Wire* — The Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks, @LosDbacks) will celebrate their 20th anniversary all season long with a series of events and online opportunities that will allow fans to look back at the franchise’s first 20 years while focusing on the next generation of fans and players.
An online vote to determine the D-backs All-Time Team was launched at dbacks.com/20
“Though we are the youngest franchise in Major League Baseball, we are fortunate to already have a rich history of success both on and off the field that connects us deeply with our fans,” said D-backs President & CEO Derrick Hall. “From our six postseason appearances and a World Series championship to the $55 million given back to our community and nearly the same amount of fans having come through our turnstiles, we look forward to sharing these memories and creating new ones in 2018.”
Elements of the 20th anniversary celebration include:
- Voting for the D-backs All-Time Team commences today at dbacks.com/20, which will also serve as the online home for the yearlong celebration.
- 20th anniversary logo featuring the team’s historic and current colors (Purple and Sedona Red) and six stars, with each representing a D-backs team that has reached the Postseason (1999, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2011 & 2017).
- A commemorative patch, featuring the logo, will adorn the team’s jerseys throughout the season and caps during the first homestand.
- The “D-backs 20th Anniversary Experience,” a 2,000 square-foot exhibit at Chase Field, located on the Main Concourse in right field behind the Coors Light Strike Zone, will feature historic artifacts, memorabilia and photography celebrating the team’s history and a wall featuring baseballs signed by nearly all D-backs players and coaches; the Experience will also include a showcase of the team’s 2001 World Series championship and each Silver Slugger, Gold Glove and Cy Young Award won by a D-backs player.
- An Opening Weekend celebration including:
- Opening Day (March 29), featuring a ceremonial first pitch from members of each D-backs Postseason team.
- 20th anniversary reusable bag (March 30) given to the first 20,000 fans courtesy of MLB Network.
- The actual 20th anniversary of the team’s first game (March 31), to be played against the same opponent (Colorado Rockies) and featuring a pregame ceremony that will replicate the original first pitch from Andy Benes to Jorge Fabregas, with Mike Lansing at bat. Sam Moore, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and part of a group that sang the National Anthem on Opening Day in 1998, will perform the Star Spangled Banner; the team will also wear a throwback jersey and cap honoring the inaugural game.
- The first 20,000 fans will receive a 20th Anniversary Replica Jersey, courtesy of Chase.
- A celebration of the D-backs All-Time Team on August. 4, including:
- A commemorative t-shirt featuring members of the All-Time Team to be given to the first 20,000 fans in attendance.
- A pregame ceremony honoring the 16 members of the D-backs All-Time Team.
- The annual Alumni Game, presented by Sanderson Ford, to be played prior to the game against the Giants.
- Throwback Thursdays, presented by Chase, in which the D-backs will wear the uniforms of their inaugural team and six Postseason teams while highlighting those years:
- April 19 (1998 home uniform), May 3 (1999 Purple Alternate uniform), May 10 (2001 Home Vest uniform), June 14 (2002 Home White uniform), July 5 (2007 Home White uniform), Aug. 2 (2011 Red Alternate uniform) and Sept. 6 (2017 uniform).
- D-backs Authentics will be selling the jerseys and caps worn as part of Throwback Thursdays throughout the 2018 season. Fans can visit D-backs Authentics at Section 134 or shop online at dbacks.com/auctions.
- Creation of the “20-year Club” for Season Ticket Holders who have been with the franchise since its inception.
- The Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation will announce a significant community project to commemorate the team’s 20th anniversary at a later date.
- The D-backs Team Shop will have a wide variety of merchandise featuring the 20th Anniversary logo, including jerseys, on-field New Era caps and official Rawlings game baseballs all adorned with the commemorative anniversary logo.
This Saturday, the team will kick off the 20th Anniversary Celebration at the annual Chevrolet D-backs Fan Fest, which will be held at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the Spring Training home of the franchise.
Additional details of the 20th anniversary celebration will be unveiled throughout the season.
*DPJ’s Wire series delivers news and information straight from trusted sources without translation.
