Arizona governor signs $500K bill for upgrades to Chase Field
June 28 - The Arizona Diamondbacks' home venue, Chase Field, will be upgraded after Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs signed a bill Friday earmarking $500 million toward renovations.
The measure will direct sales tax collected at the Phoenix stadium and nearby buildings, plus taxes from some club employees, to be used for the facility improvements.
The Diamondbacks have also pledged $250 million to the project.
Hobbs signed the bill in a ceremony attended by Diamondbacks players Corbin Burnes and Corbin Carroll.
The governor tweeted, "I'm not going to let Arizona lose the Diamondbacks. Today, I signed a bipartisan deal to keep the @Dbacks in downtown Phoenix -- creating good-paying jobs and making sure families can enjoy baseball for generations. Let's play ball!"
Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall told Phoenix's 12News, "We weren't sure what Plan B was going to be if we couldn't fund this building in a renovation. I'm grateful to (Hobbs). She's a supporter. She's a baseball fan, a Diamondbacks fan, and I'm a fan of hers."
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said of the news, "This is an unbelievable measure. This was something that was passed and has been in the works for a long time. ... I'm grateful for everybody making the sacrifice and saying, 'Let's keep the Arizona Diamondbacks in Arizona where they belong.'"
Upgrades will be made to Chase Field's retractable roof and to the venue's air conditioning in addition to other infrastructure areas.
Attendance is up in Phoenix this year, two seasons after the Diamondbacks won the National League championship before falling to the Texas Rangers in the World Series.
Arizona lost another major sports team last year when the NHL's Coyotes moved to Salt Lake City and were renamed the Utah Hockey Club and subsequently the Utah Mammoth.
--Field Level Media
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
18 minutes ago
- The Independent
Aryna Sabalenka ‘learnt a lot' from reaction to losing the French Open final
World number one Aryna Sabalenka has been able to clear the air with Coco Gauff after her emotional reaction to losing the French Open final to the American earlier this month. The Belarusian was heavily criticised after attributing the defeat to her own mistakes rather than Gauff's performance, and apologised both privately and publicly for describing the match as the worst final she had played. The two players looked to have put those hostilities firmly behind them in social media clips posted from Wimbledon on Friday, and Sabalenka was contrite in accepting the negative response her comments prompted. She said: 'I've always been really good with Coco. Honestly, as I said in the statement and I messaged to her, I didn't really want to offend her. 'I was just completely upset with myself, and emotions got over me. I just completely lost it. 'I did what I did. I get what I deserve, I believe. It was a tough time for me. The lesson is learned. 'Honestly, I'm kind of glad what happened to me at Paris, because I was able to learn a lot. 'I was able to sit back and be open to myself, not just to ignore some things. I think I realised a lot of things about myself in those last stages of the tournament. 'We spoke with the team. I think we learned something. I really hope it will never happen again.' Sabalenka, who is up against Canadian Carson Branstine in the first round, has no qualms about facing Gauff again should the two end up involved in a rematch in the Wimbledon final. 'If I make it to the finals, I don't care (who I play), but also I would love to face Coco,' she said. 'If she's going to be there, I'm happy because I want to get the revenge!'. Sabalenka has been limbering up for the tournament by having a hit with both Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner, with the former happy to offer advice drawn from his vast experience. She said: 'Novak is the best. First of all, I was able to hit with him, which not every guy would be able to do. Then you can chat with him, he will give his honest advice. 'It's amazing to hear opinions of such a legend. We were just chatting about stuff that I'm struggling with a little bit. I'm really thankful for the advice he gave me. 'It was a 30-minute chat. If you give opportunity to Novak to talk, he's not going to stop! I wish I could stay there for four hours and just keep chatting, but we all have our schedule. 'Honestly, I hit with Jannik for like, I don't know, 10 minutes – I was exhausted! 'An hour with Novak…now I'm recovered. I needed a day of recovery but it was a great experience. When you see someone like Jannik or Novak, you learn from them. You reflect what they do on court. It was great for me.'
