Kansas City to host 2012 All-Star Game

[High Mileage]

Sorry Boston, but you had 1999...

 

KC to get All-Star Game in 2012

By SAM MELLINGER

The Kansas City Star

 

ST. LOUIS | First thing you see is a giant baseball, 12 feet in diameter, signed by Derek Jeter and Ted Williams and Hank Aaron. It’s in Guinness World Records, and sort of an unofficial welcoming here at baseball’s All-Star FanFest.

 

It’s also a heck of a metaphor for what’s coming to Kansas City.

 

Before the end of the season — most likely next month — baseball commissioner Bud Selig will confirm that Kansas City will play host to the All-Star Game in 2012, according to sources.

 

It will be our first national sporting event since the Final Four in 1988, and it very well could be our last for decades.

 

Everything that’s happening this week in St. Louis will happen three years from now in Kansas City. The planning, at least in the abstract, has already begun. Cities like ours don’t get many chances at making a national impression.

 

It is a whirlwind of craziness, and with President Barack Obama throwing out the first pitch, the joke around St. Louis is that you’ll be in line at a security checkpoint with rapper Nelly behind you and a Clydesdale in front of you.

 

This is the show that’s coming to Kansas City.

 

“There’s so many things we could do,” said Kevin Uhlich, the Royals executive in charge of the plans. “We have so much real estate out here. We could develop a village in the parking lot. You know, sort of like for the Super Bowl.”

 

•••

 

The advice out of St. Louis is to have fun with it. That’s what they’re trying to do. The best baseball players in the world are coming to town. A concert by Sheryl Crow and Elvis Costello raised a reported $1 million for cancer research.

 

This modest market in Missouri will have the attention of a supposed 100 million people worldwide on television. This should mean excitement, and sometimes it does.

 

Too often it means paranoia.

 

“I’m chuckling at it sometimes,” said Cardinals president Bill Dewitt. “It’s like, ‘Did you see that corner a block from the stadium that’s got a broken curb? We need that fixed. This is the All-Star Game!’ It’s definitely a heightened sense of ‘We’ve gotta put on a show.’ ”

 

Everything is being magnified here, from the greatness of the Cardinals’ Albert Pujols and the city’s Italian restaurants to St. Louis fans’ self-promotion as the best in baseball.

 

It’ll be that way in Kansas City, too — 2,500 media representatives and tens of thousands of people traveling in to eat our barbecue and talk about Zack Greinke.

 

The Chamber of Commerce will love this, of course, but it also means that Kansas Citians may need to thicken their skin.

 

Whenever a big-time event like this is held outside places like Miami or San Diego or Phoenix, it’s become an almost expected side-sport for people to blast the economy in Detroit (Super Bowl XL), the traffic in Houston (2006 NBA All-Star Game) or, well, just about everything in Jacksonville (Super Bowl XXXIX).

 

“I’ll tell you how Jacksonville looked at it, and I’m sure Kansas City will do the same thing,” said Gene Frenette, a longtime sports columnist for the Florida Times-Union. “If you have to take a few potshots along the way to host a major sporting event like that, then whatever barbs get thrown your way, all the businesses that get people to stay in their hotel rooms or eat at their restaurants will be more than quick to take that in exchange.”

 

Ron Watermon, the Cardinals executive and point man for this week’s plans, says when the event is in St. Louis now and Kansas City later, it will turn the Show-Me State into the Watch-Me State.

 

It’s been said that if pessimism were a product, it would be Missouri’s No. 1 export.

 

And here might be a good place to mention the potential challenges.

 

•••

 

Kansas City’s FanFest will almost certainly be at the Convention Center. The headquarters hotel will probably be somewhere on the Plaza. There will need to be a free and frequent shuttle system.

 

Throw in the eternally threatening local weather — Kansas City’s forecast for today, for instance, is temperatures in the upper 90s with possible thunderstorms — and there will be a great deal of planning and finger crossing.

