The Ballpark is notorious as a hitter's park, largely because warm temperatures and prevailing southerly winds make conditions so condusive to bashing the ball about 400 feet.

According to our friends at AccuWeather, designers of the new, $1.5 billion ballpark for the New York Yankees have managedto do the same thing with winds blowing from the west.

AccuWeather bases its theory on both architecture and meteorology. And though the new stadium has been open only a few days, the weekend series with the Cleveland Indians offers compelling evidence, AccuWeather maintains.

"The wind on Saturday during the Yankees' 22-4 loss against the Cleveland Indians was mostly from the west at 15-20 mph. Given the layout of the stadium (see graphic above), the wind could have had an effect on fly balls in right field. Six home runs were hit by the Indians in the second inning alone."

Though the new Yankee Stadium comes with field dimensions that exactly match the old House That Ruth Built, the architecture is far different. The old stadium stacked the stands vertically, creating more of a solid wall against the wind. The new ballpark has seating that slopes gradually, which allows winds to blow across the field largely unimpeded, and adding a "downslope" effect, too.

AccuWeather adds that this phenomenon depends on gusty winds from the west -- conditions largely limited to spring and mid- to late-fall. In coastal New York, more gentle summer winds typically come off the Atlantic, to the southeast.

Newstex ID: DA-2665-34302571