Marlins Park Facts for Kids

Marlins Park on Opening Day 2012.

Marlins Park is a special baseball park located in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, Florida. It is the home stadium for the Miami Marlins, a team in Major League Baseball. Before this park opened in 2012, the team, then called the Florida Marlins, played their games at a different place, now known as Hard Rock Stadium. Marlins Park was built on the same spot where the old Orange Bowl Stadium used to be.

About Marlins Park
Images for kids
See also

About Marlins Park

Marlins Park is more than just a baseball field. It's a modern stadium with a unique design. It was built to be a great place for fans to watch baseball, no matter the weather. The stadium has a special roof that can open and close. This means games can be played even if it's raining or very hot outside.

Home of the Miami Marlins

The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team. They play in the National League East division. Since 2012, Marlins Park has been their official home. The stadium is designed to make every game exciting for fans. It has many seats and great views of the field.

Cool Features of the Park

Marlins Park has many interesting features that make it stand out. It's known for its bright colors and artwork. The stadium also has a special retractable roof. This roof can close in about 14 minutes. It helps keep everyone cool and dry during games.

Retractable Roof

The retractable roof is one of the most important parts of Marlins Park. Miami can get very hot and rainy. The roof allows games to happen comfortably. When the weather is nice, the roof can open. This lets in fresh air and sunshine. When it's bad weather, the roof closes. This protects players and fans.

Art and Design

The stadium has a lot of cool art. You can see colorful tiles and unique designs. These designs connect the park to Miami's culture. There are also special lights that make the stadium look amazing at night. One famous piece was a large home run sculpture. It would light up and move when a Marlins player hit a home run.

A Look at Its History

Building Marlins Park was a big project. It took several years to complete. The stadium officially opened its doors in 2012. Before it was built, the site was home to the historic Orange Bowl. That stadium was famous for football games. Now, it's a modern baseball park.

From Orange Bowl to Marlins Park

The Miami Orange Bowl was a very old and famous stadium. It hosted many important football games. It was torn down to make way for the new baseball park. This change brought modern baseball to the heart of Miami. The new park was built with many new technologies. It also focused on being friendly to the environment.

Opening Day 2012

Marlins Park opened on April 4, 2012. This was a very exciting day for Miami baseball fans. It marked a new beginning for the team. The first game played there was a special event. It showed off all the new features of the stadium.

Images for kids

The Marlins' former home at what was then Dolphin Stadium was primarily a football stadium, shown prepping for a Dolphins game with gridlines over the diamond in August 2007.
LoanDepot Park is an abstract, contemporary building which combines baseball with art and the essence of Miami.
Pastel, Miami-Deco-influenced wall tiles in 4 main parking garages connect the facility to its small-scaled, Little Havana environs
The colorful ballpark has artwork such as tiled walkways on the front plaza by kinetic-op artist Carlos Cruz-Diez
An LED show illuminates the super columns during night games, and a rubber membrane lining the roof reduces heat-island effect.
Panorama of LoanDepot Park
The east side with the windows retracted
The Marlins' $2.5 million home run sculpture. The right half of its base also formed part of "The Bermuda Triangle" quirk in the outfield fence between 2012 and 2016
The Budweiser Bar and The Clevelander in left field, to the left of the HR feature (not seen)
A side view of the home run structure at LoanDepot Park
One of the columns at LoanDepot Park that supports the roof when the roof is opened
Baseball in Motion by Dominic Pangborn
The super-columns are all nearly complete, with one crossbeam already in place, which will support the retractable roof, February 6, 2010
The site on July 2, 2010. The interior bowl is being completed on the west side, from a view at the outfield
The site on November 6, 2010. The main center roof being constructed
February 15, 2011
Adjacent parking structure on February 15, 2011
The site two weeks before completion of the final roof panel on March 13, 2011
The site on August 13, 2011, as seen from the Dolphin Expressway (SR 836) traveling east
Construction on August 25, 2011