Rocking into Independent Ball

Home plate entrance to BB&T Point, May-2019.

Looking down the right-field line from the concourse beyond the foul pole.

The entire field, including the pitcher's mound, is artificial turf.

Chronological Tour: Stop 394

• Location: Elm Street at Church Avenue, High Point, N.C. (map it using Google Maps)
• Opened: 2019 as BB&T Point
• Additional names: Truist Point (2020)
• Home team: High Point Rockers, Atlantic League (2019-present)
• Capacity: 5,000 (including general admission)

Rating: 3 baseballs

The park contains about 3,000 fixed seats, none of which is more than 12 rows off the field, along with club areas and a wrap-around concourse. The entire field is artificial turf, including the pitcher’s mound.

Owing to the block in which the park was squeezed (a section of one street was vacated to make room), the batter faces due east – which means the pitcher faces due west. The park's opening game was delayed by the setting sun, as the pitcher was staring into it. The next night was mostly cloudy, so there was no issue. The club also appeared to have installed a tarp to cover the slit between the roof and the back of the stadium through which the sun shone.

While the park is adequate, I did take issue with some very long seating sections down the third-base line that made it inconvenient for some fans to reach their seats. This was surely done in order to squeeze more seats into a limited footprint.

Nearby High Point University is a sponsor of the field; their name is on the scoreboard as well as an outfield deck that commands a premium price. However, I am not sure if the Panthers plan to move here from Williard Stadium on campus, which opened in 2007.

There are economical general admission tickets here, but options stretch all the way to a club area along the first-base line that costs $34 to get into as of the opening weekend.

Following an opening-night sellout, attendance dipped drastically for the remainder of their first weekend. It remains to be seen whether the Rockers are sustainable in a market that is already saturated with baseball. Three affiliated teams (one in the Carolina League and two in the South Atlantic League) play within 40 miles of the ballpark, and one of those is building a new downtown facility for the 2020 season.