COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Just before 5:30 p.m. Friday, a new era in Atlanta Braves baseball began.
To make the night even more eventful, the Braves won their first game inside their new home, SunTrust Park.
Channel 2’s Justin Wilfon was there as the first gate opened Friday and thousands of fans got their first look at the brand-new ballpark.
"It's a great night in Atlanta and I'm just proud to be a part of it," one fan told Wilfon.
It didn't take long for fans to reach their verdict on the new yard.
"I'm going to put it in the Top 10 immediately," a Braves fan said.
Perhaps even a stadium a Yankees fan could love.
"It's beautiful," the fan said.
But not everything is ready.
Bars and restaurants in The Battery, the entertainment complex surrounding the ballpark, will open slowly over the next few months.
"Not surprised for it not to be open."
Only about 20,000 fans attended the exhibition game Friday night, with it limited to season ticket holders.
"It was a soft opening so we could get ready for April 14, where we have the gates open to everybody," said Adam Zimmerman, vice president of marketing for the Atlanta Braves.
With the real opening day two weeks away, fans already call the park a home run.
“I'm excited. I love it. It's great. It's got a great view. I love it," a fan told Wilfon.
Many fans decided to arrive early to enjoy the stadium's debut and beat the traffic.
"I woke up this morning and thought, ‘Good thing I'm not going to Turner Field," one Braves fan told Channel 2's Ross Cavitt.
Looking on the bright side, many fans said SunTrust Park's location makes it a bit easier to deal with what's happening on I-85.
"We got here so early because of that reason. It could be a madhouse in three hours. I have no idea."
Cavitt talked with three men who arrived a full five hours before the first pitch. It is, they told Cavitt, a tradition to tailgate early and often at Braves games.
But the tailgating lot at SunTrust is a long walk away and out of sight of the stadium.
SunTrust Park: The new home of the Braves
"We set up by noon and start tailgating all day long. And the only tailgating lot here doesn't look like it has any room for tailgating there, so that's my concern," one of the men told Cavitt.
The Braves and Cobb County hope the parking spread in all directions around SunTrust Park will help
ease the traffic pain.
But it means, for many, a bit of a hike.
"It was about 15 minutes from our hotel to the gate, so it wasn't too bad," one fan told Cavitt.
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