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Archives: March 12-18, 2005

County benches Knights' ballpark plan NEW!
Posted March 17, 2005 (feedback) (submit story) (discuss)
Mecklenburg County Commissioners voted 8-1 to go ahead with design of a city park on a parcel of land eyed by the Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) as the site of a new ballpark. The eight-acre site is now out of the running, and team officials say they will look for another potential site near the downtown area. The Knights currently play in Fort Mill, S.C., and have offered to pay half the costs of a new ballpark. A local civic group is expected to issue its recommendations for a new ballpark in report due April 8. More from the Charlotte Observer.
    RELATED STORIES: Knights take 3rd swing at uptown; Knights owners deny plans to sell team; Uptown park or Knights ballpark?; Charlotte board cool to new ballpark; Center-city baseball in Charlotte?; Project may wrap around ballpark

Minor League chief visits Jaxx, Farmer
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MiLB President Mike Moore was in Jackson (Tenn.) to meet with management of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (Class AA; Eastern League) and city officials about the future of the team. Owner Bob Lozinak says still intends on moving the team out of Jackson at the end of the season, citing the losses needed to trigger an escape clause in the team's contract. However, the same clause also allows the city to buy the team for $11.3 million -- the average price of the last two Southern League franchise sales -- and there's still talk the city will partner with a buyer to purchase the Jaxx keep the franchise in Jackson. Tomorrow is a crucial day, as there's a deadline for the city to act on the purchase. There's still one immediate concern for the team: technically, the team has no lease this season for Pringles Park, and in theory the city could evict the team.
    RELATED STORIES: City, Diamond Jaxx delay decision on future of team; Moore to intervene; City may buy Jaxx; Greenville awarded to Cap City Bombers; Statement from West Tenn Diamond Jaxx regarding Greenville; Jackson mayor urges Jaxx to stay; Sportsplex proposal pitched in Jackson; Jackson looks at buying Diamond Jaxx

Two financing deals cleared for D.C. ballpark
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The District of Columbia's chief financial officer has certified two proposals that would provide private financing for a new baseball stadium along the Anacostia waterfront and reduce the public costs for the project. According to a report prepared by Natwar M. Gandhi, the city could expect to lower its financial commitment using a proposal by Deutsche Bank, which has offered as much as $493 million in exchange for control of some revenue sources related to the ballpark, or one from the Cleveland-based Gates Group, which offered up to $175 million in exchange for revenue generated by a special parking district. Of the rejected plans, most called for the District to issue more in the way of bonds so developers could build an entertainment district next to a new ballpark and then control the revenues. Initial reaction from the D.C. City Council was extremely negative -- Gandhi already has told the council either proposal would be at least $30 million more expensive than the District financing plan ratified in December -- so Gandhi will prepare a more detailed evaluation. Steven Pearlstein comments. Meanwhile, a top appointee in former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry's administration has been named to oversee efforts to hire local contractors for the construction of the ballpark. The D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission said yesterday that Courtland V. Cox, 64, will begin working next week as director of local, small and disadvantaged business enterprise development, a newly created position.
    RELATED STORIES: D.C. ballpark architect finalist sees move to modern design; Ballpark design bids cut to three; Eight bid to design Nationals' ballpark; D.C. mayor, officials to see games in Florida; 'Big boxes' part of D.C. ballpark pitch

Cubs get closer to a bigger ballpark
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The Commission on Chicago Landmarks approved a plan from the Chicago Cubs to expand Wrigley Field and add buildings to the general area. The vote was unanimous and came amid praise for a design that has been drawn and redrawn since first being proposed by Cubs officials nearly four years ago. Plans call for moving Wrigley's walls out about eight feet to add 1,790 bleacher seats and developing a five-story building with a commercial space and a parking garage on a parcel adjacent to the ballpark. The Cubs would pay a total of $3.1 million for city-owned land required to make both projects feasible.
    RELATED STORIES: Cubs unveil plans for Wrigley bleacher expansion; Cubs reach a deal with city for more bleacher seats; Cubs, city near deal on Wrigley expansion; Alderman to Cubs: Put off expansion, get more night games

