Nats Unveil New Scoreboard

Washington, DC--The Washington Nationals, led by President Stan Kasten and owner Mark Lerner, unveiled the spectacular high-definition scoreboard which will be the centerpiece of the new Nationals' Park along the banks of the Anacostia River in near Southeast DC Tuesday afternoon.

On an day with overcast skies, the crystal clear light emanating from the scoreboard had no competition from the sun for brightness inside the new ballpark. Standing 47 feet tall, 102 feet wide, and encompassing 4,811 square feet, the scoreboard is larger than most apartments in the city. Over 1,000,000 individual pixels deliver such a bright and clear picture, even the mediocre video shot from MASN that the Nats chose to play during the unveiling looked crisp and clear. Imagine what things may look like if the image was actually captured in HD, as the Capitals do at Verizon Center.


"It's a great way to watch a ball game," Kasten said beaming as proudly as a new parent. "If you're someone that just wants to sit and watch baseball for nine innings, this will be as good a park that has even been built." Asked about it's quality and dimensions, Kasten simply said, "It's as fine a board as there is anywhere in the world."

In a nod to their former home, the Nats transported home plate from RFK Stadium over to the New Nationals Park, with Kasten remarking, "I hope we get to use this here more than at RFK." Inferior Nationals' Mascot Screech was there to help, as were officials from Clark Construction. Kasten wasn't very sentimental about the old ballpark. "I'm in this to do the best job here for our fans…and RFK wasn't helpful in that effort. This park is what fans want and deserve."


Workers were busy during the demonstration as opening day quickly approaches. The first cherry blossom tree in the left field court was being planted as reporters were leaving the facility. Much of the stadium was still covered in dust and construction garbage littered the concourses, empty seating aisles and just about any open space where things could accumulate. But a walk through the concourse also showed evidence that yes, there is a baseball-only stadium underneath all the dust, and after a thorough cleaning and sweeping, things may--just may--be ready by opening day. "Every day is exciting," Kasten said, "It's gonna be a very cool place to be."

In other news from the festivities, Kasten indicated that opening day sold out in six minutes when tickets were open to the general public Tuesday morning, comparing it to "a Springsteen concert". That number was tempered a bit by the news that just 4,000 tickets were made available to non-ticket package holders. He also indicated that opening day tickets were still being held for anyone wishing to purchase full- or half- season plans yet.



"Nats Unveil New Scoreboard" also posted at DC Sports Box.