In a newly announced agreement, Major League Baseball has named BrightView’s Sports Turf Division as its Official Field Consultant.
BrightView Sports Turf has consulted with MLB for many years, most notably on field design and construction for games outside the league’s 30 existing ballparks. Among these projects were MLB’s Little League Classic in Williamsport, Pa., the 2016 Cuba Game, a two-game series in Puerto Rico’s Hiram Bithorn Stadium, a 2017 game honoring America’s Armed Forces at Ft. Bragg, N.C., and MLB’s 2019 Mexico Series in Monterrey. BrightView’s Sports Turf team is currently planning field operations for MLB’s first series in London, scheduled for June 2019, at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
“Our role as field consultant to Major League Baseball covers various functions for the many initiatives the Commissioner’s office manages both domestically and internationally,” said Murray Cook, President of BrightView Sports Turf. “The core of our involvement is renovating and managing fields for international events, which can also include designing and coordinating construction projects.”
In addition to overseeing various MLB field development initiatives, BrightView also performs numerous site and ballpark reviews. The team works closely with MLB’s international department to evaluate potential sites proposed by federations seeking to host games, often featuring future MLB stars. Over the years these site reviews have included the Olympic Games and Olympic qualifying tournaments.
Jim Small, MLB Senior Vice President, International said, “Through our relationship with BrightView and Murray Cook, Major League Baseball has expanded our efforts to play games in different parts of the world on big league caliber baseball fields. That relationship will continue this summer when we work with Murray and his team on bringing MLB games to London for the first time ever.”
“Major League Baseball has exacting standards for field design, construction and maintenance,” Cook said. “These requirements offer a top quality competitive product to baseball fans, while providing a safe, consistent and high performance playing surface for its athletes.”