MLB first regular-season games in Mexico City

Article posted by Coliseum, September 8^th, 2022

Image: Diablos Rojos

The Major League Baseball (MLB) announced recently that there will be a series in Mexico City (Mexico) for the first time – in the regular season – next year. The MLB teams San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants will do battle for a two-game series in the Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium in Mexico’s capital and largest City – Mexico City – on April 29^th-30^th, 2023.

‘CBS Sports’ stated that Mexico City is about 7,200 feet above sea level, or much higher than Denver in Colorado (US), home to the 50,398-capacity Coors Field. The Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium is only 325 feet down both lines and 400 centerfield, so the conditions should be ripe for the ball to fly out of the yard, especially on any balls hit down the foul lines.

The Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. As of 2022, a total of 30 teams play in Major League Baseball – 15 teams in the National League and 15 in the American League – with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada.

The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego, US. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MB) as a member club of the National League West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL pennants – in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both years.

The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League West division.

The Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium is the home baseball stadium of the Red Devils (professional baseball team) of Mexico in Mexico City, inaugurated on March 23^rd, 2019. With a capacity of 20,576 seats, it became the first stadium built in the City in the last 50 years.

The Diablos Rojos del Mexico is a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Mexico City, Mexico. The team was founded in 1940 by Salvador Lutteroth and Ernesto Carmona. The Diablos Rojos play their home games at the Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium.

‘CBS Sports’ further stated that the ballpark opened in 2019 with a game between the home Diablos and the Padres, obviously an exhibition. In 2020, there was a series scheduled between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Padres, but the COVID-19 pandemic ruined those plans.

The MLB has played regular-season games in Mexico before, but they were all in Estadio de béisbol Monterrey.

The Estadio de béisbol Monterrey is a ballpark located in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. It was built in 1997 and has a capacity of 27,000 people. It is the home stadium of the Sultanes de Monterrey of the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol (Mexican League). It is one of the largest baseball stadiums in the Mexican League.

Padres Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Erik Greupner said in a statement, “The Padres are excited to return to Mexico and play in the first regular season series in Mexico City in MLB history. We are fortunate to have a loyal and passionate fan base in Mexico, and it will be an honor to showcase our team in Mexico’s capital City at the beautiful new ballpark built by and named after Padres minority owner Alfredo Harp Helú.”

Added Giants President Larry Baer, “It will be an honor to represent Major League Baseball, as well as San Francisco, at the historic Mexico City for the first time ever. We look forward to bringing the Giants and Padres rivalry to a passionate sports fan base and it will be a great opportunity to introduce the Giants to an international audience to further develop new fans across all of Mexico.”

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