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For the first time in 77 years, San Jose’s venerable Municipal Stadium has a new name: Excite Ballpark, Home of the San Jose Giants. It’s the product of a three-year sponsorship deal with Excite Credit Union, the new name of longtime team sponsor Alliance Credit Union.
So will the name excite fans at the team’s home opener on April 11?
An entirely unscientific survey of responses on Facebook when I shared the news resulted in average answer of “Meh.” Some people liked it, a few weren’t thrilled with the name “Excite” but most seemed to be indifferent, figuring this is how the business of sports works and expecting to still refer to it as Muni the way they always have.
San Jose Giants CEO Dan Orum and Excite Credit Union CEO Brian Dorcy made the announcement at Tuesday’s FanFest event in advance of Thursday’s season opener in Visalia. They did not reveal an exact figure but said the overall sponsorship package was in the six-figure range. (For fans, though, the most exciting part of FanFest wasn’t the stadium name news but the appearance of catcher Joey Bart, the Giants’ top pick in 2018.)
On Tuesday, temporary banners were unveiled with the new name, which also was displayed on the scoreboard screen in center field. More signage will pop up as the season progresses, though the painters have had their brushes full replacing all the references to AT&T Park to Oracle Park. Sweatshirts emblazoned with “Municipal Stadium” were still for sale at the team store, and you might want to grab one in case they become collectors’ items.
Even the Giants are still getting used to the new name. Mark Wilson, the team’s chief operating officer, said there’s a side bet for front office staff that anyone who calls the park “Muni,” needs to throw $10 into a pot. Wilson said he was up to $30 already — including one slip during the press conference — where he welcomed Manager Bill Hayes back to the Park That Shall Not Be Called Muni. If I had that deal, I’d be broke by June.
The concrete ballpark opened in 1942, a WPA project from the Roosevelt Administration, and has played host to a variety of San Jose baseball teams, including the Bees, the Missions and, for the past 32 years, the Giants. Given its age and the number of baseball stars who have played there — including Hall of Famer George Brett and current Giants Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner — it’s amazing that the city has never designated it a historic landmark. One potential benefit of the naming-rights deal is that it almost ensures that the Giants will be playing there for the next three years, though the team has not been shy about its desire to have a modern facility in San Jose.
Personally, Municipal Stadium always struck me as a dull name (much like the downtown Civic Auditorium), but Muni is too ingrained for me to possibly call it anything else. For most people like me, the charm of the stadium has never been about its name but its atmosphere, whether it’s Turkey Mike’s BBQ, the Churro Guy, the Beer Batter, the bingo games, evening fireworks or watching kids run around the bases after a game.
It’s all that — as well as watching tomorrow’s baseball stars today — that gets fans excited. And as long as that doesn’t change, I’m OK with them calling the stadium Excite Ballpark instead of Muni.
