Blue Jays’ home needs ‘major renovation’
Many upgrades planned for Rogers Centre
TORONTO — Fans who pictured the Blue Jays playing on natural grass in 2018 could be in for a letdown.
They may find other fan-friendly changes at the Rogers Centre by then, but the popular real-grass project is not a guaranteed top priority for new CEO Mark Shapiro as he reviews an array of possible stadium upgrades.
The 26-year-old Rogers Centre needs a “major renovation,” both to its infrastructure and to the amenities necessary to provide fans a “compelling” ingame experience, Shapiro said.
His comments came during a discussion over lunch with members of the Toronto chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. New general manager Ross Atkins and assistant GM Tony LaCava also attended the annual get-together.
Asked whether he believes natural grass is needed at the Rogers Centre, Shapiro replied: “My opinion is, we don’t need it. My opinion is, clearly (natural grass) would be better. It’s just a question of the alternatives and what we are going to have to choose between.”
Those choices will appear on a “laundry list” of possible stadium upgrades that Shapiro hopes to present to owner Rogers Communications by the end of the year. Some structural changes are essential to extend the stadium’s life. Other improvements, such as the grass project, will be optional. What gets done will depend on cost.
No price tag is yet available for the enormous retrofit needed to accommodate a grass playing surface. The University of Guelph is working on a feasibility study to determine the type of grass that could grow under the dome and the engineering changes — mainly drainage and ventilation — needed to make it happen. But that study has not reached the stage where a price tag can be affixed.
Former president Paul Beeston said the project could cost between $200 million and $400 million.
In substance, Shapiro’s comments were not far removed from those of Beeston, whom he replaced as president and CEO on Nov. 1. But Beeston waxed far more enthusiastically about the proposition, repeatedly mentioning opening day 2018 as an apparently realistic target date. His fervour caught on with the fan base, although he never said the project was a certainty.
Shapiro did say “it’s possible” that a dirt infield could be cut into the existing AstroTurf in time for next season. But he also stressed that all upgrades in the capital budget he inherited from Beeston are under review.
He refused to speculate where the natural-grass project would sit on the priority list.
“We’re going to have to prioritize,” he said. “It’s like anything in life; you’re not going to be able to do the entire laundry list. On that list likely will be grass, once we are certain it can be done, and then understand the cost implications of doing it.”
Both Shapiro and LaCava said they feel the current AstroTurf, installed before this past season, more closely approximates natural grass than previous versions.
Balls that used to scoot to the outfield wall now slow down in plenty of time for outfielders to intercept them, and players’ complaints have dwindled.
“There’s not as many leg and back complaints,” LaCava said. “You don’t hear much of that at all. I think it’s playing more like grass than anything we’ve ever seen.”
Shapiro said he has heard of no free agents eliminating Toronto as a possible destination because of having to play on artificial turf.
“It’s obviously ... more fun to watch with natural grass, but being a dome, I think the turf plays extremely well right now,” Shapiro said.
He seemed far more intent on modernizing the in-game experience for fans. When the stadium opened in 1989, many fans sat with scorecards and pencils and paid close attention to the games, he said. Their alternative was to stay at home and watch on standard-definition TV. Now they can watch at home on 60-inch HD TVs (or larger) with surround sound.
The challenge is to give them reasons to leave home and come to the ballpark, he said.
“When you look at the modern fan, they’re watching the game very differently,” Shapiro said.
“In fact, a lot of them are at the game but not watching the game. They want to be at the game. They want to be with their community, with their friends, but they want to periodically watch the game.
“When you look at modern ballparks, you’ve got to provide a diversity of experiences for the way different people want to consume the game.”
Of course, as the Jays proved for two months last season, a winning team also gets fans out of their homes. Shapiro and Atkins insisted the roster, as currently constructed, can continue that trend.
“It feels like a team that’s capable of winning the World Series next year,” Shapiro said.
The Jays entered the off-season needing rotation help. They re-signed Marco Estrada, recruited free agent and ex-Jay J.A. Happ and traded for journeyman Jesse Chavez. Marcus Stroman and R.A. Dickey return.
Atkins likes that look as a complement to baseball’s best offence.
“My opinion is, we don’ t need it. My opinion is, clearly( natural grass) would be better. It’s just a question of the alternatives. MARK SHAPIRO CEO, TORONTO BLUE JAYS