Building a ballpark may hinge on having the Twins pay more
Posted March 2, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
We’re already hitting our first cost overrun in the construction of a new Minnesota Twins ballpark, as Hennepin County officials tell the Twins ownership the acquisition of a key downtown parcel will cost more than anticipated and that the team may need to pony up some cash to close the deal. The county had appraised a chunk of land owned by Land Partners II at around $13 million, but it appears as though the owners have finally settled on a price of $21 million or so for the land — more than the county has budgeted. While the county and the Twins talk, officials are evaluating other land parcels in Hennepin County, but we continue to hear the two parcels identified here last week — the Minneapolis Farmers Market site and land owned by the Star Tribune west of the Metrodome — are the only serious contenders. (There’s little chance the Twins would acquiesce to a new ballpark in suburban St. Louis Park or Brooklyn Park.) Some in the Twins camp argue the Star Tribune site is the best location anyway, but some high-level team officials are also arguing for the Twins to pony up $8 million or so to close the deal. Complicating things: county officials are finding the parcel is harder to develop than anticipated, as issues with a neighboring train line and environmental issues with a creek running underneath the property are complicating matters. No doubt it’s a tough parcel to develop, and many are realizing the chances of associated development in the area may be limited — a lot more limited than on the Star Tribune site, which is on the edge of an up-and-coming neighborhood thanks to the presence of trendy restaurants, lots of condos and the new Guthrie Theatre.
College baseball team bus crashes; six dead
Posted March 2, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
A charter bus carrying a college baseball team from Ohio plunged off a highway ramp early today and slammed into the pavement below, killing at least six people and scattering sports equipment across the road. The bus carrying the team from Bluffton University toppled off the Northside Drive bridge onto Interstate 75, police spokesman Joe Cobb said. At least six of the 35 people aboard were killed and others were injured. Robin Bowlus, a college spokeswoman, said she couldn’t confirm whether the bus was the one that left Bluffton at 7 p.m. on Thursday but she hasn’t been able to reach anyone who had been on the team bus by cellphone.
Are Brewers looking at Grapefruit League move?
Posted March 2, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
Here’s a rumor that’s been making the rounds: the Milwaukee Brewers are looking at a move to Dodgertown in Vero Beach once the Los Angeles Dodgers shift spring operations to Glendale, Az. The Brewers have a lease at Maryvale Baseball Park through 2012, and Brewers Vice President of Communications Tyler Barnes says there’s nothing to the rumors. We’re guessing the rumors started with Vero Beach officials, who are making the rounds of MLB front offices in an attempt to find a replacement for the Dodgers. The Brewers couldn’t move to Florida without a current Grapefruit League team moving to Arizona; one scenario has the Cincinnati Reds making the move if plans for a new Sarasota spring complex fall through, setting up a natural spring rivalry with the Cleveland Indians. The Brewers have trained in Arizona since entering the American League as the Seattle Pilots.
American Association expands to Grand Prairie
Posted March 2, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
The City of Grand Prairie, Texas, and the independent American Association will announce their intention to build a minor-league ballpark and operate a team in Grand Prairie today, contingent on voter approving a sales-tax hike. The ballpark, set to open in 2008, will be located between Lone Star Park and Nokia Theatre near I-30 and Belt Line Road, and will seat 6,000 (4,000 permanent seats, 12 luxury suites, 2,000 lawn/berm seats). The city of Grand Prairie is planning to present the voters on May 12 a proposition to build the ballpark using a one-eighth cent sales tax. The city would own the ballpark and the team would operate the facility. Roger Christoph and Mark Schuster, the owner of the Atlantic City Surf (independent; Can-Am Association), the El Paso Diablos (independent; American Association) and the St. Joe Blacksnakes (independent; American Association) are among the investors. The new ballpark will be less than six miles from Ameriquest Field, the home of the Texas Rangers; it also presumably puts an end to talk of a downtown Dallas ballpark for the league. UPDATE: American Association officials tell us More from the Dallas Morning News.
How will Selig sell the Extra Innings deal to fans?
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It looks like MLB will delay the announcement of an exclusive deal with DirecTV to offer the Extra Innings package, and the delay is leading many to wonder whether baseball is having second thoughts. Forcing baseball fans to switch from cable TV to DirecTV merely for the pleasure of the TV packages rankles many, and MLB’s ultimate strategy of pumping up MLB.com’s TV offerings may be flawed: who really wants to watch a baseball game on a computer screen? There’s sure to be some Congressional interest in checking out the deal as well. The end game is wider distribution of a baseball channel, but that may be wishful thinking: the NFL couldn’t cram the NFL Network down cable carriers’ throats, and MLB has far less leverage than the NFL.