PSU unveils new drawings of proposed baseball park
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New drawings of a proposed ballpark for Penn State and a New York-Penn League team were presented to the College Township Planning Commission. Penn State is planning to build the park, which it will own. It will lease the park to Altoona Curve (Class AA; Eastern League) management. Baseball fans will get six months of intercollegiate and then minor-league games at a field with fixed seating for 5,000 and a grass seating area for 1,000 more. The Penn State team will use the field from March to May, and the minor league team from June to August. Construction is expected to begin in May for a June 2006 opening.
    RELATED STORIES: PSU ballpark details begin to emerge; Deal in works with Curve to build new stadium; Penn State trustees approve architectural studies of ballpark; Penn State baseball program may get new field; Penn State ballpark plans progressing; Curve brass excited about possibilities that exist in State College;

Lyons finds friends inside ballpark team
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Restaurateur Patrick Lyons is thrilled with the new ownership of the Boston Red Sox, who are working with him to make Fenway Park and Landsdowne Street more of a destination site even when the Red Sox are not playing. Along with launching a year-round eatery at Fenway Park, Lyons is teaming up with the Sox owners and other street business owners to pump millions into remaking the dingy thoroughfare. Crews are already preparing the way for old-fashioned streetlights, widened sidewalks and trees along the length of Lansdowne. Meanwhile, Red Sox management continues to work toward bringing the Rolling Stones into Fenway this summer.
    RELATED STORIES: Fenway buying continues: Red Sox want garage as part of expansion, area improvement; Red Sox announce more changes to Fenway; Boston Globe: .406 Club is in a slump; Antiquated Fenway getting a bit of a makeover; Fanatical over Fenway; Red Sox submits plan for Fenway expansion; Red Sox adding premium seats

Take me out to the ballpark, Dad, for the toons
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In an effort to lure youngsters to the ballpark, the Atlanta Braves and its parent company, Time-Warner, are constructing a $3 million interactive attraction at Turner Field based on shows and characters from Cartoon Network.  An 80-foot-tall facade, featuring several of the network's cartoons, will be hard to miss as fans enter the ballpark in April. The first phase of the project -- two miniature sandlot fields on which kids can play ball amid bop bags representing cartoon characters -- is scheduled to open May 23. The remainder, featuring eight interactive environments from cartoons, will open July 25. There will be video screens on which parents can steal a peek at the Braves game.

Style-challenged Sox get 'Queer Eye' fashion help
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Part of the appeal of the Boston Red Sox last season was their dirtbag approach to the game: players like Kevin Millar and Johnny Damon didn't care if their uniforms were scruffy or their hair was greasy. Everything changes when you win a World Series, however, and the wives of several Red Sox players appealed to the stars of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" to spiff up their hubbies. The Fab Five were at City of Palms Park in Fort Myers this week to outfit the players to make them look more championship worthy.

Proposed ballpark may rescue flood-damaged Richmond area
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Here's an interesting take on efforts by the Richmond Braves (Class AAA; International League) to build a new ballpark in the city's Shockoe Bottom area: the area was so devastated by Tropical Storm Gaston last summer,  causing as much as $30 million in damage to local businesses, that the ballpark and the associated development would be a great way to revitalize the area.
    RELATED STORIES: Richmond ballpark plan strikes out on site, economics, financing; Wilder quits role in Richmond group; Threat not part of deal for Richmond ballpark; Braves getting outside pitches; Braves or bust?; Drains a strain on Richmond ballpark plan?; Wilder: Stadium proposal lacks details; Richmond ballpark questions remain; Richmond Braves assume role as developer; New ballpark plan for Shockoe Bottom

Some fret about traffic around USC ballpark
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The University of South Carolina is still planning a new ballpark for the city's Congaree Vista area, but some neighbors are worried about increased traffic from the 6,500-seat facility. USC still has not officially announced the location and scale of the project; we also hear some professional teams are still interested in placing a team at the facility, although USC recently rejected a proposal to share the ballpark with the relocated Hagerstown Suns (Class A; Sally League). Look for the Suns to possibly end up in Bowling Green, as team owners meet with city officials later this month.
    RELATED STORIES: Bottom of the ninth in Columbia; New USC/city stadium plan could leave out Bombers; Columbia council won’t swing at any pitch; Latest Columbia ballpark plan full of holes; USC has sought, still wants baseball deal; Tanner: 2007 ‘realistic’ for new stadium

