page_title: Target Field
section_title: Upgrades
hierarchical_section_title: Target Field / History / Upgrades
caption_attribution_description: English: Panorama of Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota
context_page_description: Target Field is a baseball park in the historic warehouse district of downtown Minneapolis. Target Field is the home ballpark to the Minnesota Twins, the state's Major League Baseball franchise. It also has served as the occasional home of Minnesota Golden Gophers baseball, and other local and regional baseball events.
  The ballpark officially opened on April 12, 2010 with a capacity of 39,504 and has since hosted the 2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.
  The ballpark is open-air and not considered "roof-ready" in any way. Though originally designed for baseball, the venue can accommodate football and soccer competitions and outdoor concerts. Target Field will also hold its first hockey game. The NHL Winter Classic will be played between the Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues at Target Field in 2021. Its banquet and conference facilities are marketed for corporate and other non-Twins and non-baseball events.
  In 2010, ESPN The Magazine ranked Target Field as the #1 baseball stadium experience in North America.
context_section_description: On February 12, 2008, the Twins announced $22.4 million in upgrades to the original design, and increased the Twins ownership stake in the ballpark to $167.4 million, bringing the total ballpark cost to $412 million. The upgrades were mainly based around increasing fan experience and comfort. The upgrades included an enlarged canopy soffit (the largest in baseball), protecting fans further from the elements, in light of the stadium not having a roof. The Twins also upgraded the scoreboard – the fourth-largest in Major League Baseball – from standard definition to a high definition display from Daktronics measuring 101 feet (31 m) long and 57 feet (17 m) high.  Other upgrades included warming shelters, changing 100,000 square feet (9,300 m²) of the exterior surface to Kasota stone, and increasing the number of restrooms and concession areas. The park features a modernized version of the original "Minnie and Paul Shaking Hands" logo used on the team's original uniforms from 1961 until 1986 (the logo has also been on the home uniforms since 2001). When a Twins player hits a home run, the Minnie and Paul sign lights up with strobe lights surrounding the Minnesota state outline and Minnie and Paul shake hands, akin to the Liberty Bell used at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The original flagpole from Metropolitan Stadium – completely restored – is located on the right field plaza. The flagpole was located at the American Legion post in Richfield after Metropolitan Stadium's closing, and was donated back to the Twins by the Legion as a gesture of goodwill.
  On November 10, 2010, the Twins announced a number of upgrades to Target Field, all of which were completed in time for the 2011 season. Highlights among the upgrades included a scoreboard in right-center field and the "Twins Tower" (a 100-foot (30 m) tall illuminated tower), next to the new scoreboard. Other changes include free Wi-Fi service for fans, expanded concession stand menus, and the addition of more radiant heaters and artwork around the ballpark. In total, the changes were expected to cost the Twins $4–6 million.
  Additionally, the 14 black spruce trees located in the batter's eye were removed, following hitters' complaints that the trees interfered with the ability to see pitches as they would sometimes sway in the wind. The batter's eye wall itself was covered in a black material designed to reduce glare.
caption: Panorama of Target Field, taken from the concourse inside Gate 29.
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