-4 going into the bottom of the ninth, but Drew Romo sent everybody home with a three-run homer.

Night two was a little more typical high-altitude ball, with Tacoma scoring in just about every inning as both teams combine for for 18 runs and 28 hits. The Rainiers’ Luis Urias had five of them.

Cade Marlowe of Tacoma steals three bases the first night.

Written July 2024.