The week that was: Dec. 6
The top news stories of the week: Comings and goings in Altoona; new marks; changes in Oakland ballpark plans.Here are the top stories on Ballpark Digest, as measured by page views, for the week of Dec. 1-6, 2008: New for 2009: The Winston-Salem Dash Lozinak family goes full circle, buys back Curve Atlantic League eyes […]
Egan new GM of Altoona Curve
Original voice of the Curve is back as GM under new owners.The Lozinak Family, which announced their purchase of the Altoona Curve (Class AA; Eastern League) on Monday, today named Rob Egan as the next general manager of the franchise. Egan, 39, will begin his duties later this month as the club transitions toward the […]
Elfstrom Stadium renovations on schedule
The new upper deck at the home of the Kane County Cougars is in place, ready for April opening.Work continues on the addition of a second deck to Elfstrom Stadium, the home of the Kane County Cougars (Low Class A; Midwest League), and the team expects it to be fully finished before the April opening. […]
More details released on Winston-Salem ballpark upgrades
A $16 million upgrade will cover wider concourses and more upper-deck seating — but still no word on when the facility will be finished.Yesterday’s press conference to announce the new name of the Winston-Salem Dash (High Class A; Carolina League) seemed to raise more questions than it answered, as owner Billy Prim confirmed ballpark delays […]
It’s official: A’s rethinking Fremont ballpark site
Lew Wolff and crew will scrap ballpark village, use private financing to build new ballpark closer to mass transit.The Oakland A’s confirmed the rumors: they will scrap the idea of using the proceeds of a ballpark-village to fund a new ballpark, and will instead plan on a privately financed facility closer to mass transit. Even […]
New for 2009: The Lake Erie Crushers
The new Avon team in the independent Frontier League has a name and logo.
Will indy ball take close look at Omaha?
Omaha fits well within the footprints of the American Association and the Northern League. Will either circuit compete with the suburban-bound Omaha Royals?With the announcement that the Omaha Royals (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) had entered into a exclusive negotiating period with suburban Sarpy County for a new ballpark, the assumption many had that the […]
Prim: New Winston-Salem ballpark may not open in April
Winston-Salem Dash co-owner Billy Prim confirms earlier reports questioning status of new downtown facility.Winston-Salem Dash (High Class A; Carolina League) owner Billy Prim confirmed what had been rumored for a few weeks: that his team’s new ballpark may not be ready for the beginning of the 2009 season. Part of the delay comes in Prim’s […]
Grasshoppers snare Single-A Freitas Award
The Greensboro Grasshoppers earn deserved honors.The Greensboro Grasshoppers (Low Class A; Sally League) has been recognized for its outstanding 2008 season, continued contribution to the Piedmont Triad and Minor League Baseball by being selected as the winner of Baseball America’s 2008 Bob Freitas Award for the Single-A level. The award was announced in the most […]
New for 2009: The Winston-Salem Dash
Goodbye, Warthogs; hello Dash. UPDATED WITH LOGO SHEET.Later this morning the formal announcement will be made, but we have a new name for the former Winston-Salem Warthogs: The Winston-Salem Dash (High Class A; Carolina League). The dash is a reference to the city name as well as the element of speed in the game of […]
Design-build process laid out for new Tulsa ballpark
Winning bidder for Tulsa ballpark construction process will subcontract work.We can’t begin to understand the twisted arrangements for the construction of a new Tulsa Drillers (Class AA: Texas League) ballpark, so we’ll refer you to this Tulsa World article. Basically, the winning bidder for the construction process — Tulsa Stadium Construction Co. LLC, which won […]
MV Scrappers release new logos, marks
Scrappy gets a makeover.There’s a new look for Scrappy, as the Mahoning Valley Scrappers (short season; NY-Penn League) unveiled new logos and uniforms for the 2009 season. These were the first changes made to the logos or uniforms in the team’s ten year history. A new primary logo features the Scrappy mascot in wearing a […]
GBL offers Henderson $1M to enter HoF as Surf Dawg
Yeah, it’s a publicity stunt, but a rather entertaining one. As far as publicity stunts go, this is a pretty good one: The independent Golden Baseball League (GBL) has offered professional baseball superstar Rickey Henderson a million dollars if he elects to be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown as a […]