Potential buyers emerge for Mets — but are they serious?
Donald Trump has reached out to Fred Wilpon about buying into the New York Mets — but he would so only if he could buy majority control. He’s the latest suitor for the team, which has attracted a lot of interest from the Manhattan monied set. According to Trump, he called Wilpon after the team’s […]
First seats installed in new Marlins ballpark
Big day for David Samson and the Florida Marlins front office at their new ballpark, slated to open next season: the first seat was installed in Section 19, and the team took batting practice, albeit on a dirt surface with no fences. The new ballpark is slated to open in 2012; the team will spend […]
Cooper Stadium renovation moves forward
The transformation of Cooper Stadium is one step closer to reality after the Columbus Development Commission voted to rezone the former home of the Columbus Clippers (Class AAA; International League) from rural to commercial. The plan from Arshot Investment Corp, calls for the ballpark to be converted into an automotive research facility, complete with a […]
New for 2011: RedHawks Ballpark
With former corporate sponsor AT&T reevaluating its sports-marketing strategies, the home of the Oklahoma RedHawks (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) will be known as RedHawks Ballpark — at least for now. The ballpark had gone by the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark name for several years. This will be the fifth name for the ballpark: it originally […]
Smokies, Cubs extend PDC
The Tennessee Smokies (Class AA; Southern League) and the Chicago Cubs extended their player-development deal through the 2014 season. “It is a great privilege and honor to extend our PDC (player development contract) with the Smokies organization,” said Cubs Vice President of Player Personnel Oneri Fleita. “The East Tennessee community, Brian Cox, Doug Kirchhofer and […]
Stakes high for 51s in Vegas stadium fight
At a time when the economy is still less than robust and public spending on big developments is way down, the fact that two privately financed sports-facilities projects — each with a price tag of more than a billion dollars — are being proposed in the same city is simply amazing. For the Las Vegas […]
New owners slash ticket prices in High Desert
The new owners of the High Desert Mavericks (High Class A; California League) certainly are shaking things up in Adelanto: the team has cut ticket prices and implemented a new, flexible ticket return policy. When individual tickets go on sale, all lower box seats will be sold for $7.50 instead of the $8 price from […]
Hot Rods put team in hands of fans on Facebook Fans Night
The Bowling Green Hot Rods (Low Class A; Midwest League) will hold Facebook Fans Night on May 18, allowing the team’s Facebook fans to customize the entire Hot Rods experience using the power of social media. The promotion is the first of its kind in Minor League Baseball. “Several teams, including us, are using social […]
In memoriam: Gino Cimoli
Gino Cimoli may not be a household name in baseball circles, but he made one bit of baseball history over fifty years ago: he was the first Major League Baseball batter in a West Coast game, leading off for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the San Francisco Giants at Seals Stadium. The feat was much […]
Southern Miss raising $1M for ballpark renovations
Southern Miss‘s Corky Palmer is leading a fundraising campaign for improvements to Pete Taylor Park, which would cover new chair-back seating as well as a new weight room dedicated solely to the baseball program. Palmer, as college-baseball fans know, is the former coach at Southern Miss. About 35 percent of the cost of improvements to […]
The Week That Was: Feb. 13
The first signs of the 2011 season emerge in the grille of a truck headed for spring training, and an old, historic ballpark — or what’s left of it, anyway — may get a little TLC. Here are the most popular stories of the past week on Ballpark Digest, as measured by page views. It’s […]
PNC Field funding on hold
State funding for an extreme makeover of PNC Field, home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League), is on hold while new Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett reviews it and other last-minute grants made by outgoing Gov. Ed Rendell. There’s no indication the spending will actually be scrapped; local officials were expecting the review and […]
Citi Field debt downgraded by Moody’s because of Mets-Madoff connection
More bad news for Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz: debt of Citi Field has been downgraded by Moody’s because of concerns over ties between the New York Mets ownership and disgraced felon Bernie Madoff, as well as an impending clawback lawsuit. “While the ultimate outcome of the litigation and the timeframe for final resolution are […]