Auburn ballpark model for ASU
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Arizona State University is looking at remodeling Packard Stadium, and one potential model is Auburn’s Plainsman Park. In 1996, Plainsman Park underwent a $4.2 million renovation, and the result was a facility hailed as one of the best in college baseball. Some early goals for the baseball staff at Arizona State: an expanded press box and shaded seating. We’ve visited Packard Stadium and found it to be a pretty good college facility.
Peter O’Malley predicts China will become baseball power
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Former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Peter O’Malley predicts China will become the next world baseball power. O’Malley, who first came to China in 1980, built the first ballpark in the country. Now he’s suggesting another milestone could be reached very soon. "Japan, Korea and Taiwan all have filled the Major Leagues with players," O’Malley said Friday in Beijing. "China is going to come along, and when China does they are going to blow by everybody else — they’re going to knock them over. My guess is there are several players here who are ready to be signed after the Beijing Olympics — I’ll predict that."
The Chiefs and sports marketing? Laugh it up
Posted March 2, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
A columnist for the Syracuse paper takes some broad shots at the management of the Syracuse Chiefs (Class AAA; International League) for their lack of marketing savvy. The criticism is pretty broad: the team is bad for switching to the SkyChiefs name in an effort to distance itself from the old Native American logo, and the team is bad to abandon the SkyChiefs name in an attempt to rebrand the team with a locomotive theme. Criticism this broad isn’t very useful, really.
Cuban and the Cubs: a pair or a pipe dream?
Posted March 1, 2007 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
Gossip website Radar says Mark Cuban is desperate to buy the Chicago Cubs for $625 million, a move the relatively transparent Cuban denies. We don’t know, but we do know it would be surprising for a sale to happen now and for that price. Tribune Co., the owner of the Cubs and Wrigley Field, is is play, with bids in for the entire company, which includes the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, WGN TV (local and cable), WGN Radio and more. To split away the Cubs now doesn’t make sense in the sales process: it won’t placate dissident shareholders and won’t hugely impact a very large transaction. Forbes estimates the Cubs are worth $448 million, which may be about right: it’s a iconic franchise and a proven money machine that’s been unable to fully monetize attractive assets — i.e., broadcast rights — because of its relationship with WGN, according to more than one MLB franchise consultant we’ve contacted. (Darren Rovell doesn’t think the Cubs are worth $448 million because its payroll was expanded this season, but payroll is adjustable and players can be traded, and we’re guessing payroll was pumped in an effort to win in order to increase the team’s value. In a situation where there are underperforming assets at play, payroll would be a relatively minor concern over the long haul. Remember, the key to any deal this big is uncovering underperforming assets, whether it’s a baseball team or a telecommunications company.) Cuban’s name seemingly comes up every time a team comes on the market — he was rumored as a buyer of the Pittsburgh Pirates last season and the Pittsburgh Penguins last summer — but he never seems to follow through.
Team decides to slow down ballpark’s renovation plan
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The Myrtle Beach Pelicans (High Class A; Carolina League) have decided to go about their renovations of Coastal Federal Field at a more leisurely pace than initially planned, with some of the proposed changes being pushed off for at least another year. A new state-of-the-art digital scoreboard and video board should be up and running and the elevated televisions should be installed in the concourse and concession areas by Opening Day on April 5. The visitor’s bullpen is scheduled to be relocated along the third-base line, into the area just beyond the grandstand in the area formerly called the Shark Tank. That will free up space beyond the left field wall for the construction of new bleachers designed to seat about 450. Put off until 2008: a realignment of the fences and the construction of a Power Alley Pub.
Heat on college baseball
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No NCAA sport is under closer scrutiny for its performance in the classroom than baseball. Conditions unique to the sport contribute to its problems, but even with these handicaps taken into account, baseball underachieves when gauged by a new academic measuring stick. The board was so alarmed by baseball’s academic profile last year it considered immediately cutting the length of the season. Instead, a 26-person committee was formed to advance ways the sport can improve its Academic Progress Rate without draconian reductions. The APR, implemented in 2005, is the NCAA’s tracking device for all Division I sports. That committee will address the NCAA board in April.
Spring training begins, White Sox talk about move
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As the Chicago White Sox begin spring-training games in Tucson, the local residents wonder how long the team will play at Tucson Electric Park. As we’re reported several times, a move of the White Sox to Glendale into a shared complex with the Los Angeles Dodgers isn’t a sure deal, at least for next spring: the ChiSox’s lease says the team must find a replacement or pay a penalty estimated as $28 million. If the Sox cannot find a replacement, team officials say they’ll honor the lease, which runs through 2012. With it looking unlikely that any team will be moving from Phoenix or Florida to Tucson any time soon, the Sox may be staying in Tucson — and in this interview Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf says the team will indeed honor the lease.
