Astros and Rangers to play exhibition games in San Antonio

News broke this morning that the Astros and Rangers will play a pair of exhibition games at San Antonio’s Alamodome this spring. KRIV-TV Sports Director Mark Berman sent out a tweet and followed up with a post at myfoxhouston.com. An official announcement is expected tomorrow.

Last spring the Rangers and Padres finished their exhibition seasons by playing a pair of weekend games in the 20-year old covered stadium in Downtown San Antonio. It was the first time a professional baseball game had ever been played in the Alamodome. Originally built in an attempt to lure an NFL franchise to The Alamo City, the 65,000 seat stadium isn’t exactly designed for baseball. The venue features a short rightfield porch that could result in a couple of high scoring contests, especially if the Astros bullpen woes are still an issue.

San Antonio has long been Astros territory — but the recent success of the Rangers coupled with the Astros struggles have resulted in an increase in the number of Rangers fans in the area. Add in the fact that the Rangers are now the only team available on TV in the San Antonio market and the Astros foothold in the area is rapidly slipping.

This is a smart move by the Astros and Reid Ryan, whose Ryan-Sanders Baseball conglomerate will be playing host to the events. It will be interesting to see what happens in coming years. Will the Astros and Rangers continue to play games in San Antonio? Or will one team forge ahead in the battle for The Alamo City?

San Antonio’s Alamodome (US-PRESSWIRE)