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- Busch Stadium has been the name for three different sports venues in St. Louis, Missouri. For information on the others, see Busch Stadium (disambiguation).
Busch Stadium (aka New Busch Stadium) is the new home for the St. Louis Cardinals of the National League. It replaces Busch Memorial Stadium and occupies a portion of that stadium's former footprint. The stadium opened on April 4, 2006 with an exhibition between the minor league Memphis Redbirds (AAA-Pacific Coast League) and Springfield Cardinals (AA-Texas League), both minor league affiliates of the St. Louis Cardinals, which Springfield won 5-3. The official major league opening game occurred on April 10, 2006, as the Cardinals defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 6-4. A commercial area, dubbed Ballpark Village, is being developed adjacent to the stadium over the remainder of the former stadium's footprint. The city of St. Louis is favored to host the 2009 MLB All-Star Game due to the new stadium and Ballpark Village.
The new stadium has nearly the same dimensions as the old Busch Stadium, offering no major advantage or disadvantage to either the hitter or pitcher, or lefthanders versus righthanders. Many players have commented early that the park plays very fair to everybody.
History
Funding
Since 1995, St. Louis Cardinals team ownership had lobbied for a new ballpark in downtown St. Louis, though the team was unable to acquire funding for the project for several years. In June 2001, the State of Missouri signed a contract with the team, proposing a ballpark in downtown St. Louis, but a subsequent funding bill was struck down in May 2002, leaving the saga open.Ballparks of Baseball article regarding funding and construction of the stadium"New plan calls for $333 million stadium, plus Ballpark Village complex," Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, September 25, 2002. See Team owners sought a location near Madison, Illinois, adjacent to Gateway International Raceway, until the city of St. Louis drafted a financing plan for the team to construct the new stadium in downtown St. Louis."Cardinals looking at site near Gateway Raceway," Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, August 16, 2002. See [http://www.ballparkwatch.com/stadiums/busch.htm The Stadium was financed through private bonds, bank loans, a long-term loan from St. Louis County, and money from the team owners. The development, including the Ballpark Village will cost approximately $646 million with the stadium alone costing $346 million.Official Ballpark Factsheet which states the costs of the stadiumConstruction
New Busch Stadium was designed by HOK Sport and built by Hunt Construction with an estimated cost of $365 million. The stadium was built in phases:- First, the construction of the south side of the new stadium.
- Second, the wrecking ball demolition of the old stadium, which began the week of November 7, 2005 and lasted until December 8, 2005.
- Third, building the north side of the new stadium (i.e. the left field area).
Ballpark firsts
The first Major League at bat in Busch Stadium culminated in Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Brady Clark lining out to St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Aaron Miles.
The Cardinals registered the first series sweep in the young stadium's history on April 24-26, 2006 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Photo gallery
Image:April_Downloads_015.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_016.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_017.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_018.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_022.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_021.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006 Image:April_Downloads_020.jpg |Inside stadium during open house, April 8th 2006
References
External links
- Review of Busch Stadium, complete with game photos, from Ballpark Digest
- Redbirdcentral Time-Lapse created from KMOV stadium cam
- New Busch Stadium & Construction FAQ, from CardsClubhouse.com, a not-for-profit online community
- Seat View
Buildings and structures in St. Louis | Major League Baseball venues | Sports in St. Louis | Sports venues in St. Louis | Sports venues in Missouri | 2006 establishments
"Busch Stadium"