Rogers Centre | History

As the only sports and entertainment venue of its size and design in Canada, Rogers Centre is one of the most dynamic and versatile entertainment facilities in the world. From music and sport to trade and community events, some of the most iconic athletes, rock stars, entertainers, religious figures, and inspirational leaders have delighted audiences since the stadium¡¯s spectacular opening on June 3, 1989.

Formerly known as SkyDome, the venue was renamed Rogers Centre on February 2, 2005. Structurally, the building remains much the same today as it was when it opened in 1989; however, on July 28, 2022, the Toronto Blue Jays announced a multi-year nearly $400 million privately funded renovation that transformed Rogers Centre from a multi-purpose stadium into a ballpark. This phased project, designed in partnership with architectural firm Populous, is by far the largest renovation in the building¡¯s history, though over the years, Rogers Centre has undergone smaller-scale changes, including widened concourses; updated suites; installation of an innovative lighting system; and new video, audio, and broadcast technology.

This impressive technology includes cutting-edge Daktronics video and ribbon boards debuted in 2022, replacing the system that had been in place since 2005. The 10mm LED videoboard includes an 8,076 square-foot display, with the centre screen measuring 47 feet tall, flanked by two lower wings stretching 258 feet. The 16mm LED ribbon boards are 1,334 feet long, wrapping along the 300 level fascia. With the upgrade, resolution improved 2.5-times to 1080p HD.

The 2022 season also saw the introduction of a state-of-the-art LED Musco lighting system, including brand new backend infrastructure, making Rogers Centre the first Major League ballpark (along with the Miami¡¯s LoanDepot Park) to have independent red, green, blue, and amber fixtures, enabling a lighting display of millions of colours and scene options. The previous system was installed in 2011, with original backend infrastructure from the building¡¯s opening, and with the new system, hydro consumption was reduced by two-thirds. With more than 2.5 kilometres of fiberoptics and 40,000 feet of copper wire instantaneously controlling 532 LED fixtures (47 colour-changing; four bullpen; and 16 ball trackers), stadium lights can even dance to the beat of music.

Beyond stadium audio and visual technology, the Blue Jays playing surface has evolved substantially throughout its history.

This included a major shift ahead of the 2016 season, with the infield retrofitted from its original state of four separate concrete pits filled with dirt to form each base, to an all-dirt infield. The new dirt infield allows for greater material depth, ensuring the best quality infield surface and more consistency across the league. Now approximately 12,000 square feet, the infield is made up of five distinct layers: the under fill ¨C the existing sand and gravel base below the concrete floor; a two-inch layer of pea gravel for excess water drainage; a four-inch layer of sub-angular sand to manage moisture; six-inches of baseball dirt made up of 60% sand, 20% clay, and 20% silt, processed specifically for baseball fields; and finally, top dressing ¨C a loose layer of calcined and vitrified clay material. The pitcher¡¯s mound is constructed on a fibreglass dish that is lowered and raised by a hydraulic system.

The remainder of the field is a permanent AstroTurf? Diamond Series turf system, installed for the 2022 season to improve safety and playability, replacing the previous convertible system introduced in 2015. It was updated again in 2024 as part of the second phase of Rogers Centre renovations and is made up of a Brock shock pad installed over the concrete subgrade, covered by turf made up of three fibres ¨C polyethylene monofilament, slit film, and rootzone fibres ¨C and infilled with subangular sand and granulated rubber.

Rogers Centre's 2022 to 2023 offseason renovation completely redesigned the Blue Jays outfield to modernize the fan experience and add nuance to how the park plays. Prior to the renovations, the stadium was one of two remaining MLB venues to have both symmetrical outfield dimensions and wall heights, previously measuring 328 feet down the foul lines, 375 feet to the power alleys, and 400 feet to dead center field, with 10-foot-high walls. The new outfield walls added variations in heights, depths, and angles, creating a distinct and dynamic ballpark character:

• Left Field Line: 328 feet; wall: 14 feet 4 inches
• Right Field Line: 328 feet; wall: 12 feet 7 inches
• Left Center: 368 feet; wall: 11 feet 2 inches
• Right Center: 359 feet; wall: 14 feet 4 inches
• Left Center Power Alley: 381 feet; wall: 12 feet 9 inches
• Right Center Power Alley: 372 feet; wall: 10 feet 9 inches
• Straight Away Center Field: 400 feet; wall: 8 feet

The newly renovated Outfield District opened for the 2023 season, transforming the fan experience at the ballpark. This phase of renovations introduced new social spaces to gather with friends and get closer to the action, live entertainment off the field, and food and beverage menus that reflect the city of Toronto. New social spaces included The Catch Bar, TD Park Social, and the Corona Rooftop Patio, available for any fan with a ticket.

