By AP/KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Baseball commissioner Bud Selig announced Monday night that the 2009 All-Star game will be played at Busch Stadium.
Selig made the announcement Monday night at the 49th annual dinner hosted by the St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. "There can't be a better baseball town in America," Selig said.
The decision, which was expected, gives St. Louis its first baseball All-Star game since 1966. That was the only time the old Busch Stadium hosted the Midsummer Classic.
The new Busch Stadium opened last April, across the street from the site of the old Busch, and the Cardinals went on to win the World Series in their first season in their new ballpark.
Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said the 2009 All-Star game will help the team put the finishing touches on its new $365 million stadium. The team expects groundbreaking this summer on a "ballpark village," featuring shops and restaurants in the adjacent lot where the old Busch Stadium sat.
"It really is a big deal for the Cardinals and St. Louis," DeWitt said. "It's been a long time for the city.
"This will cap off our new park and by 2009 the ballpark village will be in great shape."
The 2007 All-Star game is scheduled for July 10 in San Francisco and the 2008 event is likely to be played at New York's Yankee Stadium, which is slated to be in its final season.
Back in October, during the NL championship series, Selig said it was very likely that St. Louis would be granted the 2009 showcase.