The Colorado Rockies certainly hope that what happened in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas… at least as far as the offense is concerned. As for the pitching, well…
The Rockies’ three-game series in Vegas with the host Athletics – late of Oakland, recently of Sacramento and soon-to-be of Sin City – certainly raised eyebrows around MLB. Including three games against the Milwaukee Brewers that were played prior to Colorado’s arrival last weekend, the six matchups averaged 17 runs per game. There were 35 homers hit and 102 runs scored, including the Rox putting up 23 in the finale. The average MLB game features about nine runs per contest.
Outdoor baseball in the summer in Las Vegas has always been a nightmare for any pitcher. The hot, dry air, at an elevation of more than 3,000 feet above sea level, with hard, dry concrete-like dirt surfaces make ground balls and fly balls alike an adventure for fielders. There’s a good reason why talent evaluators look at Pacific Coast League hitting stats with skepticism.
By contrast, when the A’s played at the old Oakland Coliseum, they had one of the most pitcher-friendly confines in the game. Cool, often damp – especially at night – baseballs hit anywhere between straight away left field and straight away right field typically just died in midair. Featuring a high mound and ample foul territory, it was the opposite of the Las Vegas Ballpark in every way imaginable. A great place to pitch.
This was the first time bi- league teams competed for real in the high desert. Sunday’s slugfest was the finale as far as the current PCL ballpark in the suburb of Summerlin is concerned. The Triple-A Aviators will continue to play there, but when the A’s move south permanently, it will be into a brand new, state-of-the-art baseball stadium located on the famous Las Vegas Strip.
The new home of the Athletics will open in time for the 2028 season, and will be an old-fashioned, climate-controlled dome. The elevation will be closer to 2,000 feet. They will employ a humidor, and the playing surface will be more controlled as well by a top-shelf grounds crew. So while no one knows for certain how baseballs will move and travel, the game’s second-highest elevated ballpark will probably still be very hitter-friendly.
Will it be enough to get critics to stop bashing Coors Field? Perhaps. But what’s more likely is that purists will start to complain about both.
And what happens if there’s an upset in the selection process for MLB’s next round of expansion? What if Salt Lake City gets awarded a Major League franchise? SLC is more than 4,200 feet above sea level, with a climate that mirrors Denver’s. It’s got everything you need in a big-league city, and would be a fantastic place to put a new team. Better than Vegas in many ways, although SLC does lack for other… distractions.
While expansion remains on hold, everyone who follows the game will remain curious to see what happens when the new Vegas baseball stadium opens, and watch to see if what happens there is worth keeping quiet about… or not.
