Petco Park will host the '16 MLB All-Star Game, marking San Diego's "third time hosting" the event, according to a front-page piece by Dennis Lin of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. The Padres previously hosted the All-Star Game in '78 and '92. The '16 game "is scheduled for July 12." Outgoing MLB Commissioner Bud Selig "typically granted even-year games to American League cities, alternating with National League sites in odd years." This July's game will be played in Cincinnati, and until last month, "many had viewed Baltimore as the favorite" to host in '16. The "last time the same league hosted the All-Star Game in consecutive years" was Pittsburgh in '06 and S.F. in '07. However, the Padres "forged an aggressive path in recent months" to land the game. The Padres in November "embarked on a multi-million-dollar renovation of the left-field seating area" at Petco Park. The additions include what will be the "largest video board" in the NL. It had been "previously speculated that the Padres would bid" for '17 or '19, with the latter game "coinciding with the franchise's 50th anniversary" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 1/16). The Orioles had been seen for months as the presumptive favorite for the game, with Selig last summer saying the team was a "very, very viable candidate." But MLB sources said the Orioles ultimately did not provide all the required submission materials for the event. They denied that the spurning of Baltimore had any connection to the media rights lawsuit between the Orioles-controlled MASN and MLB (Eric Fisher, Staff Writer).
CHANGING THE LANDSCAPE: In San Diego, Jeff Sanders noted a closer look at the Padres' landscape the last 10 years would have "made for an uncomfortable family portrait." Former Owner John Moores' "messy divorce" forced him to "slash payroll and ultimately put the club up for sale." Two of the team’s "biggest stars," P Jake Peavy and 1B Adrian Gonzalez, were "traded away in back-to-back years." But following seven losing seasons in the last eight years, the landscape has "changed dramatically" even since August, when Padres President & CEO Mike Dee’s "decision to dedicate a plaza to Selig seemed to further enrage Padres fans." It is a "good thing the decision" to hire GM A.J. Preller has "since paid off." Since assuming control of the Padres’ baseball ops, Preller has acquired three All-Stars -- CF Matt Kemp, LF Justin Upton and C Derek Norris -- and "completed more than a half-dozen trades and signings to overhaul a previously middling roster." Sanders: "Consider the needle moved" (UTSANDIEGO.com, 1/15). A SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE editorial states Thursday's announcement only "adds to the sense of excitement that has been building around the team after its recent aggressive moves to bring in fresh talent" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 1/16).
ARCHITECTURAL ADVANTAGE: In L.A., Bill Shaikin reports the Dodgers are "increasingly optimistic that the long wait to return the All-Star game to Dodger Stadium is nearing an end." Dodgers Chair Mark Walter said, "I have reasons to believe L.A. is going to get an All-Star game soon." Walter "did not elaborate, but he and Dodgers President & CEO Stan Kasten have lobbied for the game to return to Dodger Stadium for the first time since" '80. The Dodgers owner Guggenheim Partners have "put more than $150 million into stadium renovations." Selig has said that the "criteria for awarding a game should consider new ballparks as well as those with extensive renovations." But it is "unlikely that MLB would play an All-Star game in Southern California in consecutive seasons." The Marlins and Nationals are "under consideration" for the '17 game, with the "loser likely to compete with the Dodgers" for the '18 nod (L.A. TIMES, 1/16). USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale notes the Marlins are "confident they will host" the '17 event (USA TODAY, 1/16).