Daily Mail
22 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Top 10 highest paid Aussie jobs
Surgeon - $472,475 Anaesthetist - $447,193 Financial dealer - $355,233 Internal medicine specialist - $342,457 Psychiatrist - $286,146 Other medical practicioners - $259,802 Mining engineer - $206,423 Judicial and legal professionals - $206,408 CEOs and managing directors - $194,987 Financial investment advisor or manager - $191,986
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Jake Paul 'didn't respect Mike Tyson' and built boxing resume with easy wins, says Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
Saturday's Jake Paul-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. boxing match in Anaheim, California isn't a title fight, or even a prelude to a title fight, but that doesn't render it meaningless. Amid the sport's lingering fascination with 'crossover' or 'influencer' fighters – those whose celebrity originated outside the ring – Chavez has a chance to expose Paul in a way many assumed Mike Tyson would last November. Of course, Paul breezed by the former heavyweight champion, who looked every bit his 58 years of age during the eight-round snoozer. Worst of all, the fight failed to legitimize Paul and instead served to delegitimize influencer boxing in the eyes of casual fans. Enter Chavez, who previously said he'd retire if he ever lost to Paul, and now criticizes his upcoming opponent for taking the Tyson fight in the first place. '[Paul] entered boxing and he's very popular, so he takes the right opposition,' Chavez told Daily Mail ahead of Saturday's DAZN live stream. 'So he picked Tyson [to make] himself, like, more popular. I don't like this... because Mike Tyson is a legend and he's a senior now, he's not active. So [Paul] didn't respect Tyson.' Chavez can't match Tyson's credentials in the ring, but at 'only' 39, the former WBC middleweight title holder is a warm body and not yet eligible for AARP membership. Mike Tyson (in black short) and Jake Paul (in silver short) exchange punches during their heavyweight world titles of the Premiere Boxing Championship in November of 2024 The son and namesake of one of Mexico's greatest champions, Chavez has been fighting pro since 2003, when Paul was just entering in primary school. And unlike the former YouTube and Disney star, Chavez hasn't been forced to carry around the disparaging label of 'crossover fighter.' These days, Chavez is less dismissive of Paul, who has worked himself into a capable boxer since entering the sport with knockout wins over YouTuber AnEsonGib and former New York Knicks guard Nate Robinson. 'He's a boxer, you know, so that's the only word I can say about Jake's career,' Chavez said. 'So that's it, you know, I want to see him with me. He knows how to fight, but I want to see him in different situations.' Chavez's use of 'different situations' is a bit cryptic, but he appears to be saying Paul has avoided any real danger in the ring, which may be true. Even in Paul's lone defeat, a split-decision loss to Tommy Fury in 2023, the Problem Child wasn't dropped. In fact, Paul claims he's never even been knocked down in sparring. Naturally, Chavez sees himself as the fighter to end that streak. He captured the WBC middleweight title and improved to 46-0-1 with a TKO win over Ireland's Andy Lee in 2012. And while that proved to be the peak of his career, Chavez has since fought and lost to highly rated pros like Sergio Martinez, Andrzej Fonfara, Canelo Alvarez and Daniel Jacobs. These days, Chavez appears to be wrapping up a once-promising career. He's fought only once in the last four years, beating converted kickboxer Uriah Hall by unanimous decision last July. Prior to that, he dropped a 2021 split decision to UFC legend Anderson Silva, who actually lost a boxing match to Paul the following year. It was around this time that his career looked about finished. Both Chavez Jr. and his boxing brother Omar were told by their father to 'retire' due to poor training and conditioning. 'I prefer that they retire if they are not going to prepare correctly,' Chavez Sr. told reporters. 'They do not prepare in the best way possible to fight.' Chavez Sr. had been closely involved with his sons' training earlier in their careers, but there has been public friction between himself and Chavez Jr. in the last few years. The younger Chavez accused his father of domestic violence, while the elder Chavez offered some cryptic comments about his sons. 'Unfortunately, even though they saw all my stumbles and they saw all my drug addiction, it seems that they followed my behavior and for me, it has been extremely complicated and difficult because I know what it's like to be locked up.' Now, though, Chavez Jr. said he and his famous father have a good relationship, although the Hall of Famer hasn't been involved in his son's training for Paul. 'When you say you have a good relationship, it's because you have problems before,' Chavez Jr. told Daily Mail. 'So yeah, we have great relationship. Still have some disagreements, but I'm OK.' Chavez's father isn't the only boxing figure to criticize his dedication to training. Speaking with Bloody Elbow ahead of Saturday's fight, long-time boxing commentator Max Kellerman acknowledged: 'Jake is a larger guy naturally and, like I said, he is a dedicated fighter. Chavez has not been.' But in speaking to Daily Mail, Chavez insisted he's had a good training camp and dismissed any notions of ring rust, saying he's stayed active in the gym despite his relative inactivity. 'Depends how you stay in the gym,' Chavez said of avoiding ring rust. 'You're still sparring, you stay in the gym, focused, ready, I don't think that's [too] bad. But if you don't train, you know, stay out the boxing and try to come back two months be back, of course it's not good. The best is to stay active and train.' Chavez has dealt with his share of issues away from boxing. Like his father before him, he's battled substance issues. What's more, he's been arrested on drunk-driving charges and for allegedly possessing a ghost gun. He would later plead not guilty in the firearm case and agreed to enter residential treatment program. But for all of those distractions in his recent past, Chavez insists his life now revolves around the gym. 'Train hard, rest, eat, focus,' he said. 'I trained for five months, rested a month, then started running, training, and now I already have three months of sparring.' He may not be putting the finishing touches on a Hall-of-Fame career, but Chavez has the chance to make a statement against Paul. And if that ultimately derails influencer boxing, then it would stand as the most impactful victory of Chavez's under-appreciated career.
