Texas Rangers: Globe Life Field Opening at the Right Time

The Texas Rangers are ending 2018 and embarking on one more season in Globe Life Park before moving to new ballpark, Globe Life Field, in 2020.

As the Texas Rangers wrap up 2018 eyes are already on next season when Texas hopes to be a bit more competitive. But 2019 isn’t the season Rangers fans should have their eyes on. Rather, we should be looking ahead to 2020 and the opening of the new home of the Texas Rangers, Globe Life Field. The new ballpark is set to be ready for 2020 Opening Day and will be the talk of the town as the new digs are set to have a retractable roof and be more confined in hopes of creating a more intimate ballpark experience. While some fans are frustrated with the move from Globe Life Park which is a relatively young stadium opened in 1994.

The main reason cited for the construction of Globe Life Field is weather which the retractable roof hopes to fix. With temperatures regularly in upper 90’s and hitting triple digits, summer attendance has been down for a number of seasons which prompted the move. On July 22nd, temps reached 108 degrees.

Beyond just the hope of attracting more fans, a stadium with a roof could also help Texas attract free agents, something they’ve struggled with in years past. It’s hard to attract players to Arlington for 81 games a year primarily logged in the summer. Players, while often placing winning and contracts as the highest priority, also want to be comfortable in their new homes when signing as free agents. Hopes are, that a ballpark which can cutdown on the beatdown of summers in Texas would be a draw for potential new players. Additionally, a park with state of the art features would drum up some interest from those players.

The timing of the opening of Globe Life Field though is the best part of all. With the Rangers clearly not giving the AL West many problems in 2018 or 2019 for that matter, many fans have their sights set on 2020 as the year to see the “new and improved” team. Many of the Rangers young prospects look to be on a path to the majors by that point meaning a large influx of young talent to open up our new home. Not only will this be a recruiting pitch for the 2019 winter but may help Texas attract a big name player this offseason. We covered awhile back three starting pitchers the Rangers should pursue this offseason and to me, the idea of headlining a young, talented club, and opening up a new ballpark just a year from now could help create some serious interest. While some disagree that 2020 should be circled as the goal for the Rangers and their ability to chase the postseason again, I view 2020 as the real jumping off point for the “new Texas Rangers”.

While the idea of leaving Globe Life Park may not be one fans are fully supportive of, realizing the potential of Globe Life Field and what it can do for the organization should have plenty of fans excited about the possibilities just a short season away.