The Vancouver Canadians are back at Nat Bailey Stadium for a six-game home stand after a two-week road trip, and observant fans may be surprised as they arrive at what is now labelled "Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium."
As we reported in April, Rogers Communications obtained the naming rights to the City-owned stadium.
Until this week, all that really meant was a new "Rogers Field" sign above the scoreboard in centerfield, and the team using the name "Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium" in press releases, on tickets, and on other official documents.
No fans will ever call it that.
In fact, some would even be surprised to learn that the day before Rogers got the naming rights (and for many years prior to that) the stadium was officially called "Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium."
No fans ever called it that, either.
The new signage out front certainly isn't ideal, and, to the nostalgic, it may appear to take more than it gives, but it's the one we have now. And fans can rest easy knowing that investments in the stadium are on the horizon due to naming rights deals like this one.
As our baseball columnist Ryan Beil wrote back when they announced the naming rights and name change, it will always be "The Nat" to us fans, regardless of the name that's painted on it.
However, if anybody ever decides to paint over the "The Nat" mural outside the stadium on the east side, with Jennifer Ettinger's mural of Jackie Robinson under it, I promise to start a one-man boycott.
I will rip up one of my season tickets, post up under the cedar hedge and listen to the game on the radio. For one game. And then I'll go back inside and watch my team, with my friends, inside the best stadium in Canada.
Go C's!
