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Named after Braves owner Ted Turner, who on opening day candidly opined that its refreshment prices were too high, Turner Field is the third stadium in history to have hosted the Summer Olympics before being put to use as a major-league ballpark. But unlike its predecessors (the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Montreal's Stade Olympique) Atlanta's facility was shaped primarily for baseball. The temporary seating of the $320 million Olympic structure was removed after the games ended, to be replaced by a smaller number of differently configured permanent seats in left field. (The stands on the other three sides of the ballpark remain as originally built.) The post-Olympic seating capacity is 50,000.

Designed in the currently popular neotraditional manner pioneered at Baltimore's Camden Yards, Turner Field features a well-proportioned and subtly detailed masonry exterior, a steel structural system, and a largely linear, angular overall layout. The outfield is unusual in that the left field wall is curved like a typical 1960-1975 era stadium (a holdover from the Olympic running track configuration) while the right field wall is straight-lined like today's retro parks. A large public plaza occupies the former Olympic Stadium space beyond left field.

Given the strength of the 1997 Braves, Atlanta's fans hoped that Turner Field might become only the third ballpark (after Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium) to host a World Series in its maiden year. But the surprising Marlins unexpectedly knocked the Braves out of the postseason in the NLCS.

The new park, while close to downtown Atlanta and accessible to some degree by rapid transit, floats in a sea of parking -- as did Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, located one long block north. Unlike its predecessor, Turner Field is not very favorable for home runs, with righty batters being distinctly penalized. But this has not been a great hardship on the Braves, who, in 2001, became the first major-sport team to win ten consecutive divisional titles. (JP)