 

“Every city has logistical issues,” said Bob DuPuy, president of Major League Baseball. “I actually think it’s an advantage to have the All-Star Game in smaller cities. New York (in 2008) was a wonderful place, but New York continues to be New York. You walk around St. Louis this weekend and the All-Star Game is everywhere. It’ll be like that in Kansas City, too.”

 

DuPuy was talking at the opening of a youth baseball field in St. Louis’ urban core, which was paid for with the expected revenue from Monday’s Home Run Derby. It’s been reported that the “leave behind” from this week’s festivities will be about $2 million in charitable work.

 

That number can be backed up with Saturday night’s concert and other events, but be skeptical when you start to hear about the All-Star Game’s supposed $70 million boost to local economies. Independent studies have shown that while the game may produce tens of millions of dollars in revenue, there is actually very little or no impact on local economies.

 

First, not all the money spent in Kansas City will stay here. Some of it goes to shareholders in New York.

 

Second, not all of the revenue is new spending money. Some of it is being spent only on All-Star events instead of at other businesses.

 

And third, many other economic activities get crowded out by All-Star visitors.

 

“Cities do a pretty good job of adding and multiplying the numbers, but they don’t do a good job of subtracting,” said Victor Matheson, an economics professor at College of the Holy Cross who has done multiple studies on this. “It’s absolutely possible that these things can make you happy, but you shouldn’t expect them to make you rich.”

 

•••

 

Kansas City voters in effect turned down a Super Bowl and potential Final Fours when they rejected giving money to put a rolling roof over Arrowhead Stadium. But they did receive assurances from Selig two years ago that an All-Star Game would accompany the approved renovations to Kauffman Stadium.

 

That means that unless and until the Royals make the World Series — insert joke here — the 2012 All-Star Game could be Kansas City’s last truly national sporting event for a generation.

 

The last All-Star Game in Kansas City was 1973, the first year of then-Royals Stadium. It was something of a coming-out party for Kansas City.

 

In 1973, there were 450 reporters and 50 million people watching worldwide in 11 countries. It was a reported $500,000 boost to KC.

 

Now, there are 2,500 media members and 100 million people watching in more than 230 countries. There’s the reported $70 million boost — though, as Matheson says, that number can be deceiving.

 

Behind the scenes, that giant baseball is already tumbling toward our city.

 

“We can’t wait,” Uhlich said. “We’re not on that national level all that often. We want to show people what we have to offer.”

[Cocos Disciples]

Aww shucks.

[TheKilo]

It's not finalized.

[High Mileage]

It's not finalized.

 

I'd be more than okay with this...

 

2011: Chase Field

2012: Fenway Park (100 year anniversary)

2013: Kauffman Stadium (40 year anniversary)

2014: Wrigley Field (100 year anniversary)

[High Mileage]

If you are the Royals, not only are your revenues light, but the commissioner's office has threatened to take away your 2012 All-Star Game if you go ahead with the agreements you have in place with two high picks.

 

f*** Bud Selig. I take it with a grain of salt, though. Not sure where Gammons is coming from with the light revenues comment, as attendance is up significantly, meaning not just more in ticket sales, but more sales in everything. All the additions to the ballpark have to be absolutely bringing in the cash...

[Dojji]

Seriously? they'd take the all star game from KC because they're signing prospects to overslot deals?

 

idiots. This is exactly what KC needs to be doing right now. Don't punish them for it!

[yeszir]

I bet KC wouldn't even sell out the All Star Game

[High Mileage]

I bet KC wouldn't even sell out the All Star Game

 

You don't know what you're talking about. Attendance is not a problem in KC.

[Dojji]

True. You give Royals fans any hope of a good year and attendance tends to average 20K a game or more, even after the demoralizing, crushing years they've had to endure. They're better in their own way than the old Fenway Faithful.

[suns]

Man I wanted the all star game in boston for the 100th year anniversary.

[TheKilo]

True. You give Royals fans any hope of a good year and attendance tends to average 20K a game or more' date=' even after the demoralizing, crushing years they've had to endure. They're better in their own way than the old Fenway Faithful.[/quote']

 

I'd love to hear an explanation for this one.