Stadium's comeback could rest with voters
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Voters may get to give their opinion in November on Paterson (N.J.) Mayor Joey Torres' ambitious plan to restore Hinchliffe Stadium and bring additional parking and recreation facilities to downtown. Torres unveiled his plan Tuesday night when he asked the City Council to allow him to place a non-binding referendum on the general elections ballot to gauge residents' views on the estimated $60 million project. Torres, who will be up for reelection in 2006, wants Hinchliffe to become a modern stadium that would seat about 8,000 for athletics, graduations and other city events. The local school district plans to build a new public high school that would attach to the stadium in order to teach students about the business of sports. The 10-classroom, 103,000-square-foot Sports Business Academy would house the bathrooms, locker rooms and a kitchen that would serve fans at stadium events. Hinchliffe Stadium was once the home of the New York Black Yankees of the Negro Leagues.
    RELATED STORIES: Hinchliffe Stadium proposal features fields, sports academy, pool, ice rink; Helping Hinchliffe live; After silence and decay, stadium's place in history recognized; NFL kicks in $200,000 for Hinchliffe fix-up; Paterson seeks to reclaim plaques missing from stadium

Ads spotlight players, not PNC Park
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After years of basing marketing campaigns around the experience at PNC Park, the Pittsburgh Pirates are reversing course and making their nucleus of young players the centerpiece of this year's advertising. The "Come Hungry" spots that will begin airing on local TV and radio stations and appearing in print publications Friday center around the idea that the Pirates' young stars -- specifically, Jason Bay, Oliver Perez and Jack Wilson -- are craving a winner as much as the fans. Speaking of PNC Park: the scoreboard will feature a new video screen from Daktronics, as the old video screen from Sony proved to be ill-suited to the weather conditions in Pittsburgh.

West Virginia Power unveil new uniforms
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The West Virginia Power (Class A; Sally League) unveiled their new uniforms this week, The home jerseys are white with a gold and black piping on the collar and sleeves. The front is emblazoned with “Power” and the letters on the front and numbers on the back are layered gold and cream to create a shadowed image. The home jerseys will be worn with the moss cap. The away jerseys are grey with a gold and black piping on the collar and sleeves. The front is adorned with “West Virginia” and the letters on the front and numbers on the back are layered gold and cream to create a shadowed image. The away jerseys will be worn with the gold cap. You can see them at the West Virginia Power Web site.

Cats to launch 2005 ticket sales with BBQ bash
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Here's the way to launch a ticket event. The Fort Worth Cats (independent; Central League) are holding "Baseball, Bands and BBQ" at LaGrave Field on April 2. The event begins at 9 a.m. with the Cats’ annual Showcase Saturday event. Individual game tickets for the 2005 season will go on sale for the first time that morning. Also, fans will be able to get autographs from former and current Cats’ players, enjoy free hot dogs and much more. Kids will be able to play whiffle ball and run the bases at LaGrave Field. Cats’ manager Wayne Terwilliger and former Cats’ player/manager Bobby Bragan headline a group that will be signing autographs at LaGrave Field. The festivities continue throughout the day with a Barbecue Cook-off. Prizes will be awarded for the best meats and over $4,000 in additional prize money will be up for grabs. At night, the musical acts will take center stage as the up-and-coming band Cowboy Crush performs.

Baseball Notes
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Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Dick Radatz died Wednesday when he fell down a flight of stairs in his home, police said. He was 67. Radatz, a 6-foot-5 right-hander nicknamed "The Monster," lost his balance and suffered a severe head injury in the fall Wednesday afternoon. He's survived by a daughter and a son; Dick Radatz Jr. is co-founder and president of the college wood-bat Northwoods League....The West Michigan Whitecaps (Class A; Midwest League) will face the Fort Wayne Wizards at Comerica Field on Aug. 22....The Sioux Falls Canaries (independent; Northern League) and Cass Clay have a sweet deal, literally; the Canaries announced today a partnership with Cass Clay Ice Cream in 2005. Beginning in mid-May, the Canaries will be featured on pails of Cass Clay Double-Play Vanilla Ice Cream. The pail will include the Canaries team logo and schedule, and 25 cents from every carton sold will go to the Canaries Care Fund.

Wolff: A's ballpark already in works
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Incoming Oakland Athletics owner Lew Wolff says planning for a new new Oakland Athletics ballpark has already begun, with local firm Gensler Architects and two well-known ballpark designers (who he declined to identify). The Oakland Tribune speculates HOK Sport, the designer of 10 of the last 14 MLB parks, is involved. Wolff says he may have no choice other than to build in Oakland (and he is planning a park next to the Coliseum): rumors about the team ending up in Las Vegas are unfounded and the territorial issues with San Jose (the city is in the Giants' territory) are too insurmountable. However, Wolff says he can't promise the team will remain in Oakland: he won't renegotiate the team's current lease at Network Associates Coliseum, which runs through 2007 with three one-year options.
    RELATED STORIES: Deal near for San Jose cannery site; For A's, way to San Jose paved with uncertainty; San Jose baseball crusader makes his pitch; A's sale could happen quickly; Sale of A's to heighten San Jose intrigue; BART to the ballpark, what a vision; Another San Jose pitch for baseball

