AutoZone Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AutoZone Park is a minor league baseball stadium located in downtown Memphis, Tennessee and the home of the Memphis Redbirds of the Pacific Coast League, the AAA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. It cost over $80 million, by far the most ever spent on a structure dedicated to minor league baseball. It has a seating capacity of 12,512, and has been aptly described as "one-third" of a major league baseball park. It was built to "big-league" standards, the primary difference being the absence of outfield seats or seats far down the foul lines, and could perhaps be better described as a "major league stadium with only the 'good' seats". It opened in 2000 and replaced Tim McCarver Stadium. The stadium also hosts some games for the University of Memphis baseball team, most notably, the annual game with Ole Miss. Naming rights are held by the auto parts chain AutoZone, which is based in Memphis.
Unlike other cities, Memphis does not have to worry about its team threatening to move elsewhere. The Redbirds, in a situation almost unique in American pro sports, are owned by a non-profit community foundation, titled the Memphis Redbirds Foundation (the Green Bay Packers of the NFL have a similar ownership structure).
In October of 2005, AutoZone Park became the first venue outside of New Orleans to host the Voodoo Music Experience. One day of this music festival was moved to Memphis due to Hurricane Katrina.
On December 4, 2006, at the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings, MLB announced that an exhibition game to be called the Civil Rights Game would be held annually at AutoZone Park, with the first game on March 31, 2007. The game featured the Cardinals and the Cleveland Indians, with the Cardinals winning 5-1. The second game was played on March 29, 2008, between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Mets. The Mets Defeated the White Sox 3-2.
[edit] References
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2008) |
[edit] External links
- AutoZone Park is at coordinates Coordinates:
- AutoZone Park Views - Ball Parks of the Minor Leagues
|
||||||||
