We have another set of 2013 Ballpark Digest Awards to announce: the best renovations (under $1 million) go to Centennial Field, home of the Vermont Lake Monsters (short season; NY-Penn League) and Modern Woodmen Park, home of the Quad Cities River Bandits (Low Class A; Midwest League). In both cases, the improvements were multiyear efforts, […]
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2013 Best Ballpark Renovation Over $1M: McKechnie Field
The oldest ballpark in spring training received a dramatic facelift for 2013 that benefited both the Pittsburgh Pirates and Bradenton Marauders, earning recognition from Ballpark Digest for Best Renovation (Over $1 Million) of the season. It’s the most historic venue in spring training, a place where Roberto Clemente worked his way into shape, Henry Aaron […]
2013 Broadcaster of the Year: John Sadak
From coast to coast, their voices heard through car speakers and porch radios, talented baseball radio broadcasters paint the picture from the ballpark throughout the spring and summer nights. Our choice for 2013 Broadcaster of the Year: John Sadak, voice of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (Class AAA; International League). A native of New York City, Sadak […]
2013 Logo/Branding of the Year: Hillsboro Hops
It was the perfect look and perfect marketing for a beer-crazy region: The Hillsboro Hops (short season A; Northwest League) have won Best Logo/Branding in the 2013 Ballpark Digest Annual Awards. If you were to pick an area that typifies America’s love affair with craft beers, it would be the Pacific Northwest, home to hundreds […]
2013 Promotions of the Year: Lehigh Valley IronPigs
Normally we select a single promotion to honor during awards season, but this year the Lehigh Valley IronPigs blew that model out of the water with a trio of noteworthy promotions. The team is the winner of the Best Promotions in the 2013 Ballpark Digest Annual Awards. “As we reviewed submissions for best promotions in […]
Announcing the 2013 Ballpark Digest Awards
It’s that time of year again: We want to hear your nominations for the 2013 Ballpark Digest Awards, to be announced in September. Each year we honor accomplishments in the baseball-business world, with honorees coming from the MLB, MiLB, independent, summer-collegiate and college ranks. Here are the categories: Promotion of the Year. Promotions are the […]
2012 Promotion of the Year: Home-Run Derby, Charleston RiverDogs
Home-run derbies are integral parts of All-Star Games, but the format has staled in recent years. By moving the competition to the USS Yorktown flight deck and bringing in some celebrity flash, the Charleston RiverDogs won Best Promotion of 2012 in the Ballpark Digest Awards. “Other teams have spruced up home-run derbies in recent years, […]
2012 Organization of the Year: Pensacola Blue Wahoos
Forty sellouts, an enthralled fan base and a successful ballpark opening adds up to a very good debut season, making the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) our choice for the 2012 Ballpark Digest Organization of the Year. Starting a ballclub from scratch is a daunting task, but when Quint and Rishy Studer decided […]
2012 Broadcaster of the Year: Donny Baarns
We continue our 2012 Ballpark Digest Awards with the announcement of the Broadcaster of the Year Award: Donny Baarns, the Voice of the Visalia Rawhide (High Class A; California League). This was the most difficult category to judge this season: there is an abundance of riches in broadcast booths, and the increasingly complex roles taken […]
2012 Ballpark Renovation of the Year: Coveleski Stadium
Ballpark renovations should have one major goal: to turn the facility into a true destination. And that’s what happened this season in South Bend, making Coveleski Stadium renovations the clear choice for the 2012 Ballpark Renovation of the Year award. This past season saw $4.25 million in improvements to the home of the South Bend Silver […]
2011 Editor’s Choice Award: Cape Cod League’s “Spaceball” Promotion
In the second-to-last Ballpark Digest Award for the 2011 season, we honor the Cape Cod League for a poignant remembrance of a victim of the 2011 Tucson shootings — a young girl who happened to be a big baseball fan. Christina-Taylor Green (shown at right) was born into a baseball family: her grandfather, Dallas Green, […]
2011 Ballpark of the Year: Salt River Fields at Talking Stick
In the final round of the yearly Ballpark Digest Awards, we honor our 2011 Ballpark of the Year: Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the spring home of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies. In a year that saw several noteworthy new ballparks, one stood out as a way that fundamentally rethought how a spring-training […]
2011 Renovation of the Year: Cheney Stadium
We’re back with our second round of Ballpark Digest awards for 2011. Today, we have another renovation award: Best Renovation ($20M+) for Cheney Stadium, home of the Tacoma Rainiers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League). To say that the renovation notable is an understatement. Making changes to something considered an institution in the local community is […]