Sports Illustrated got ahold of all the health department public inspection of major league ballparks and did a deep dive into the data. Where's the best place to get a hot dog?

The answer to that question is Seattle.  Safeco Field only had 5 violations on their record (that's good, wait till you see the worst) with only one of those being critical. So if food borne illnesses are on your watch list you may want to head up to the Pacific Northwest.

Here's the rest of the top five with the number of violations incurred.

  • 2. Fenway Park, Boston - 30 violations, 5 critical
  • 3. Minute Maid Park, Houston - 28 violations, 9 critical
  • 4. Coors Field, Denver - 29 violations, 27 critical
  • 5. Chase Field, Phoenix - 44 violations, 23 critical.

How do the Chicago stadiums fare in this list? You might expect the 100 plus-year-old Wrigley Field to have problems keeping up with modern regulations.  You'd be wrong. Wrigley comes in as the 8th best park for clean food, while Guaranteed Rate Field (that's where the White Sox play now) ranks in the bottom half at 18.

Here's what Sports Illustrated had to say about each park.

8. Wrigley Field - 36 violations, 8 critical. While Wrigley registered the third fewest critical violations, the iconic ballpark missed out on a top five finish because it only had 43 inspected stands. The critical issues involved either foods at improper temperatures or improper rodent and insect proofing measures on kitched doors. No rodent activity was observed. Inspectors did ultimately dispose of 25 punds of food. Over half of the inspected entities, though, registered no violations.

Pretty good. I'm particularly shocked that no actual rodents were found. Rats are everywhere in the city. I wouldn't blame them if a few got through the gates.

The review isn't so sunny for the south side:

18. Guaranteed Rate Field - 48 violations, 28 critical. Cold food held up to 30 degrees above regulated temperature? Dozens of mice droppings in multiple locations? Flies under prep tables? The mid-June inspection at Guaranteed Rate Field revealed a plethora of violations - many critical - in Chicago. Other problems related to poor hygienic practices, like missing or inaccessible hand sinks or employees not washing hands before putting on new gloves. The stadium also failed its first inspection last year, before improving in follow-ups.

Not the best look for the White Sox. But look on the bright side. At least they're not dead last. That can be found in Tampa.

28. Tropicana Field - 241(!) violations, 105(!) critical. With a staggering 105 critical violations in 2017, Tropicana Field brings up the rear in our rankings. Two food entities tallied over 20 violations each. Violations ranged from the observed presence of live insects to black mold accumulation inside an ice bin. An employee was observed handling hot dogs and cash without washing hands inbetween. An ESPN report from seven years ago found that every inspected stand at Tropicana had at least one critical violation. That number has dropped from 100% to 50%, but the Tampa Bay stadium still leads the way in eye-popping food safety numbers.

Luckily for the Rays, no one actually goes to their games to get sick. Boom. Roasted.

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