The Art of Naming Ballparks

In case you haven't heard, the White Sox stadium -- which has been known as US Cellular Field since 2003 -- will be renamed Guaranteed Rate Field. Gross, I know.

For whatever reason, baseball stadiums sound better when they're named after the team (Yankee Stadium), surrounding streets and neighborhoods (Fenway Park), or even owners (Comiskey Park).

Guaranteed Rate Field isn't the problem. The problem is the rate is .475. #whitesox

— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) August 24, 2016

Jerry Reinsdorf and the White Sox, who have had a litany of bad PR this season, did not do themselves any favors with this announcement. When your team is winning at a .475 clip despite having two pitchers who rank in the top 8 for WAR this season (Jose Quintana 4.8 and Chris Sale 4.3), fans are going to be upset when you name your stadium 'Guaranteed Rate Field.' It's clunky and dorky sounding -- it's a mortgage company, after all. I understand not every owner can name their field after the team or pull from it's history. Obviously with players' salaries, TV deals, and merchandising opportunities, owners take every opportunity to sell naming rights. Even if they don't go as far to sell the actual name, they will allow for gigantic signs in right field for certain triangle-shaped airlines. Naming a stadium is a tricky task. The beauty of baseball is that history plays such a key factor, and ballparks -- even if there are only 6 in the league built before 1989 -- are a huge part of that history. Fenway's Green Monster was built because it was squeezed-into the neighborhood it is named after. The rooftop seats that surround Wrigley Field are a unique character of the park, necessary because there are only a limited number of seats in the actual stadium. Dodger Stadium is built into a mountain and the original Yankee Stadium (including the 1970's renovated one) was the most hallowed grounds in sports because larger-than-life legends called that place home. What if Steinbrenner had renamed Yankee Stadium when it was renovated? Would Fenway have the same luster if it were called 'John Hancock Field'? What if Wrigley sold it's naming rights: 'Allstate Insurance Park' or 'McDonalds I'm lovin' it Field'? That would suck! Even if a stadium is sold for branding rights, it doesn't have to be bad. 

Guaranteed Rate Field? In 1953 MLB would not allow St Louis Cardinals to play at "Budweiser Stadium." pic.twitter.com/XrvhAlt96L — Todd Radom (@ToddRadom) August 24, 2016

Busch Stadium sounds cool. It's not a tongue-twister and it's been that name for a long time. Sure, maybe fans of St. Louis were upset in 1953 when the renaming happened, but something tells me they quickly got over it considering St. Louis has since built a new stadium and kept the name 'Busch'. In 50 or 60 years will fans of Chicago talk about their memories at 'Guaranteed Rate Field' (or 'GRate Field'? 'The Rate'?) Probably not. I'm sure for fans in the South Side of Chicago, those 13 years will be long ones.

"I'll park down by Guaranteed Rate Field and take the Red Line up to meet you." "where?" "US Cellular Field." "where?" "Comiskey. "OH."

— lakeline (@lakeline) August 24, 2016