Things certainly are being thrown together in Tucson for the 2011 season, as the former Portland Beavers will be playing as the Tucson Padres (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) at Kino Stadium after negotiations to place the team in Hi Corbett Field fell through.
The name selection was made without the selection of the promised name-the-team contest. The debate over a new ballpark in Escondido certainly delayed things, but a bigger delay came over a debate over where the team would play: the Padres preferred to place the T-Pods at Hi Corbett Field, a much more historic and cozy venue. But Jay Zucker, the former owner of the Tucson Sidewinders (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) and Tucson Toros (independent; Golden Baseball League), holds the lease at Hi Corbett despite having no plans to field a team there this season, and attempts to take over the lease fell through.
Kino Stadium, by the way, is the former Tucson Electric Park: the utility’s naming-rights deal expired.
A group led by San Diego Padres owner Jeff Moorad is slated to close on a purchase of the Bevos today. The team is expected to play at Kino Stadium for at least two seasons.
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