Giants staying in Scottsdale until 2025
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The San Francisco Giants and the city of Scottsdale came to an agreement for the team to stay at Scottsdale Stadium for spring training through 2025, with options that could extend it through 2035. The deal calls for the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority to spend $20 million and for Scottsdale to give $3.1 million to upgrade the team's facilities at Scottsdale Stadium and at Indian School Park, with an additional playing field and an infield to be constructed on land beyond right field at the ballpark. The deal is expected to be approved by the City Council at its Tuesday meeting. More from the San Francisco Business Times.

Wrigley plans net to protect new area
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The Chicago Cubs are addressing their problem with falling concrete at Wrigley Field by installing a plastic barrier under the ceiling of the concession area concourse beneath the lower grandstand. The concession-safety measure comes as the team informed the city of its plans to upgrade safety netting installed beneath the upper deck after reports last summer of three incidents in which chunks of concrete fell to the seating area below. In addition, the team is installing netting as a stopgap measure.
    RELATED STORIES: Cubs unveil plans for Wrigley bleacher expansion; Cubs reach a deal with city for more bleacher seats; Cubs, city near deal on Wrigley expansion; Alderman to Cubs: Put off expansion, get more night games

Ports peeved over ballpark
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The Stockton Ports (Class A; California League) sent a sharply worded letter to the city regarding their new home, Banner Island Ballpark, expressing team owner Tom Volpe's dissatisfaction with design changes made to the ballpark after construction starts and concern the ballpark won't open in time. The city and architect HKS changed the ballpark's configuration from a two-deck facility seating 4,000 to a single-deck facility seating 5,000. The Ports say the new ballpark will be less cozy, making it tougher to sell season tickets; the city eliminated a second deck so it could build a facility that could be expanded to 10,000 in the future. (Volpe may also be upset the city decided to pursue a Class AAA Pacific Coast League franchise this offseason as well.) It does sound the city officials in charge of this situation were pretty clueless about many things: it would be an extreme long shot for Stockton to land a PCL team, and asking the team to not use any name for ballpark until naming rights are sold is simply stupid: you must call the ballpark something until naming rights are sold -- and a month before the start of the season naming rights are still unsold.

Hitting the mark: FBI informants say McGwire was juiced
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Perhaps there's more truth to what Jose Canseco alleges regarding Mark McGwire and steroids than everyone initially assumed. The New York Daily News quotes two former steroid dealers as saying McGwire received regular steroid injections in the 1990s, with FBI officials confirming McGwire's name came up repeatedly during an investigation of illegal steroid trafficking on the West Coast. Interestingly, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig doesn't bother to deny the allegations: "If someone wants to fault us for what happened 15 or 20 years ago, OK,"' Selig said Sunday during a news conference at Scottsdale Stadium. "I don't have time to do that. I have time to correct the present and make sure the future is clean. That's what we're doing.'' The problem is that many inside and outside of baseball don't believe the present system does ensure the future is clean. Tony La Russa continues to stand by McGwire, but Sammy Sosa refuses to comment. Meanwhile, MLB officials are producing documents per a subpoena from a Congressional committee investigating the use of steroids in baseball.

Lancaster ballpark will hit to all fields
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The modern ballpark is turning into more than just a place to see a baseball game; it's turning into a community center hosting concerts and other events. That's what we're seeing in Lancaster, where Clipper Magazine Stadium, the new home of the Lancaster Barnstormers (independent; Atlantic League), where the team is promoting the ballpark as a multiuse facility hosting concerts (like this summer's Def Leppard/Bryan Adams tour of minor-league venues) band competitions, exhibits, car shows, high school and collegiate sports.) At Dr Pepper Seven Up Ballpark, the home of the Frisco Rough Riders (Class AA; Texas League), high-school teams are drawn to the facility.
    RELATED STORIES: Seats with a view in Lancaster; Baseball fever in Lancaster; Lancaster builder unveils plans to convert burned-out bakery; Lancaster ballpark starts taking shape; Merchants, residents excited about new neighbor

Orioles ad says they're seeking Nationals' TV deal
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Three weeks before the start of the regular season and the Washington Nationals are still without a television contract. Many believe the owner of the Baltimore Orioles, Peter Angelos, is working to block a TV deal this season as part of the negotiations between him and MLB over the move of the Nats to D.C. Not true, Angelos says: he took out a full-page ad in the Washington Post yesterday saying the Orioles are working to bring Nationals games to D.C. as part of the Orioles' television network. The team is already proving to be a success: on Saturday, the Nationals sold more than 50,000 tickets during the first six hours of individual game sales.

