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Young Drachma · 09-28-2007, 05:50 PM

BEES TO PLAY IN HARTFORD
The Providence Bees will play their first two seasons at a football stadium. UConn's Rentschler field outside Hartford will be the home to the team. This is in anticipation of their new stadium, CVS Field, to be build at Providence Place by 2005.

The stadium was not built for baseball, it's mainly home to the University of Connecticut football team, but when the Bees came calling, the city and university were more than happy to accomodate, as well as fill an entire slate of summer dates at the field for the next two years.

"We're extremely excited about being in New England," said a team official, who confirmed the team would be named the Providence Bees. Did he worry that fans in Hartford might not want to see a team that's not theirs?

"We see this team as a team for all of Southern New England. Basically there wasn't a team anywhere here between Boston and New York. Anyone who is from here or who has spent significant time here understands that this is a very distinct place from the urban landscapes of Boston or New York and so, we think this fits well and that fans will be receptive to the new ballclub," said a team official regarding the move away from Salt Lake City.

The team is likely trying to capitalize on the excess market capacity created beyond the New York metro area, into Hartford which is its own metro and TV market, as well as Providence, which gives them some penetration into the Boston market.

"If this could create a New York style rivalry in Boston with the Yankees, that might be an intriguing plot for baseball," said Boston Globe writer Dan Schultz.

Meanwhile, others are worried that the increased presence of baseball in the northeast is bad for the sport long term.

09-28-2007, 05:50 PM	#96
Young Drachma Dark Cloud Join Date: Apr 2001	BEES TO PLAY IN HARTFORD The Providence Bees will play their first two seasons at a football stadium. UConn's Rentschler field outside Hartford will be the home to the team. This is in anticipation of their new stadium, CVS Field, to be build at Providence Place by 2005. The stadium was not built for baseball, it's mainly home to the University of Connecticut football team, but when the Bees came calling, the city and university were more than happy to accomodate, as well as fill an entire slate of summer dates at the field for the next two years. "We're extremely excited about being in New England," said a team official, who confirmed the team would be named the Providence Bees. Did he worry that fans in Hartford might not want to see a team that's not theirs? "We see this team as a team for all of Southern New England. Basically there wasn't a team anywhere here between Boston and New York. Anyone who is from here or who has spent significant time here understands that this is a very distinct place from the urban landscapes of Boston or New York and so, we think this fits well and that fans will be receptive to the new ballclub," said a team official regarding the move away from Salt Lake City. The team is likely trying to capitalize on the excess market capacity created beyond the New York metro area, into Hartford which is its own metro and TV market, as well as Providence, which gives them some penetration into the Boston market. "If this could create a New York style rivalry in Boston with the Yankees, that might be an intriguing plot for baseball," said Boston Globe writer Dan Schultz. Meanwhile, others are worried that the increased presence of baseball in the northeast is bad for the sport long term. Last edited by Young Drachma : 09-28-2007 at 05:51 PM.