In Chicago, Mark Gonzales wrote teams “no longer will need to worry about the white advertising panel that caused a distraction” at Busch Stadium during Cubs-Cardinals on Sunday. MLB yesterday said that the panel behind home plate, which “altered” Cubs 2B Javier Baez' vision and turned a potential double play into a single by SS Aledmys Diaz in the third inning, “will be changed soon.” MLB officials had “internal discussions regarding the play and the sign, which met MLB standards last season.” But after “further discussion that involved MLB's baseball operations department, the decision was made to change the signs with white backgrounds” (CHICAGOTRIBUNE.com, 4/3).
NET GAINS: In N.Y., Zach Schonbrun writes a N.Y. City Council member “alarmed by the number of fans injured by foul balls” at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field is “preparing to propose legislation that would require those stadiums to construct protective netting to reach the ends of both dugouts.” Council member Rafael Espinal’s bill, “to be introduced this month, would require the netting to be extended to 90 feet from home plate” (N.Y. TIMES, 4/4).
THE COST OF WINNING: In Chicago, Robert Reed writes one of the “more glaring examples of local ‘surge pricing’ emerges next Monday around Wrigley Field, just in time” for the Cubs’ home opener. Reed: “Taking advantage of anticipated sky-high demand for parking, the city this year is doubling the meter rate to $4 an hour for up to seven hours for about 1,100 selected street spaces around the ballyard during games and concerts.” The plan is “estimated to bring in an additional” $1.5M in revenue (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/4).
