📍 Cleveland, Ohio
⚾ Home of the Cleveland Guardians

Christened in 1994 as Jacobs Field, the home of the Cleveland Guardians – formerly, Indians – is Major League Baseball’s smallest venue by overall capacity. The Jake, a nickname that has transcended time and the venue’s rebranding as Progressive Field, holds just over 34,000 fans as of the park’s extensive 2025 renovation. An iconic – and often, overlooked – ballpark, this gem in downtown Cleveland has hosted some high-caliber games and instilled itself amongst MLB’s most underrated over the past three decades.

A product of the ’90s-era revitalization and revamping of the city, Progressive Field was built alongside Rocket Arena to form Cleveland’s new entertainment district, a contemporary new scene for sports fans to gather and celebrate their Indians and Cavaliers.

Before moving in to their current abode, the Indians had previously played at historic League Park and shared the multi-purpose surface of Cleveland Stadium for many years with the NFL’s Browns. The latter, ironically, was one of the largest venues in use for Major League Baseball, while Progressive Field ranks at the other end of the spectrum.

The cozy confines of the park, however, work to the benefit of the Guardians’ gameday experience. Many traditional seating areas have been foregone in lieu of group spaces and open-air bars, giving fans a spot to hangout and socialize while still soaking up the baseball vibes. Right field is a hub for most of these places, featuring the multi-story Corner Bar with its covered indoor-outdoor high-top seating, and the Pennant District – a taproom-like terrace that’s available exclusively for groups – located atop the upper deck. Behind home plate, the SeatGeek Infield Lounge also offers fans a more premium, semi- climate-controlled experience.

But it’s not just the pricey sections that are of note. The regular seating bowl – particularly the upper level – is steep, situated right on top the action. The left field bleachers, meanwhile, are a fan-favorite spot to sit and were the longtime stomping grounds of superfan John Adams, who banged his bass drum at Indians games for more than 40 years. Following his death in 2023, the team announced the bleachers would be renamed in his memory.

Beyond the batters eye lies Heritage Park, installed in 2007 to commemorate historic moments in Guardians history and to honor past franchise legends, including plaques dedicated to the members of the team’s Hall of Fame. Several statues round out the courtyard, celebrating greats like Jim Thome, Larry Doby and Frank Robinson.

Although they were known and loved as the Cleveland Indians for more than a hundred years, the team became the Guardians in 2022, following years of backlash over the sensitivity of their old moniker. The new name is inspired by the eight Guardians of Traffic statues that stand on the Hope Memorial Bridge, which carries Carnegie Avenue over the Cuyahoga River and past the stadium. The art deco aesthetic of the statues has likewise been adopted by the team through the usage of Golden Age fonts and wordmarks, and carrying over to the design choices in use at Progressive.

Despite their inaugural 1994 season at Jacobs Field being cut short due to that year’s player strike, the Indians still rode the high their fans were feeling. Cleveland was nothing short of baseball-crazed during the ’90s, selling out most games during the Indians’ first few years at The Jake.

The ballpark hosted the All-Star Game and the World Series during the 1997 campaign, one of very few facilities to have done so. Since the construction of Progressive Field, the Guardians have claimed 12 divisional pennants and 3 American League crowns, though they’ve fallen short in each of their World Series appearances. The franchise last won it all way back in 1948, making their trophy drought the longest in the entire league. But as all true baseball fans know, fortunes can change and baseball glory will one day return to The Land.