The next phase of renovations broke ground in the 2023 to 2024 offseason, focused on demolishing, excavating, redesigning, and rebuilding a completely reimagined 100 level seating bowl designed specifically for baseball viewing. Completed for the Blue Jays Home Opener on Monday, April 8, 2024, all 100 level seats were reoriented towards the infield, and designed with a more comfortable experience in mind, including optimized sightlines, additional legroom, cupholders throughout, modern-shaped seats, fewer seats in each row, and handrails in every aisle.

By demolishing the original bowl, the club was able to remove outdated infrastructure and excavate below ground to create new space for player and fan amenities, including new clubhouse and player facilities and three new premium clubs behind home plate ¨C Rogers Banner Club, TD Lounge, and Blueprint Club. To bring fans closer to the action, foul territory was reduced by approximately 3,000 square-feet, and larger dugouts were introduced.

While Rogers Centre has evolved into a baseball-first venue, the original engineering was some of the first of its kind. One of the unique original features was the ability to modify the 100 level seating bowl between two modes ¨C baseball and football ¨C to fit the needs of any event. Prior to the 2023-2024 renovations, the 100 level seats sat on a railway track system that could rotate within hours.

The most remarkable feature, still in use today, is a fully retractable roof converting the ballpark into an open-air venue and rotating back in less than 30 minutes to ensure that no event needs to be cancelled due to inclement weather. The roof system features a series of three moveable and one stationary panel, which takes approximately 25 minutes to fully open or close. The roof weighs 11,000 tons and covers an area of 339,343 square feet, with the highest point standing 282 feet above field level.

Architects Rod Robbie and Michael Allen designed the building and patented its retractable roof system. Preparation of the site began in April 1986, with ground-breaking in October of that same year. The last exterior concrete was poured in November 1988, and the first test of the moveable roof panels was performed in January 1989. More than 10,000 person-years of employment were created with the construction of Rogers Centre.

Legends is the exclusive food and beverage supplier of Rogers Centre.

Conveniently located in the heart of Toronto¡¯s vibrant downtown community, at the base of the CN Tower and close to the Entertainment and Financial Districts, the ballpark is easily accessible via the TTC and GO Transit.

The entire Rogers Centre complex spans 12.7 acres (5.14 hectares). The building itself takes up 11.5 acres (4.66 hectares).

The diameter of the building is 700 feet while the volume inside the stadium with the roof closed is 56.5 million cubic feet (1.6 million cubic meters).

On average, it takes approximately 40 hours to convert the field from baseball to concert mode.

Seating bowl capacity: approximately 40,000

Suites: 120 suites are located on the 300 and 400 levels of the venue.

Premium clubs: there are three premium clubs located beneath the 100 level seating bowl ¨C TD Lounge, Rogers Banner Club, and Blueprint Club ¨C as well as Ticketmaster Lounge on the 300 level and TD Clubhouse on the 200 level

The Toronto Blue Jays 1993 World Series Title was won on home turf at Rogers Centre on Saturday, October 23 vs. Philadelphia; 8-6

On March 17, 2002, Rogers Centre set a venue attendance record when it hosted 68,237 fans for WrestleMania X8.

Official Groundbreaking: October 3, 1986

Opening Ceremony: June 3, 1989

Firsts:

• Baseball: June 5, 1989
• Concert: Rod Stewart ¨C June 8, 1989
• Football: June 29, 1989 (pre-season), July 12, 1989 (regular season)

GAME: Monday June 5, 1989 (Blue Jays-3, Milwaukee Brewers-5)
WIN: Wednesday, June 7, 1989 (Blue Jays-4, Milwaukee-2)
ATTENDANCE: 48,378
TIME/TEMP: 2:43/18¡ãC
PITCHER: Jimmy Key, Toronto
BATTER: Paul Molitor, Milwaukee (doubled)
PLATE UMPIRE: Rocky Roe
PITCH: Fastball, called strike
HIT: Double by Molitor in 1st inning
RUN: Molitor in 1st inning
SINGLE: Kelly Gruber, Toronto, 1st inning
DOUBLE: Paul Molitor, 1st inning
HOME RUN: Fred McGriff, Toronto, 2nd inning
RBI: Gary Sheffield, Milwaukee, 1st inning
WINNING PITCHER: Don August, Milwaukee
BLUE JAYS WINNING PITCHER: John Cerutti
LOSING PITCHER: Jimmy Key, Toronto
SAVE: Dan Plesac, Milwaukee
PUTOUT: Nelson Liriano, Toronto
ASSIST: Kelly Gruber, Toronto
STOLEN BASE: Fred McGriff, 6th inning
WALK: George Bell, Toronto, 2nd inning