The upcoming mayoral election in Glendale, Az., has some importance for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox, as candidate Jerry Weiers wants to renegotiate the teams’ leases for the Camelback Ranch complex. The issue: Glendale is collapsing under the weight of sports-facility debt, relating both to the spring-training complex and Jobing.com Arena, the […]
Archive | Major-League Baseball
Dodgers building an empire in Los Angeles?
Los Angeles Dodgers ownership is looking at expanding its empire by acquiring AEG, owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kings, as well as Staples Center and MLS franchises/facilities. AEG, part of Philip Anschutz’s business empire that also includes railroads, media, petroleum businesses and travel firms (Xanterra is the Yellowstone National Park concessionaire), includes Los Angeles’s […]
Miggy or Mike? Let the debate begin
What if the American League decided on MVPs like voters choose presidents? Here’s a presidential-style debate over the merits of Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera and the Angels’ Mike Trout when it comes to the Most Valuable Player award. (Editor’s note: Jesse Goldberg-Strassler, the voice of the Lansing Lugnuts, is writing for Ballpark Digest this offseason. Here’s […]
Digital Domain pulls out of ballpark naming deal
Digital Domain Park, the spring home of the New York Mets and the regular-season home of the St. Lucie Mets (High Class A; Florida State League), will have a new name after a bankruptcy filing from the naming-rights holder. Digital Domain, a special-effects firm in Port St. Lucie, is canceling its $100,000-per-year naming-rights deal for […]
Twins pitching ballpark changes for 2013
The Minnesota Twins are expected to seek changes to Target Field for 2013, including an upgrade of the right-field bleachers and possibly a return of trees to the center-field batter’s eye area. When Target Field opened, 14 black spruce trees were planted in the batter’s eye area, but Twins position players complained they were a […]
Cubs pitch new seating behind Wrigley Field home plate
An already intimate ballpark would be even more cramped if the Chicago Cubs receive approval to move in the brick backstop at Wrigley Field and add an extra row of seats behind home plate. Not quite sure it’s a big deal either way. Right now it’s a reported 60.5 feet from home plate to the […]
Athletics propose five-year lease extension for Coliseum
With no resolution on a new San Jose ballpark plan, the Oakland Athletics are working on a five-year lease extension to stay at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Interestingly, MLB officials are negotiating the deal on behalf of the Athletics. We’re assuming things are pretty bad in terms of the Coliseum management and the A’s if MLB […]
Will Nationals cash in on playoff appearance?
With the team’s first appearance in the playoffs, experts say the Washington Nationals may be able to cash in with a naming-rights deal for Nationals Park. The Nationals can sell naming rights to the ballpark, but so far a deal has proven to be elusive. In some ways a deal has been a victim of […]
Abundance of riches: Another new ballpark pitched for Rays
Another developer has stepped up with a proposal to build a new ballpark for the Tampa Bay Rays, and we’re pretty sure we’ll see yet another game plan in coming weeks. Developer Joel Cantor says he can build a 33,000-seat ballpark on the Channelside Bay Plaza site in downtown Tampa, on the waterfront, in a configuration […]
Mariners to move in the fences for 2013
The Seattle Mariners are changing the dimensions at Safeco Field for the 2013 season, moving in portions of the outfield wall in the power alleys. These changes will be the first to the field dimensions since the ballpark opened in 1999. “Our goal was to create an environment that is fair for both hitters and pitchers,” […]
New MLB TV contracts finalized: $1.5B annually
We have a final tally on the new TV contracts signed between Major League Baseball and broadcast partners ESPN, Fox Sports and TBS: an average of $1.5 billion annually, or $12.4 billion over eight years. The deal between ESPN and MLB was made public earlier — $700 million annually, totaling $5.6 billion over eight years— […]
Astros to unveil new uniforms Nov. 2
Bring back the orange and blue! The Houston Astros will reveal the club’s new uniforms, logos, color scheme and mascot for the 2013 season on Friday, Nov. 2 at Minute Maid Park. On hand for the party, the Astros will bring in current players Jose Altuve, Lucas Harrell, Jordan Lyles and Justin Maxwell, and future players Carlos Correa, Jarred Cosart, Jon Singleton and George Springer for […]
Ballpark nanny: Wash your hands!
Talk about obsessive: a dentist, his wife and a crew of germaphobes visited 26 MLB ballparks to tally how well fans washed their hands in the restrooms — and hung out there to research the hard numbers. In general, washing your hands is a good idea when there’s the chance to pass around something nasty, […]