Globe Life Field - Arlington, TX - Professional Sports Venues on Waymarking.com

The Texas Rangers began life as an expansion team, the Washington Senators, after the city of Washington DC was awarded a new franchise to replace their longtime Washington Senators team after that team moved to Minnesota became the Twins. The team's run in the nation's capital was ultimately unsuccessful, and Arlington mayor, Tom Vandergriff, spearheaded the movement that brought the team here in 1972 to become the Texas Rangers. Vandergriff is honored with a plaque and jersey inside the stadium, and a statue outside near the center field entrance.

The Ballpark in Arlington across the street was opened in 1994 to replace the venerable Arlington Stadium (since demolished) that had served the Texas Rangers since 1972. It is a lengthy conversation to cover why The Ballpark was constructed without a roof to offer protection from the heat and rain, especially since Houston constructed the Astrodome to escape the same kind of weather that their team suffered while playing at Colt Stadium. The Astrodome's replacement, Minute Maid Park, also has a retractable roof, but players and fans were treated to more of the same here in Arlington at a beautiful facility that should have had cover in the first place.

In 2016, the Rangers decided to make a change, commissioning this park. The Ballpark in Arlington, now known as "Globe Life Park in Arlington", continued its service while the new park was constructed. Scheduled to open in March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic interfered, and the Rangers did not play their first official game here until July 24, facing off against the Colorado Rockies, whom they had faced several days earlier for a pair of exhibition games. They're playing on turf here.

Globe Life Field's inaugural year included hosting the 2020 National League Championship Series and the World Series, acting as a neutral site, and there were some graduations held here before the season started. While baseball is the main game, the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association held the National Finals Rodeo here in 2020, and at least two Commander Classics will be played here between Army and Air Force. Globe Life Park in Arlington will probably see more non-baseball events, but the new park will certainly have its share, too.

The stadium's address is 734 Stadium Drive, but obviously, it's hard to miss once you're in the area. There are a few team-related memorials outside of center field, including a sculpture of Tom Vandergriff, one of Bengie Molina and Neftalí Felíz "going to the World Series", a large baseball glove, and closer to home plate is a bigger-than-life Pudge Rodríguez.

Inside, there are three decks, and as we're in the 21st century, there are all kinds of amenities for food and beverage, including a few places to get Blue Bell ice cream. Yes, you can find barbecue, and there are a few well-stocked bars and even craft beer to be found (Karbach Brewing has a location in left field.). There are also grab-and-go locations that are stands modeled after convenience stores where there are shorter lines for bottled drinks and snacks. Be aware that everything is cashless, and they do have some ATMs. There's free wi-fi, but there aren't any dedicated places to plug in your gadgets to recharge. Team artwork, photos, and jerseys can be seen throughout the park, and the team's banners and retired numbers are up high in left field. Scoreboards in left and right fields will keep spectators up-to-date on matchups on the field, and there's a smaller electronic board in center field where they'll flash lineups, league scores, or other bits of information (like how far that last home run was ... if the Rangers hit it, expect fireworks).

While it may be hot or miserable with rain outside, expect to enjoy a game time temperature of 72° when the roof is closed. They appear to either have the roof open or closed, depending on the weather, with no sightings of the roof's being rolled back mid-game like they do in Houston.

It's the home of which team(s)?: Texas Rangers Which professional sports are played here?: Baseball Capacity (number of seats): 40,300 Opening Date: 07/24/2020 Guided Tours: yes Venue's Website or Team's Website: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
1) Tell how was your visit. Were you at a game, which one? Have you just visited it by the outside, on a guided tour maybe? Are you a fan?

2) Pictures:
- They should be taken by YOU.
- No internet pictures are allowed.
- Upload one photo, at least. It would be great if you'd upload one of the venue and one with you on the photo.
- No need of photos with the GPSr.
- Extra credits for photos inside, with the teams playing.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/03/2022 sundevil1994 visited it