=== Around the Majors - Wednesday, June 18 ===
By Eric Gold, MLB Editor
Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - Billions of dollars have been spent over the last few years by companies aiming to stamp names on baseball stadiums, buildings that typify our national pastime.
Once deemed wholesome with names such as Fenway Park, Veterans Stadium, Yankee Stadium, Dodger Stadium, the monikers of some of the new ballparks are flat- out ridiculous.
I can't wait to hear the reaction to some fans next year when they hear names such as PETCO Park or Citizens Bank Park, new homes of the Padres and Phillies, respectively. What kind of promotions will they have at PETCO Park? Free flea collar days? Dogs run the bases?
The trouble that Major League Baseball and every other major sport faces is that in order to support escalating player contracts, money has to come from other sources. Corporations are easy targets, as they spend big dollars to attach their names to sports stadiums. They see it as advertising dollars that would have to be spent elsewhere in the media.
Recently, the Phillies and Citizens Bank entered a 25-year partnership that included naming rights to the team's new ballpark, which is set to open next April. Citizens Bank paid a whopping $95 million, breaking down into $57.5 million in naming rights and $37.5 million for a team broadcast media package.
"The Phillies brand speaks of quality, speaks of integrity and speaks of family," Stephen D. Steinour, Chairman & CEO of Citizens Bank, said during a news conference to announce the naming rights to the new stadium. "We view marketing as an investment. It seeds our growth."
Corporate sponsorship though hasn't been without its problems. The Houston Astros' ballpark, Enron Field, had its name changed to Minute Maid Park after the Enron scandal.
What I'd rather see is a more generic name to a stadium, which I believe would give fans more pride in where their team plays. However, selling out has been a common occurrence and vast sponsorship will continue to dominate not just the sports world, but in everything that we do.
Famous song writers sell their music for radio and television commercials. Famous actors such as Richard Dreyfuss and Donald Sutherland use their voices for car commercials (Dreyfuss - Honda, Sutherland - Volvo). Those companies need a convincing voice to sell a product, but in the sports world a team has to maintain a decent cash flow to obtain top free agents and what better way to do that then getting premier corporate sponsors.
INTERLEAGUE INTRIGUE
The intriguing rivalries of interleague play will be showcased this weekend and from June 27-29. During that time their will be several intrastate rivalries like the Cubs versus the White Sox. They will play for bragging rights in the Windy City with games this weekend at Wrigley Field and the following weekend at U.S. Cellular Field.
The Toronto Blue Jays and Montreal Expos will battle for the Pearson Cup, which is named after former Canadian Prime Minister and avid baseball fan Lester B. Pearson. It was established in 1978 as a fundraiser for amateur baseball in Canada. The Pearson Cup will be awarded to the winner of the six games between the two clubs, as the Expos are hosting a three-game series this weekend, while the two squads play at SkyDome June 27-29. This will mark the return of the Pearson Cup after a 17-year absence.
Other rivalries over the next two weeks will feature the Bay Area series between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants; the St. Louis Cardinals against the Kansas City Royals; the Angels versus the Dodgers; the Astros playing the Rangers; the Twins taking on the Brewers; the Mariners facing the Padres; and the most known of all probably - the Subway Series with the Mets battling the Yankees.
Following these two weekends, we can say goodbye to interleague play for 2003, of course until the World Series.
