2020 marked the first year that the Texas Rangers played in their beautiful new ballpark, Globe Life Field.
Globe Life Field, which was built as a public-private partnership between the City of Arlington and the Rangers, is not only the team’s new home but also a multipurpose sports and entertainment venue that will include capabilities for hosting numerous local, regional, and national events.
Globe Life Field is the third home park for the Texas Rangers. After moving to Texas for the 1972 season, the franchise played at Arlington Stadium through 1993. The Ballpark in Arlington, which was later known as Ameriquest Field, Rangers Ballpark, and ultimately Globe Life Park in Arlington, was the team’s home from 1994-2019.
Location
The street address for Globe Life Field is 734 Stadium Drive, Arlington, TX 76011.It is located on a 13-acre site just south of Globe Life Park in Arlington on property that was previously parking for that ballpark. Globe Life Field is bordered by Randol Mill Road on the north, Stadium Drive on the east, Cowboys Way on the south, and Johnson Creek on the west.
History
The Rangers and the City of Arlington announced the master agreement for a new ballpark partnership on May 20, 2016 with unanimous approval for the agreement coming from the Arlington City Council on May 24, 2016. Arlington’s ballpark bonds to finance the project were approved by voters in a City referendum on November 8, 2016. The Rangers and Globe Life And Accident Insurance Company (Globe Life) announced an extension of their naming rights partnership that established Globe Life Field as the name for the new ballpark on August 24, 2017.
The official groundbreaking for Globe Life Field took place on September 28, 2017 with construction being completed in less than 30 months.
Size
Globe Life Field measures 1.8 million square feet, 400,000 square feet more than Globe Life Park. At its highest point, GLF is 278 feet from the playing field to the top of the retractable roof. Each exterior side measures 785 by 815 feet. The park has six entry points, the Northwest, North, Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and VIP entry on the West side.
Retractable Roof
The 5.5 acre retractable roof is one of the most prominent features of Globe Life Field and will provide shade and cooler temperature 365 days a year, keeping the average temperature in the mid-70’s. It is the largest single-panel operable roof in the world and weighs 24 million pounds. The roof is comprised by a white rubber membrane on the north and south sloped planes, and the flat center is covered with 223 clear panels made of ETFE (ethylene tetrafluoroethylene), a transparent plastic polymer related material, allowing for natural light to fill the entire facility. The roof structure consists of five steel trusses and tie-in steel between each truss, and its construction required 19,000 tons of steel. The roof can open in approximately 12 minutes.
Playing Field
Synthetic Grass: Globe Life Field features a specially designed synthetic grass playing surface that was provided by Shaw Sports Turf with installation completed by Texas-based Paragon Sports Constructors. The choice to go with Shaw Sports Turf was rooted in data, and supported by extensive research as it relates to player safety. The goal was not to only have the highest performing synthetic grass but also to have the highest performing surface for baseball. GLF’s playing surface is the B1K natural system, which employs a natural, sustainable infill called Geofill. The system results in excellent ball surface and player surface interaction. B1K is a dual fiber turf system comprised of Shaw’s high-performance Strenexe® XD slit film and Bolt® monofilament. This system provides excellent durability and functionality by minimizing the infill from “splashing,” maintaining adequate infill levels across the field. The Bolt fiber provides realistic ball roll, friction and natural grass aesthetics. The Geofill infill used in the system is made of coconut husks and fibers, which is a rapidly renewable resource. The infill requires much less water than natural grass.
A concrete subsurface is the base of the turf system, which is extremely flat to accommodate the turf system, its buildup and layers, a drainage mat and a shock-resistant mat. The infield and warning track will be clay surfaces, There will also be a retractable mound for easy storage during non-baseball events on the field.
Field Dimensions: The distances from home plate to the outfield walls were designed to honor the five Rangers whose numbers have been retired by the club. In addition, the distances in the left field and right field power alleys recognize two early seasons in Rangers’ history.
Globe Life Field Dimensions
Left Field Line: 329 feet (Adrian Beltre’s #29)
Left Field Power Alley: 372 feet (Rangers’ first year in Arlington--1972)
Center Field (straightaway): 407 feet (Ivan Rodriguez’ #7)
Deepest Distance of Park (both left and right of straightaway CF): 410 feet (Michael Young’s #10)
Right Field Power Alley: 374 (The Turnaround Gang, 57 to 84 wins--1974)
Right Field Line: 326 feet (Johnny Oates’ #26)
In addition, there is a distance marker in left field at 334 feet from home plate to recognize Nolan Ryan’s #34. The distance from home plate straight back to the wall of the Field Suites is 42 feet, which honors Jackie Robinson’s #42.
The outfield walls are eight feet in height from the left field foul pole to the right field foul pole. The batter’s eye structure in centerfield is 120 feet in length and 40 feet high.
The Rangers’ bullpen is situated in right field with the visiting bullpen in left field. Texas’ dugout is on the first base side, and the visiting team utilizes the third base dugout. The playing field orientation (line from home plate to pitcher’s mound to second base) at Globe Life Field runs East Northeast as opposed to East Southeast at both Arlington Stadium and Globe Life Park.
