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City Council

Korea’s LG Twins to call Scottsdale Spring Training home

Scottsdale, Twins reach three-year agreement

Posted 9/4/20

Korean baseball has found a home in Scottsdale.

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City Council

Korea’s LG Twins to call Scottsdale Spring Training home

Scottsdale, Twins reach three-year agreement

Posted

Korean baseball has found a home in Scottsdale.

The Scottsdale City Council approved on consent a facility use agreement with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization to use the Indian School Park baseball facilities for three years, starting in 2021. The City Council made the approval at its Aug. 24 meeting.

The agreement is for three years starting at the onset of 2021 and running until the end of 2023. There are also two additional one-year extensions available to keep the team in Scottsdale through 2025.

The LG Twins have no affiliation with the Minnesota Twins of MLB and play out of Seoul, South Korea. The team has been around since 1982 and has won the Korean Series, the KBO’s equivalent to MLB’s World Series, in 1990 and 1994.

The team’s original name was the MBC Chungyong, which translates into Blue Dragon, before the LG Corporation bought it in 1989, changing the name to LG Twins. Prior to the name change, the team made an appearance in the Korean Series in 1983.

With the San Francisco Giants moving some of their operations to Papago Park in Phoenix, the Indian School Park became available. Parks and Recreation Manager Chris Walsh said the LG Twins reached out to the city in spring of 2018 to express interest since weather in Korea isn’t conducive to spring training.

He said the request came in at the right time since the Giants were moving. He also noted not much will have to change at Indian School Park to accommodate the Twins since it is set up as a single-team facility.

“The facility really does set up nicely for them without us having to reinvent the wheel at Indian School because it really is a single-team complex and set up for professional level baseball team,” he said. “I think it is just the shoe had fit at the time and then, in the future, who knows where it will go.”

Mr. Walsh anticipates the benefits to the city to be largely in tourism and hospitality figures. He pointed to the team planning on bringing around 80 people who will all need hotel rooms and will generate revenue for the Old Town Scottsdale area.

Dates are not specified per the agreement but the LG Twins will let the city know by November each year the days they plan to use the facility for the upcoming year. Despite no official dates, Mr. Walsh said the Twins’ time in Scottsdale will overlap with the Cactus League.

Mr. Walsh said while the city can’t force the team to stay in Scottsdale, they strongly encourage team staff and players to utilize the city’s various commercial and entertainment venues.

“It’s a very unique relationship that we’re hoping to really build on and it provides them an opportunity to play in a great city and great weather,” he said.

While there are no official plans in place, Mr. Walsh said he his hopeful the team will maybe schedule games against local Cactus League teams or local collegiate teams.

“I guess the future has yet to be told on that but we’re hopeful it will create some pretty creative relationships,” he said.