Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

Lore & Background

The stadium was built after the city of Arlington approved a referendum in January 1991, with over 65% of voters approving a deal that allowed the city to cover 71% of the costs. Construction began on April 2, 1992, and the ballpark opened on April 1, 1994, with an exhibition contest between the Rangers and the New York Mets. The first official game was on April 11 against the Milwaukee Brewers. The naming rights changed several times: Ameriquest bought the rights in 2004, renaming it Ameriquest Field in Arlington; the Rangers severed that relationship in 2007, renaming it Rangers Ballpark in Arlington; and Globe Life and Accident Insurance Company bought the rights in 2014, naming it Globe Life Park in Arlington. In 2021, Choctaw Casinos & Resorts bought the naming rights, renaming it Choctaw Stadium. The largest crowd to watch a Rangers baseball game was 52,504 fans on October 22, 2011, for Game 4 of the 2011 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

In Their Own Story

The late afternoon sun casts long shadows across the warning track as the crowd begins to settle into their seats. The air is thick with the scent of hot dogs and fresh-cut grass, a familiar perfume in Arlington. A veteran fan adjusts his cap, eyes fixed on the pitcher's mound where a rookie winds up for the first pitch. In the stands behind him, a group of friends begins the rhythmic clapping that signals 'The Texas Two-Step,' their voices rising in unison to cheer the team on. The stadium hums with an electric anticipation, a living testament to decades of history unfolding on this very diamond.

Reader's Guide

The stadium was designed by architect David M. Schwarz in a retro-style, incorporating features from classic ballparks such as a roofed home run porch reminiscent of Tiger Stadium, a white steel frieze copied from pre-1973 Yankee Stadium, an out-of-town scoreboard built into the left-field wall (removed in 2009), and nooks and crannies in the outfield fence reminiscent of Ebbets Field. The facades are made of brick and Texas Sunset Red granite, with bas-relief friezes depicting scenes from Texas and baseball history. The stadium has three seating tiers: lower, club, and upper deck, with two levels of luxury suites. There are a large number of obstructed-view seats. The stadium was renovated for football and soccer in 2020, with many lower sections removed to make room for a rectangular field.

Did You Know?

• The stadium replaced Arlington Stadium and was itself replaced by Globe Life Field in 2020.
• The home plate from Arlington Stadium was inserted into place by then-Mayor Richard Greene, Elzie Odom, and George W. Bush.
• Six Flags announced a lease for office space at the stadium in 2021, but the stadium was not used as a tenant in the traditional sense; the company plans to move its headquarters there by March 2027.
• The stadium's naming rights have changed four times: The Ballpark in Arlington, Ameriquest Field in Arlington, Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Globe Life Park in Arlington, and Choctaw Stadium.