Cashman Field was in the major league spotlight over the weekend, when it hosted what is expected to be its final Big League Weekend.
For the 2018 Big League Weekend, Cashman Field welcomed the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians. The annual spring training exhibitions at Cashman Field have traditionally drawn large crowds, making them one of the more notable events to pass through the ballpark. That was the case this year, when the Cubs–playing as the home team–split the two-game series with the Indians. Chicago’s 11-4 win on Saturday took place with a reported crowd of 10,651 on hand, while Cleveland’s 11-4 victory on Sunday was in front of an announced attendance of 10,774.
The most recent Big League Weekend, however, could be the ballpark’s last. The Las Vegas 51s (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) are in the process of constructing Las Vegas Ballpark, a replacement for Cashman Field that will be located in Downtown Summerlin. Ground was broken on the facility late last month, and the current construction timelines calls for it to open in 2019. For now, it is expected that the new Las Vegas Ballpark will be ready by the time Big League Weekend returns to Las Vegas next spring. More from The Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Big League Weekend next year would mark the first games in the new park, for which the 51s broke ground last month. The belief is that the park will be ready by next March.
“I am not a construction guy, but that’s what we’ve been shooting for and that’s what they’re telling me,” [51s president Don] Logan said. “We expect it to be.”
But for now, the 51s will embrace the final Big League Weekend at Cashman Field. As always, a large crowd is expected for both days.
“I think there (will) be some nostalgia. There will be a little melancholy not being at Cashman (next year),” Logan said. “I think that will be difficult at first, but it will be exciting to be in the new place and seeing how it plays. It’ll just be a lot easier to function out there because we’re going to have room to maneuver.”
Cashman Field has hosted the 51s (formerly the Stars) since opening in 1983. It is welcoming a full-time professional soccer tenant this spring in Las Vegas Lights FC (USL), and is expected to continue hosting that club after the 51s move to the new Las Vegas Ballpark.
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