Another step toward an Atlantic League team at Staten Island’s Richmond County Bank Ballpark in 2022, as the ballpark’s lease was officially transferred to Staten Island Entertainment from the Staten Island Yankees (Short Season A; NY-Penn League).
Staten Island Entertainment is led by John Catsimatidis, head of the Gristedes Foods grocery chain. His group includes New Jersey politician Eric Shuffler; Dany Garcia, chairwoman and owner of the XFL; and SNL performers Pete Davidson and Colin Jost, with both Yankee Global Enterprises and RedBird Capital Partners involved.
The ballpark went unused in 2021 after the SI Yankees were contracted as part of MLB’s downsizing of Minor League Baseball. While other NY-Penn League teams were promoted to higher levels, such as the Brooklyn Cyclones and the Hudson Valley Renegades, the owners of the Staten Island Yankees chose not to move forward in independent baseball.
The ballpark is set to undergo renovations before the 2022 season, including the installation of synthetic turf, new seating, concourse upgrades and other ballpark improvements.
The $5 million renovation will see installation of synthetic turf to allow a wider range of events, including soccer and concerts; overhauled seating and upgraded mechanicals. The addition of the Staten Island team has already been approved by the MLB Partner League; the next step is a name-the-team contest. We are expecting 20,000 or so submissions for Staten Island Pizza Rats.
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