LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — For an idea of what the planned new A's ballpark on the Strip will feel like, its designer says look no further than the home stadiums for the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox.
"The (ballparks) we've been comparing to the most, tirelessly, are Fenway Park and Wrigley (Field)," says Bjarke Ingles, founder of the BIG design firm. "Those parks actually have that intimacy and proximity that we're looking for."
The new A's ballpark is expected to have only 33,000 seats, smaller than most Major League Baseball venues.
But the smaller footprint — the ballpark will be built on a 9-acre site — will likely mean there won't be a bad seat in the house when it opens, which is projected to be 2028.
"You really want to get in as close as possible and get a feel for the force of all the fans yelling at the same time," Ingles says.
Those fans won't be yelling for a while, but Las Vegas did get a taste of A's baseball over the weekend when the team played the Milwaukee Brewers in two spring gaming exhibition games at Las Vegas Ballpark.
Over 17,000 fans flocked to the home of the minor league Las Vegas Aviators, an A's farm team.
John Fisher, the A's owner, attended the games, as did other members of the team's front office.
"I want fans to look at the (new) stadium and say 'wow, this is something like I've never seen before,'" Fisher said.
While the design of the new park has a futuristic feel — it's a domed venue with a lot of glass and an "armadillo shell" that controls sunlight let into the facility — Ingles hopes fans will feel a part of the game because the players will be so close to them.
And as for the questions about the size of the piece of land the A's want to build on — 9 acres, which is tiny compared to other MLB footprints — Ingles says he's not worried at all.
He says the size of the lot is "perfect" for the masterpiece that he wants to build.
The cost of the ballpark is expected to be about $1.5 billion dollars. The Tropicana will close April 2 to make way for it to be razed, then construction is expected to start on the stadium in April 2025.