[Dojji]

You know as well as I do the times in our history, essentially in the 50's, when crap teams were met with no attendance to speak of.

[CrespoBlows]

You know as well as I do the times in our history' date=' essentially in the 50's, when crap teams were met with no attendance to speak of.[/quote']

 

Jesus......

[Keeper]

True. You give Royals fans any hope of a good year and attendance tends to average 20K a game or more' date=' even after the demoralizing, crushing years they've had to endure. They're better in their own way than the old Fenway Faithful.[/quote']

 

No offense to Royals fans, but it's not even close. The East Coast (particularly the Yanks and the Sox) have the most hardcore and devoted baseball fans on the planet.

[High Mileage]

No offense to Royals fans' date=' but it's not even close. The East Coast (particularly the Yanks and the Sox) have the most hardcore and devoted baseball fans on the planet.[/quote']

 

The time those franchises have been around and the population of their areas have a great impact on that...

[Keeper]

Nevertheless, it is an indisputable fact.

[jamestcusa]

yes it may be an indisputable fact but how in any way is this fair??? Boston got it in 1999 which btw was just 10 years ago and will be 12 years ago in 2012...where the Royal' last one had it back in 1973 which will be 39 years years since the last one. Now if Boston wants to be greedy selfish sobs than sure let em have it but it just wouldnt make any sense : /

[Emmz]

Last post: 07-28-2009, 02:16 AM

[redsoxrules]

yes it may be an indisputable fact but how in any way is this fair??? Boston got it in 1999 which btw was just 10 years ago and will be 12 years ago in 2012...where the Royal' last one had it back in 1973 which will be 39 years years since the last one. Now if Boston wants to be greedy selfish sobs than sure let em have it but it just wouldnt make any sense : /

 

nobody cares about Kansas City

[Emmz]

He's a troll.... Or spammer, or something

[bsox0407]

yes it may be an indisputable fact but how in any way is this fair??? Boston got it in 1999 which btw was just 10 years ago and will be 12 years ago in 2012...where the Royal' last one had it back in 1973 which will be 39 years years since the last one. Now if Boston wants to be greedy selfish sobs than sure let em have it but it just wouldnt make any sense : /

 

Its the Royals. when was the last time they put a winning team on the field.

[Emmz]

For God's sake this thread is 4 months old....

[bsox0407]

For God's sake this thread is 4 months old....

 

at least its not 4 years old like the one about how good this site is.

[asiatext]

thanks for this useful and informative posting here. its so useful for me thanks for sharing this with us.

[Mr Crunchy]

As recently as 1995 you could walk into any game the sox were playing at 630pm and get a ticket, the yankee weekend and friday evening games were the only exception...Now after 7 seasons of sellouts did anyone notice the price of playoff tickets on line? 80.00 for lower level bleacher seats were abundant for game 3....The sox didnt start drawing 2M a year steadily till Clemens came out of nowhere in 86 and won the Cy and MVP.

The sox didnt start averaging 30K a season consistantly till 1999, the did have some 30K years sporadically after 86-99 but by and large they'd pull 28-29K a game thru the late 80s and 90s.

The Royals used to be a good team, after the A's dynasty was purchased by Steinbrenner the A' won the AL West year in and year out with some dynamic offensive players and usually a good pitcher or 2 but since they won it all in 85 its been downhill ever since.

Why are they rewarding the Royals with anything?

20 years of finishing last doesnt entitle you to s*** but the park they have is cute with its water fountains and vegetation growing out there...I simply dont understand the novelty of having an allstar game there, whats the purpose of playing in KC rather than St Louis for example?

[Emmz]

thanks for this useful and informative posting here. its so useful for me thanks for sharing this with us.

 

 

This is like, the post of the year. He can't believe how useful the information regarding the location of the 2012 All Star Game is.

[11coreya]

biggest all star game mistake. first 100 year old stadium and it doesnt get respected. kc can wait a year. they havent done anything to earn it yet