Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington is a ballpark in Arlington, Texas, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It was known until May 7, 2004, as The Ballpark in Arlington when Ameriquest bought the naming rights to the ballpark and named it Ameriquest Field in Arlington. Even with the changed name, many fans continued to refer to it as simply “The Ballpark” or “The Temple.” On Monday, March 19, 2007, the Texas Rangers severed their relationship with Ameriquest and announced that the stadium would be named Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

	Capacity		49,115
	Opened		April 1, 1994
	Owner		Arlington Sports Facilities Development Authority
	Cost		$90 million
	Architect		David M. Schwarz/Architectural Services, Inc., HKS, Inc.

The stadium was constructed as a replacement for nearby Arlington Stadium. It is home to the American League’s Texas Rangers, and the Legends of the Game Baseball Museum.

The stadium is home to the Major League Baseball team, the Texas Rangers, and the Legends of the Game Baseball Museum.

Funding was approved for a new home for the Texas Rangers in 1991 by the City of Arlington. Construction began on April 2, 1992 a short distance away from Arlington Stadium, the ballpark it would replace, and the new Ballpark in Arlington was opened on April 1, 1994 in an exhibition contest between the Texas Rangers and the New York Mets. The first official game was on April 11 against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Rangers chose to build a retro-style ballpark along the lines of Oriole Park at Camden Yards and Jacobs Field. However, unlike those stadiums, which were situated on irregular plots of land in crowded downtown areas, Ameriquest Field was built on one of the old Arlington Stadium parking lots. Thus, the irregular dimensions of the outfield were planned independently rather than forced by neighboring structures.

This stadium was the site of the 1995 MLB All-Star Game. It also hosted the first regular season interleague game on June 12, 1997, when the Rangers played the San Francisco Giants.

On May 7, 2004, Rangers owner Tom Hicks announced that he had negotiated a sale of the naming rights of the stadium to home mortgage company Ameriquest. The contract was worth $75 million over 30 years.

The home plate and foul poles were originally at the old Arlington Stadium.

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Ameriquest Field in Arlington wikipedia entry
Texas Rangers website

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