# MLB: Do the visitors' dugout and locker room have to be nice? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 10, 2011, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073 "2011-01-10T06:11:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/1 "2011-01-10T06:11:50Z")
I’ve heard in the bad old days of pro baseball, the visiting team’s dugouts and locker rooms were dingy, poorly-maintained and just generally crappy. Is there any formal agreement now among the owners that the visiting team’s facilities have to just as nice as those of the home team, or do they keep them nice just to avoid retaliation, or are they, in fact, still nastier than those of the home team? ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/2 "2011-01-10T15:00:03Z")
Nope. They don’t have to be nice. It’s not MLB, but Scotty Bowman, at least when he was coaching the Detroit Red Wings, would fuck with the visitors’ locker room all the time. He’d have it painted pink or have it just done painting just before the other team gets in and what not. He’d also cut the bench short in the visitors’ locker room by a few inches, so not everyone on their team could sit down. Hell, Boston Gardens supposedly had the heat cranked up in the visitors’ locker room and there were supposed dead spots in the parquet floor that the home team would steer the other team towards. If they’re playing a game at your place, you have carte blanche to fuck with their heads. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/3 "2011-01-10T16:13:58Z")
Since I’ve seen the English FA’s reams and reams of rules on facilities for visiting teams, I was surprised to see that in MLB’s Official Rules and Regulations, the home team is required to provide exactly one thing to the visitors: a covered area with a bench at least 25 feet long. That’s it, according the the Official Rules. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/4 "2011-01-10T16:20:52Z")
It was noted when they build the SkyDome that the Blue Jays’ clubhouse was the most luxurious ever made for a major league ballclub, while the visitors’ clubhouse was comfortable and utilitarian but no more. While there’s no official rule, these days a legitimately shitty clubhouse would doubtlessly draw the wrath of MLB. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/5 "2011-01-10T16:43:25Z")
Plus you’d have to figure there’d be a bit of brinksmanship in play. If one team’s visitors’ clubhouse was a wreck, their rivals might be encouraged to skimp on the maintenance of their own visitors’ clubhouses. Now everybody’s players are peeved, because half of the time they’re in sub-minor league accommodations. Plus, if one team’s visitors’ clubhouse routinely sucked, I suppose that might be kept in mind when free agency time rolls around. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/6 "2011-01-10T17:06:03Z")
Are there any major league ballparks today which are notorious for having sub-par visitors’ facilities? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/7 "2011-01-10T17:15:54Z")
Fenway was but I think they finally corrected it to some degree. Wrigley is still considered cramped but these are the two oldest stadiums by far. I have heard KC got pretty bad for a while but has since improved. ---
**Author:** ![Keweenaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Keweenaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keweenaw)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/8 "2011-01-10T17:26:07Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > Nope. They don’t have to be nice. It’s not MLB, but Scotty Bowman, at least when he was coaching the Detroit Red Wings, would fuck with the visitors’ locker room all the time. He’d have it painted pink or have it just done painting just before the other team gets in and what not. He’d also cut the bench short in the visitors’ locker room by a few inches, so not everyone on their team could sit down. [Redwings on visitor hospitality.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pB_xS-5cre4) I love that commercial. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/9 "2011-01-10T19:01:57Z")
The scented candles are a nice touch. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/10 "2011-01-10T19:09:17Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Fenway was but I think they finally corrected it to some degree. Wrigley is still considered cramped but these are the two oldest stadiums by far. And Tiger had this to welcome the visiting team: Visitor’s Clubhouse. No Visitors Allowed. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/11 "2011-01-10T19:19:55Z")
Sounds like Wrigley is far and away the leader in the crappiest clubhouse race. [http://www.wrigleyfieldnews.com/articles/?p=117](http://www.wrigleyfieldnews.com/articles/?p=117) > [@](#): > > The way it’s perched on a catwalk above the concourse where hot dogs and souvenirs are hawked makes it seem more like a treehouse than a clubhouse. Players making their first trip to Wrigley Field might believe they’re getting close to the visitors’ dugout when they reach the bottom step. Veterans know better. I remember seeing a game with seats on the first base side. Afterwards as we were walking on the concourse I suddenly saw a door open and a guy in a towel standing in it, grabbing something from a park employee. Holy crap… Yep, a surprise peek into the glamourous world of Major League Baseball. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-do-the-visitors-dugout-and-locker-room-have-to-be-nice/567073/12 "2011-01-10T20:06:43Z")
I have heard that the Diamondbacks crank up the air conditioning on the visitors side so that the outside heat feels especially oppressive by comparison.