Chase Field

On March 9, 1995, Major League Baseball awarded a new Major League Baseball franchise to the City of Phoenix, therefore construction of a new field was scheduled. Construction of the stadium began on November 16, 1995 and its architecture was similar to a massive airport hangar. It was designed by the architectural firm Ellerbe Becket whose principal designer was Bill Johnson. A retractable roof enclosure was chosen due to the high heat in Arizona, moreover it is air conditioned and its roof can close in five minutes. After the first week of May, many games are played with the roof closed.

The building was developed at a cost of $ 354 million ($ 414 million by some estimates) including $ 238 million paid by Maricopa County (the county owns the stadium) and $ 85 million by the owners of the Diamondbacks. The rest was funded by naming rights.

Originally known as Bank One Ballpark, the land was renamed Chase Field on September 23, 2005 following the merger between Bank One and JP Morgan Chase. Chase pays $ 2.2 million a year until 2028.

The Arizona Diamondbacks made their debut at the compound on March 31, 1998. More than 3.6 million visitors filled the building to assist the team in their first season. The least common device at the stadium is the swimming pool, which is located behind part of the right field fence. In addition to the pool, the Chase Field has many amenities such as the Baseball Hall of Fame which is located at the Cox Clubhouse. Visitors can view videos and displays detailing the history of baseball at the Fox Sport Net Arizona Diamondtown. New for the 2008 season, the new high definition scoreboard is located in the center field. Its dimensions are 14 meters high and 41 meters wide, its cost was $ 14 million. It’s the 2nd largest HD screen in Major League Baseball after Kauffman Stadium2.

Although the Arizona Diamondbacks are one of the youngest franchises in Major League Baseball, the team has had success in its recent history winning the World Series in 2001 against the New York Yankees.

Among the major events that took place at Chase Field we can remember games 1, 2, 6 and 7 of the 2001 World Series, the Insight Bowl which took place each year between 2000 and 2005 and the visit of President George W. Bush in October 2004 for his election campaign. In 2006 and 2007, the stadium hosted the Challenge at Chase, which is a baseball game between the two state varsity teams, the Arizona Wildcats and the Arizona State Sun Devils. Chase Field will host the 2011 Major League Baseball All-Star Game on July 12, 2011. Chase Field will host wrestling history for the first time on January 27, 2019 with the Royal Rumble (2019)