Oriole Park at Camden Yards Structural Renovation

Keeping a Classic Ballpark Current 

Luxury suites. Massive video displays. Enhanced club experiences and expanded dining options. Today’s sports fans want more than a matchup – they expect a full-on event. For iconic venues like Oriole Park at Camden Yards, staying competitive means evolving without sacrificing the character that made the ballpark beloved.

As part of a broader upgrade initiative launched in 2024 by the Baltimore Orioles, Thornton Tomasetti is helping modernize the venue – enhancing both the fan experience and the park’s underlying infrastructure. (In 2023, in a separate project, we also provided protective design and security services for the Camden Yards Sports Complex, conducting a comprehensive threat, vulnerability and risk assessment of M&T Bank Stadium and Oriole Park.)

Renovating a stadium that’s in near-constant use isn’t easy. Baseball seasons stretch for months, and venues now host concerts, special events, and off-season programming. That means tight construction windows and zero margin for delay. Early coordination, precise structural analysis, and designing for speed of construction are critical.

A Bigger, Bolder Scoreboard 

The most visible change? A dramatically enlarged video board in the outfield. The new board is 2.5 times larger than the original – making it the 12th largest in Major League Baseball – and it hangs several feet closer to the field. Die-hard Orioles fans will appreciate that above and behind the new video board, the original scoreboard steel has been retained, enhanced with expanded truss members that are painted in the stadium’s iconic ballpark green..

Supporting that kind of expansion is no small feat. We designed several strengthening details – like welded plate reinforcements, angles, and T-shaped steel members – for the existing braces, columns, and beams. We also strengthened the foundation with expanded concrete pilasters and added concrete overlays on top of the existing mat foundation. Together, these upgrades allow the structure to withstand the significantly higher wind loads from the expanded video board while minimizing the need for costly foundation enlargement or new caissons through the mat foundation.

As with many renovations to legacy structures, field conditions didn’t always align with the original drawings. When unexpected issues arose – such as problems with the existing anchor bolts – our team responded quickly, collaborating with the general contractor and steel subcontractor to develop repair solutions that could be completed before opening day. With a schedule that leaves little room for error, responsiveness is just as important as design precision.

The project also removed seating from beneath the scoreboard to make more room for fan movement in the outfield. This improvement required new concrete buttress walls to brace the existing pilasters that support the scoreboard’s steel columns.

Elevated Spaces for Fans & Media 

Beyond the video board, many other areas of the ballpark will also receive upgrades. Press facilities are being relocated and expanded. Premium club spaces are growing. Suites are being refreshed. New AV support rooms are being added.

Structural strengthening at the ballpark’s two press levels ensures these new and expanded spaces can be supported safely and efficiently. Every intervention had to be carefully analyzed so that improvements above wouldn’t overstress systems below.

The goal is straightforward: to improve the experience for everyone, no matter where they sit. Whether you’re in a premium club, a private suite, or the seating bowl, the enhancements are designed to make game day better.

It’s All in the Engineering 

From reinforcing steel deep within the scoreboard structure to enhancing the AV experience to designing new and more modern press rooms, our work at Oriole Park is all about helping a classic ballpark meet modern expectations.

The improvements may be most obvious on the giant new video board, but the real story lies in the engineering that makes it all work – quietly, efficiently, and on a schedule that keeps the gates open and the fans coming back.