Without revealing a specific year, Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred indicated Tuesday that the Texas Rangers and their upcoming Globe Life Field could host a future All-Star Game.
When it opens for the Rangers in March, the retractable-roof Globe Life Field will be MLB’s first new ballpark since Atlanta’s SunTrust Park debuted in 2017. It is fairly common for MLB ballparks to host a league All-Star Game within a few years of opening–SunTrust Park is set to welcome the event for the first time in 2021–and it appears that could be the case for Globe Life Field.
Manfred indicated that during a visit to the ballpark’s construction site on Tuesday, though he did not name a specific season in which the All-Star Game could come there. The absolute earliest the ballpark could host the Midsummer Classic is 2022, as sites for 2020 and 2021 are finalized. More from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
“Usually when we have a community like Arlington that has stepped forward and supported a development like this, we try to have an All-Star Game there relatively approximate to the opening,” Manfred said. “I think that’s reasonable to expect.”
MLB has assigned hosts for the next two seasons — Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020 and Atlanta Braves in 2021 — but 2022 through 2025 are open. Dodger Stadium is the third-oldest stadium in baseball, while SunTrust Park in Atlanta opened in 2017.
The Rangers last hosted the All-Star Game in 1995, the year after Globe Life Park opened.
Among the future All-Star Game sites that have been finalized are Dodger Stadium for 2020, SunTrust Park for 2021, and Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park for 2026. The All-Star Game in Philadelphia, which was announced earlier this year, will be staged to coincide with the 250th anniversary of American independence.
Globe Life Field’s first major event will be a concert headlined by Chris Stapleton on March 14, with the Rangers getting their first look at the finished ballpark later in this month. The Rangers are scheduled to play an exhibition game there against the St. Louis Cardinals on March 23, before facing the Los Angeles Angels in the regular-season home opener on March 31.
Rendering courtesy Texas Rangers and ballpark architect HKS
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