Opening Day at Nationals Park is Monday, April 1, as the Nats play the Pittsburgh Pirates starting at 4:05 PM. As always, the stadium has made some changes in the off-season, and fans have a few new things to get excited about (and a few to puzzle over).
The new scoreboard
The glittering 4,780-square-foot scoreboard, which cost DC taxpayers around $22 million, is now up and running at Nats Park. Though you might not notice much of a difference at first, the stadium says the new signage has twice the resolution of the previous scoreboard, and will show up more clearly in photos and videos because of its faster refresh rate. The stadium also got new LED field lights and new ribbon board screens.
New grab-and-go options
No need to wait in line for the basic ballpark duo—a beer and a hot dog—this year. A new grab-and-go hot food station in section 129 will have hot dogs, nachos, pretzels, and popcorn under heat lamps, along with self-checkout screens. This complements the eight existing grab-and-go stations for beer (and other cold beverages) that opened last year. Still, sporting event prices apply: a beer and a hot dog will run you $20.48 before tax.
Six new food vendors
With more than 40 local food vendors, ranging from Ben’s Chili Bowl to La Casita Pupuseria to South Mountain Creamery, the food at Nats Park is tastier than ever—and goes way beyond hot dogs. Here are the new options this year (one vendor on the way out: Jammin’ Island BBQ):
- Los Cinco Tacos (Section 136), a sister restaurant to Capo Italian Deli on Florida Avenue (and also inside the ballpark), will serve Veracruz-born chef Jose Candelero’s barbacoa, chicken, nopal, and al pastor tacos, along with nachos.
- Ssongs Korean Hot Dogs (Section 130) is an elevated Korean corn-dog stand with two existing locations in local malls. At Nats Park, Ssongs will serve the chewy, slightly sweet corn dogs—some filled with mozzarella instead of sausage—and canned boba tea.
- Taste of the Majors (Section 111) a concept from Nats Park chef James Pryor, will serve a rotating selection of hot dogs with toppings inspired by whatever team the Nats are playing at home— Pryor says he’s looking forward to a Nats vs. Yankees game, when the stand will serve pastrami-and-sauerkraut-topped franks.
- Emerald Amor Cafe will serve barbecued turkey legs next to the stadium’s Ultra loft area.
- Eli’s Crepes (Section 114) will serve sweet and savory crepes, with fillings like chicken pesto and Nutella-strawberry, in the park’s main concourse.
- Rita’s Italian Ice will land in the Left Field Alley area with Italian ice, frozen custard, and other refreshers.
A speedy entry lane— with facial recognition
This season, Nats Park is joining a group of other MLB stadiums where fans can opt in to a facial scan system that will allow them to enter quickly, without showing tickets. Sign up for “Go-Ahead Entry” in advance by downloading an app and taking a selfie, and you can walk into the stadium at full speed through a dedicated lane. If that’s not too dystopian for you, you’ll get into Nats Park up to 68 percent faster, according to the MLB.
More ticket deals
Baseball tickets can get pricey, but there are now various ways to save on a trip to Nats Park. DC residents can get game tickets for as low as $5 by showing valid ID at the box office in person through the District Tickets program. You can buy tickets for up to four games at a time, with up to four tickets per game. There’s also the Ballpark Access Pass, which gives you $5 standing room-only tickets to all 82 home games in the 2024 season. And every Tuesday, there are deep discounts, with game tickets as low as $9 and cut-rate concessions.
