2 Pennsylvania State Senators Invite MLB To Host 2021 All-Star Game In Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (KDKA/AP) -- Two state senators are inviting Major League Baseball to host the 2021 All-Star Game in Pittsburgh.
Senators Jay Costa and Wayne Fontana wrote a letter to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred on Friday saying Pittsburgh can host the game.
Atlanta lost the game on Friday over the league's objections to sweeping changes to Georgia voting laws that critics have condemned as being too restrictive. The law includes new restrictions on voting by mail and greater legislative control over how elections are run.
The decision to pull the July 13 game from Atlanta's Truist Park amounts to the first economic backlash against Georgia for the voting law that Republican Gov. Brian Kemp quickly signed into law March 25.
"The @MLB decision to stand against voter suppression & moving the All Star Game from Georgia is the right one," Costa said on Twitter. "Here, PA offers unbridled access to the ballot box for our citizens, so Senator @WayneDFontana & I would like to invite baseball fans to Pittsburgh for the 2021 game."
"I tip my cap to @MLB for taking a stand today against voter suppression. I am proud to team with @Senatorcosta to invite the 2021 #MLBAll-StarGame to @Pittsburgh," Fontana said on Twitter.
In the letter, the state senators highlighted the quality of PNC Park, the city's transportation and the city's hotel capacity, plus restaurants and attractions.
That also went to bat for the state's expansion of voting access, allowance of no-excuse mail-in ballots, online voter registration and 13-hour polls.
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto's Office released a statement, saying:
"With today's news we have begun conversations on the potential ability to host in Pittsburgh. We believe this could be a win for our hospitality industry and also highlight Pittsburgh and Allegheny county's commitment to voter protection."
On Twitter, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said, "We are all in on welcoming @MLB to bring the All-Star Game to Pgh."
Manfred made the decision to move the All-Star events and the amateur draft from Atlanta after discussions with the Major League Baseball Players Association, individual players and the Players Alliance, an organization of Black players formed after the death of George Floyd last year, the commissioner said in a statement.
A new ballpark for the events wasn't immediately revealed.
The senators are offering PNC Park and Pittsburgh as replacements. PNC Park hosted the 2006 MLB All-Star Game.
MLB canceled last year's All-Star Game, which had been scheduled for Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, due to the late and shortened season caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The 2022 game will be played at Dodger Stadium.
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