The Cubs' "much-hyped Wrigley centennial season arrives" today with their home opener against the Phillies, and team owners the Ricketts family are "making Wrigley look more like a museum than a ballpark" in '14. The team "created giant banners of eight numbers – '1-9-1-4' and '2-0-1-4' – and plastered them on Wrigley's front facade." Above those banners is a "long, horizontal banner reading 'IT'S THE PARTY OF THE CENTURY.'" Several banners showing the official Wrigley 100 logo are displayed on the outer walls of the upper deck archways, and "six large banners denoting the history of the Cubs' logo are hung outside right field" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/4).
Meanwhile, the Blue Jays tonight will host the Yankees in their home opener at Rogers Centre. Both tonight's and tomorrow's games "have been sold out (approximately 48,000) with another 35,000 expected to be on hand for the series finale on Sunday." Blue Jays President & CEO Paul Beeston, when asked how another losing season might affect the team’s fan base, said, "I’m worried. ... We owe it to the fans, if we’re going to keep them, to actually win" (GLOBE & MAIL, 4/4).
The Royals will have an "anticipated sellout crowd of 40,000" at Kauffman Stadium for their home opener against the White Sox (KANSASCITY.com, 4/3).