The Diamondbacks ownership has three years remaining on its Phoenix stadium lease.
The future of Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks franchise in Phoenix is murky. The Diamondbacks ownership group has a deal to use the city-owned baseball park through 2027 and the team ownership group wants changes as quickly as possible whether it is a renovated or a new facility entirely. But there does not seem to be any solution emerging for the Diamondbacks ownership with the clock ticking to the end of the lease. That means the most important item facing the Diamondbacks ownership this off season is not improving the team on the field but getting a deal to either renovate the present facility or reach an agreement with someone to build a new baseball venue somewhere.
Diamondbacks owners have kicked the tires in Las Vegas as a potential home and claim that there could be other areas in the Phoenix market that might build a stadium for them. It might be déjà vu all over again in the Phoenix market as a number of ownerships of the National Hockey League’s Phoenix or Arizona franchise could not get a suitable arena built near the money and population center of the market and the franchise was transferred to Salt Lake City in the spring. The Diamondbacks ownership took note of the move. The Diamondbacks’ stadium situation has been festering for years. The Diamondbacks ownership has been claiming the ballpark has not been well maintained. It is a 26-year-old facility that has had problems including an air conditioning issue during the 2024 season. Diamondbacks’ owners claim they will put money into a baseball venue. The Diamondbacks’ stadium issue could cloud MLB’s expansion plans. Once the Oakland and Tampa Bay stadium issues were resolved, MLB was poised to expand. The Oakland franchise is relocating to Las Vegas and the Tampa Bay Rays’ ownership is getting a new St. Petersburg stadium. Phoenix is now a problem.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
Diamondbacks owners are unhappy with the business’s ballpark.