Globe Life Field took a step toward its eventual opening on Thursday, when the Texas Rangers and local officials broke ground on the ballpark.
The Rangers and the City of Arlington are moving forward with the development of Globe Life Field. Currently slated to open in 2020, the retractable-roof ballpark will replace the existing Globe Life Park as the team’s home and is expected to seat 41,000 and provide cool and climate-controlled areas to protect fans from the heat.
During the groundbreaking ceremony, many in attendance mentioned the advantage that a new retractable-roof ballpark could provide to Arlington, the Rangers, and their fans. One of them was Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred, who noted that the retractable-roof design could allow the league to stage some high-profile events at the ballpark, such as an All-Star Game or WBC contests. More from SportsDay:
Manfred said he envisions Globe Life Field as more than Rangers-only facility.
“We have a long tradition in baseball where communities who make the commitment like Arlington has made here that we like to bring a special event, an All-Star Game a WBC Final, something like that,” Manfred said. “I think that is the type of facility that would be perfect for that.”
The Rangers, by the way, last hosted an All-Star Game in 1995, when Globe Life Park was still known as The Ballpark in Arlington. At this pace, the upcoming Globe Life Field will be MLB’s first new ballpark since the Atlanta Braves debuted SunTrust Park in early 2017.
Rendering courtesy HKS and Texas Rangers.
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