Not buying Mariner ads' new QVC concept
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Now that we're less than a month from the beginning of the regular season, we're seeing teams unveil their marketing campaigns for the season. The Seattle Mariners are going with a slightly offbeat marketing pitch that's basically a sendup of QVC/home-shopping-network infomercials, where players pitch baseball-related items; in one, Ichiro Suzuki and Raul Ibanez try to sell batters' boxes. Compared to previous M's campaigns, it sounds like this series falls flat; many in Seattle remember classic commercials featuring Edgar Martinez using a Clapper to turn off the lights at Safeco Field.

Schoolcraft cool to ballpark proposals
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Officials at Michigan's Schoolcraft College aren't keen to partner with a group seeking to bring an independent Northern League to the Detroit area, as school officials met with National Sports representatives in recent weeks, but there are no additional meetings planned. School officials say bringing in professional sports facilities (a group also made a pitch for an MLS stadium on campus) isn't the best use of the college's limited land.
    RELATED STORIES: Report due March 21 on Troy ballpark; Tigers put political squeeze on Troy ballpark plan; Troy ballpark strikes out

Build-A-Bear Workshop opening new stores in Cincinnati, Cleveland ballparks
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Apparently there's big money in stuffing bears at ballparks. Build-A-Bear Workshops will  stadium stores will open this season at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati and Jacobs Field in Cleveland. In addition, the New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals will be giving away team-branded Build-A-Bear Workshop teddy bears to fans on special promotion days. In Cincinnati, Make Your Own Gapper by Build-A-Bear Workshop will be open during all Cincinnati Reds home games and will allow fans to purchase a Gapper plush doll, stuff it, give it a special heart, fluff it and then dress it in unique Reds clothing and accessories. The store will also feature a one-of-a-kind Reds Ballpark Bear, the first in a series of bears available only at Great American Ball Park. In the same fashion, fans of the Cleveland Indians will be able to make their team mascot, Slider, at Make Your Own Slider by Build-A-Bear Workshop and an Indians Ballpark Bear. Both of these items are available only at the store in Jacobs Field, which will be open during all Indians home games.

Business booming near Surprise ballpark
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If you've checked out our summary of the Surprise (Az) ballpark (the spring home of the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers in our Complete Guide to Spring Training) you'd know there was not a lot near the ballpark last year when we made our initial visit. Surprise is on the extreme northwest side of Phoenix, but apparently there's been a lot of growth in the area surrounding the ballpark: strip malls are popping up, with a movie theater, four restaurants and a 10,000-square-foot retail building are planned. Five hundred acres will be dedicated to commercial, office, residential, resort and medical uses.

The legacy of Luther Williams Field
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Macon's Luther Williams Field is an authentic link to baseball's past, a 1920s-era ballpark that last hosted affiliated baseball in 2002 with the Macon Braves (Class A; Sally League). Locals are trying to figure out the future of the old ballpark: in its present state there's little chance an affiliated team will move in, and while there's talk of an independent league moving in someday, nothing will happen in the next year or so.
    RELATED STORIES: Macon baseball to return in '03; Macon bids R'aves a teary goodbye; The first pitch was thrown around 7 p.m.; Searching for Luther Williams

Milwaukee went batty as home of Braves in '53
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Here's a look at a franchise move that helped change baseball: the move of the Boston Braves to Milwaukee for the 1953 season. Owner Lou Perini had decided the Braves could not be competitive in Boston and began looking for a new home for his team; Milwaukee business leaders were wooing the Braves and Bill Veeck's St. Louis Browns, and after the American League denied Veeck's request to move the team in an attempt to force Veeck out of the league (it worked; he sold the Brownies a year later to Baltimore interests), Perini leapt into action and moved the team a month before the season opened.

A concession: Ballpark jobs are not easy
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Every year we run an article where a journalist sells concessions at the ballpark for a day and then realizes how hard it is to perform manual labor for a living. This article, where a reporter for the Knoxville News schlepped programs at a Diamondbacks-Athletics game at Tucson Electric Park, is probably the earliest we've seen this genre of article appear in a season.