With Globe Life Field’s retractable roof closed, the distance from home plate to the bottom of the roof truss is 193’, 10”, and the distance from second base to the bottom of the roof truss is 210’, 6”. The bottom of the right field video board, which measures 58 feet high and 150 feet long, will be 131”. 4” from the warning track.
Comparison of Field Dimensions
| Globe Life Park | Globe Life Field | |
|---|---|---|
| 332' | Left Field Line | 329’ |
| 390’ | Left Field Power Alley | 372’ |
| 400’ | Center Field | 407’ |
| 407’ | Deepest Distance of Park | 410’ |
| 381’ | Right Field Power Alley | 374’ |
| 325’ | Right Field Line | 326’ |
Seating
The overall capacity of Globe Life Field is approximately 40,300 on seven seating levels. The facility was designed to bring fans “closer to the action” from every seat. The distance from the main concourse to the field is just 160 feet, compared to 174 feet at Globe Life Park. The distance from the upper concourse to the field is just 184 feet, compared to 207 feet at Globe Life Park.
Globe Life Field gives fans not only up-close and interesting vantage points to watch the game but also spectacular views, both inside and outside of the ballpark. Fans walking along the main concourse can enjoy a 360-degree unobstructed view of the field, and that is also the case on the majority of the upper concourse.
Transparent building materials appear all around Globe Life Field to create the ballpark’s wide-open views and let in natural light. In addition to panels of ETFE, in the roof, there are other translucent panels around the ballpark, and glass can be found on all four sides of the ballpark.
The park provides a unique seating experience for all fans. Globe Life Field features some of the top premium seating in Major League Baseball. There are 12 field suites located directly behind home plate as well as low-level club seating down both the first and third base lines. The park has 71 long-term Founders, Legacy, and Classic Suites and 16 Party Suites that can accommodate from 30 to 420 individuals. The Lexus Home Plate Club, Evan Williams First Base Lounge, Germania Third Baseball Lounge, Balcones Speakeasy, and Stubhub Club provide numerous food and beverage options for premium seat holders
Seats in all levels at Globe Life Field measure at least 19 inches in width as compared to 18 inches in Globe Life Park. The tread widths of the seating bowl are also wide than at the old park, measuring 34 inches in the lower bowl and 33 inches in the upper deck.
Materials
A number of different materials, the majority of which were produced in Texas, that reflect the elements of form and structure, transparency, and landscape, were used on interior and exterior construction of Globe Life Field. These include:
Steel – Irwin Steel – Justin, Texas
Brick – Acme Brick – Denton, TX
Curtainwall System – OldCastle – Alba, Texas
Masonry Veneer – ACME – Denison, Texas
Precast Walls – Enterprise – Corsicana, Texas
Limestone – Mezger – Lampasas, Texas
Granite – Coldspring - Cold Spring, Minnesota
Three Layer ETFE – Vector-Foiltec - Germany
All Metal Panels – Centria - Sheridan, Arkansas
Insulated Translucent Panels – CPI Daylighting - Lake Forest, Illinois
One of the best architectural features at Globe Life Field are the brick arches that run along the ballpark’s north façade. These arches are reminiscent of the exterior of Globe Life Park.
Video Boards
A number of different materials, the majority of which were produced in Texas, that reflect the elements of form and structure, transparency, and landscape, were used on interior and exterior construction of Globe Life Field. These include:
Steel – Irwin Steel – Justin, Texas
Brick – Acme Brick – Denton, TX
Curtainwall System – OldCastle – Alba, Texas
Masonry Veneer – ACME – Denison, Texas
Precast Walls – Enterprise – Corsicana, Texas
Limestone – Mezger – Lampasas, Texas
Granite – Coldspring - Cold Spring, Minnesota
Three Layer ETFE – Vector-Foiltec - Germany
All Metal Panels – Centria - Sheridan, Arkansas
Insulated Translucent Panels – CPI Daylighting - Lake Forest, Illinois
One of the best architectural features at Globe Life Field are the brick arches that run along the ballpark’s north façade. These arches are reminiscent of the exterior of Globe Life Park.
The Ballpark Design and Construction Team
Nationally renowned sports and entertainment design firm HKS was the architect for Globe Life Field. HKS, which has its main headquarters in Dallas, served as architect-of-record on then The Ballpark in Arlington (now Globe Life Park in Arlington), which opened in 1994. Manhattan Construction Company was the project’s General Contractor after previously serving in that role for The Ballpark in Arlington. Approximately 2,000 individuals worked nearly six million man hours to build Globe Life Field.
Cost
The project cost for Globe Life Field is approximately $1.2 billion. The master agreement for this public-private partnership calls for a 50-50 split between the Texas Rangers and the City of Arlington, with the City’s financial contribution capped at $500 million. The City’s contribution be will funded by a ½ cent sales tax, 2% hotel tax, and a 5% car rental tax. The Texas Rangers’ original 30-year lease on the City-owned Globe Life Park in Arlington was set to end in 2024. With the new master agreement, the Rangers’ partnership with Arlington extends until January 1, 2054.