Stadium authority approves naming rights for ballpark
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The Multi-Purpose Stadium Authority on Wednesday gave its blessing to a $1.1 million naming rights agreement with PNC Financial Services Group for PNC Field, the home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League). Board members voted 3-1 in favor of the pact, signed earlier this month by Lackawanna County majority Commissioner Robert C. Cordaro. Meanwhile, a recent proposal by minority Commissioner Mike Washo to refinance the authority’s debt did not come up for discussion. Also not on Wednesday’s agenda: talk about the status of a management agreement between the county and Mandalay Baseball Properties, whom the county wants to run the team; a draft of the proposed agreement between the two sides was not available.
Loons sell out season opener in 21 minutes
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The Dow Diamond should be rocking on April 13 when the Great Lakes Loons (Low Class A; Midwest League) make their debut. The Loons put 1,000 tickets on sale this morning at 7 a.m. for the season opener, and by 7:21 a.m. they were all gone, despite fans being limited to eight tickets per order. Tickets are still available for the remainder of the season.
Officials dig baseball
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The wind was blowing out Wednesday for groundbreaking at 56th Street and Watkins Avenue, the site of a new Springdale ballpark. The stiff wind from the west would turn a fly ball into a homer, matching what speakers at the groundbreaking called a home run for Springdale. The heavy hitters at the groundbreaking included Springdale Mayor Jerre Van Hoose, Kansas City Royals owner David Glass and Wichita Wranglers (Class AA; Texas League) owner Bob Rich. The Wranglers signed a lease to move the minor-league team to the stadium when the 2008 Double-A Texas League season starts. Three shifts of dignitaries shoveled dirt in the wind, in front of more than 100 people.
Unlikely ballpark for A’s advances
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San Jose’s apparently futile but never-ending bid to land an MLB team inched forward late Wednesday when a divided city planning commission approved an environmental review of the downtown site that’s been proposed for a ballpark. The commission’s 4-2 vote could be the last-ever public action on the ballpark plan which otherwise died last year. That’s when Oakland A’s owner Lew Wolff declared he wouldn’t attempt to move to San Jose and started buying land in Fremont for a new stadium and adjoining residential and retail development. The decision on the environmental report could still be appealed to the city council by ballpark neighbors who had urged the commission not to approve it because they said it failed to adequately assess the impacts of noise, traffic and parking shortages.
Prim gives ballpark update
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Winston-Salem Warthogs (High Class A; Carolina League) owner Billy Prim updated business leaders on the status of the team’s new ballpark. Forsyth County commissioners will consider an incentives package related to a rebate of property taxes at a March 12 meeting. The city has already approved an incentives package, so the county’s approval is one of the final pieces of the financial puzzle on the multiuse development. Prim said it will take between 12 months and 14 months to construct the stadium for the Winston-Salem Warthogs, and he hopes to break ground either in late spring or early summer. That means the ballpark likely wouldn’t be ready in time for the 2008 season.
Dodgers one year away from leaving longtime spring-training headquarters
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The Los Angeles Dodgers are slated to move to a new spring-training complex in Glendale, Az., in 2009. Yes, it’s the right move for the team and its fans — let’s face it, selling a California resident on travel to Vero Beach in March is a challenge — and while the romantic notion of Dodgertown remains, Holman Stadium is not the best place to actually watch a game. The Dodgers will be leaving decades of memories; we’re guessing Tommy Lasorda and a host of former Dodgers will be waxing especially nostalgic next spring, though so far Tommy’s had a pretty rough spring on many levels.
Senators banning trans fats from ballpark
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The Harrisburg Senators (Class AA; Eastern League) announced today that the team will make a change in its Commerce Bank Park concession stands — a healthy change. Effective opening day, April 12th, Commerce Bank Park on City Island will make the switch to zero-trans fat oil products used in preparation of some of the more popular concession menu items. All french fries and chicken tenders will be cooked in a unique product that blends specially formulated oils in order to provide a more healthy serving of two of the most sought after choices in the Senators’ operation. The product has been tested and will not hinder the flavor of these two ballpark favorites. As you’ll recall, we covered the issue late last year when New York City enacted a similar ban; we suspect many ballparks will be making similar moves in the next year.
Rebirth, renewal and spring training
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Not every spring-training game is just a game: some are events. That’s the case when the St. Louis Cardinals take the field at Roger Dean Stadium: the Cardinal faithful make their way down to Jupiter and cheer on their team no matter what. Some have been coming down since the Cards played at Sportsman’s Park.
Ballpark Notes