South Bend poised to spend almost $10M on The Cove
The South Bend Redevelopment Commission today approved spending almost $10 million on renovations to Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium (The Cove), the home of the South Bend Silver Hawks (Low Class A; Midwest League). Under the plan, the following renovations would be made by July 4, 2011: A new centerfield entrance, ticket office and concessions area. […]
Lake County Captains unveil logo overhaul
The Lake County Captains (Low Class A; Midwest League) unveiled a new logo, colors and team identity today, dropping the cartoonish riverboat captain and embracing a more modern design. The new primary logo solidifies the Captains nautical theme and the organization’s ties to Lake County. The primary colors in the new scheme will be navy […]
U2 to play four ballparks in 2011
Four Major League Baseball ballparks — Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Angel Stadium, Rogers Centre and Busch Stadium — will host rock band U2 on its 2011 360° Tour. The band originally was scheduled to tour the United States in the summer of 2010, but physical issues related to Bono caused the delay of the tour. The […]
Phillies, Pirates spring schedules posted
Pennsylvania baseball fans rejoice: We’ve posted the tentative 2011 spring-training schedules for the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Philadelphia Phillies, featuring lots of games between the two teams in March. You can view the Pirates schedule here. You can view the Phillies schedule here. Both schedules reflect the new economic realities of spring training: not too […]
Mesa to vote on new Cubs complex today
Mesa (Az.) voters will go to the polls today to decide on the fate of a new Chicago Cubs spring-training complex, as two questions on the ballot will authorize the city to go ahead with the plan and its funding. Voters must approve a referendum question to raise the city hotel tax by two percentage […]
Farley promoted in Hagerstown
The new owners of the Hagerstown Suns (Low Class A; Sally League) decided that continuity was an important thing for their first season at the reins, promoting former AGM Bill Farley to the general-manager post. The promotion of Farley came after a month-long hunt conducted by team management to fill the position. “We have to […]
Holding the line in 2011
We’re beginning to see teams announce schedules and pricing for the 2011 season, and a trend is emerging: most teams, we think, will try to hold the line on pricing, sticking to 2010 ticket prices whenever possible — or lowering them in some cases. Take, for example, the Lowell Spinners (short season A; NY-Penn League). […]
Bullfrogs marketing campaign for 2011: FrogVille, Wisconsin
The Green Bay Bullfrogs (summer collegiate; Northwoods League) announced a new marketing campaign for the 2011 season, the fifth for the team in Joannes Stadium: FrogVille, Wisconsin. “The Bullfrogs are Green Bay’s team, a team they can call their own that many in our great sports community take a great deal of pride in supporting,” […]
Selig “likes” idea of expanded MLB playoffs
Major League Baseball’s playoffs could be expanded by two more wild-card teams as soon as 2011, as Commissioner Bud Selig admits he “likes” the idea of more teams in the postseason — as long as the regular season isn’t shortened. Selig’s comments, made before Game 4 of the World Series, were pretty clearly in favor […]
Tuesday elections could determine fate of Bevos
Tuesday’s election for Mayor and City Council in Escondido (Cal.) could go a long ways in determining the fate of the Portland Beavers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) in 2012 in beyond, as most candidates oppose spending public money on a new ballpark. We already know there will be a new mayor in the North […]
Griffith works to preserve Northern League
It sounds like independent Northern League Commissioner Clark Griffith was working the phones fast and furiously this past week, seeking to augment the four teams remaining in the circuit with expansion teams and maybe even some refugees from the independent Frontier League. A quiet week was actually pretty good news for Griffith: it mean that […]
Alderson hiring good news for Mets farm teams
After years of neglect, the New York Mets farm system should see improvement under new GM Sandy Alderson, a man known for building a strong personnel system when he was GM of the Oakland A’s. Alderson was introduced Friday as the new GM of the Mets, replacing Omar Minaya as the face of the franchise. […]
The Week That Was: October 31
Here are the most popular stories of the past week on Ballpark Digest, as ranked by page views. The big news this week: Amarillo lease news, impact of AT&T Park over the years, MiLB personnel moves, and the latest on a proposed Portland Beavers ballpark in Escondido. Four bids submitted for Amarillo ballpark lease No […]