The Rangers have decided to do what no MLB team has done in the last 30 years: Open a brand new stadium with artificial turf in typically grassy areas.
Ownership has decided to go with a synthetic turf in Globe Life Field when it opens in 2020, according to two sources. A formal announcement is expected Thursday afternoon. The last stadium opened expressly for baseball with an artificial surface: SkyDome in Toronto in 1989.
The new surface, produced by Shaw SportsTurf of Calhoun, Ga., is considered next generation. It will feature an organic "infill" of crushed coconut shells and sand instead of rubber pellets.