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I dig it
i sort of agree with this. if they kept the field and ivy brick walls, and the scoreboard, they can do anything else. the part that they're changing in RF is already a family area or whatever that nobody really sits in except when its packed.
obstructed views are horrible, not being able to follow a fly ball if you're sitting in the back rows is also horrible. if you want to watch everything that is happening on the field, you need premium seats or be in the bleachers. i doubt they can fix these things based on the infrastructure of the ballpark, so whatever they do make the ballpark on a whole better, is fine by me
I hope it a feature where it explodes when the Cardinals' right fielder is trying to make a catch at the wall....
no. The field is beautiful and great. The park is a dump and horrible to watch a game. Tiny seats. Seats not facing the field. Seats obstructed. Park smelling like pee. Etc etc.
It needs to be leveled and a new park installed. I'd keep the dimensions and look if the field as much as possible
I think in a few years the Toyota sign will be a jumbo-tron
Jumbotrons for everyone! :fist:
I think in a few years the Toyota sign will be a jumbo-tron
I read that the screen could add a million in revenue to the team. I wonder how much a Jumbotron would add. I think we'll add a jumbotron with in the next 3 years... as much as I hate the thought of it, it's probably for the best.
Finding a spot for it is the real question. If they put it in place of the Toyota sign I guess I would be ok with that, but again, I really hate anything being added to the ballpark. But, it's about money to them, I understand that. I would rather see a better product on the field than money thrown into the ballpark.
Cubs will light up Wrigley Field, eventually
January 23, 2012
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What's next at Wrigley Field?
That's what everyone has wondered after the Cubs unveiled a 75-foot LED board in the rightfield corner over the weekend, along with plans to open a remodeled patio area designed to accommodate large groups with lots of money.
When I asked a veteran sports marketing executive what's next at Wrigley, the person replied, “They're going to light up that place.”
Indeed, by the end of this decade, if not sooner, depending on when they finish their massive renovation Wrigley Field (another call to Mayor Rahm Emanuel, please), the place where they once played only day games is going to have lights flashing everywhere with revenue-producing advertising.
The Cubs have no choice. The team has been missing out on millions of dollars in ad revenue by not having a Jumbotron video board and limited other LED-type signage opportunities in the ballpark. Just look at all the advertising signs the White Sox have at U.S. Cellular Field.
Yes, the Jumbotron is coming. There will be more ribbon-like advertising along the façade of the upperdeck. Perhaps the Cubs will add another LED board along a similar area of the leftfield corner. And there likely will be more unexpected additions if the Cubs marketing executives continue to think out of the box.
I think the new rightfield LED board and patio area were inspired ideas. According to one marketing insider, advertising on the new board should net the Cubs more than $1 million per year.
Also, the patio area offers a prime spot for high-end entertaining, corporate and otherwise. More $$$.
“One thing we learned from the PNC Club (a luxury suite that opened last year) is that people love standing" around high-top tables said Wally Hayward, the Cubs vice president of marketing. “If you have four or eight clients all sitting a row, it's tough to talk to everyone. (The Budweiser Patio area) will be a nice addition.”
Several times, I asked Mr. Hayward what's coming next at Wrigley? The buzzwords are “generate new revenue” and “fan experience.”
“We have ideas, but we haven't finalized any short-term or long-term plans,” Mr. Hayward said. “We're going to continue to look for ways to generate new revenue and enhance the fan experience. (The patio area) was one thing we knew we could get done by opening day. So we went ahead and did it.”
Clearly, the Toyota sign in leftfield and the LED board are just a start. The Cubs are doing the right thing by phasing in these style changes in increments. It doesn't give the faithful as much to digest at one time, and it helps keep the hard-liners from getting too riled up.
The same process occurred at Boston's Fenway Park. It now has a Jumbotron and lots of other bells and whistles that produce revenue for the Red Sox. But the Green Monster still looms — albeit with seats on top of it — and fans still regard Fenway as a shrine.
By the end of the decade, there will be parts of Wrigley that look much different, breaking from tradition. But as long as there still are vines on the outfield wall and the old scoreboard remains fundamentally the same, Cubs fans will adjust.