Dangerously hot summers lead Texas Rangers to seek park with a retractable roof

Texas may be getting its second retractable-roofed major league baseball stadium following the Texas Rangers' proposal to build a replacement for their current 22-year-old ballpark, Globe Life Park. While a retractable roof often serves to keep a park dry in cities like Seattle, the Rangers' roof, like the Houston Astros', is meant in part to protect players and fans from the dangerous heat of Texas summers, where it can get to 90 degrees or hotter during the games.

The Rangers' lease on Globe Life Park doesn't expire until 2024, but the new ballpark is expected to be in service before then. While Globe Life was built for $191 million back in 1994, the new stadium is expected to cost north of the $500 million mark (the Miami Marlins' new retractable-roofed park, for example, cost $639 million).

The construction of the park will be up for voters in Arlington, Texas, to approve, and would be likely paid for using sales taxes and public revenues — a method many critics call absurd.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up