Rogers Centre to feature premium clubs in '24

HOUSTON -- One week after unveiling the first phase of their sweeping, $300 million renovations to Rogers Centre, the Blue Jays are starting to tease what comes next.

The organization announced on Tuesday that next offseason’s plans will include the addition of three new “premium clubs” that will open for the 2024 campaign. These sections will be built underneath the “completely reimagined lower bowl” in the area behind home plate, aiming to provide an elevated experience that includes a private entrance and in-seat dining.

“The types of entertainment experiences fans are looking for have evolved dramatically since Rogers Centre opened in 1989, and our ballpark currently has among the fewest premium experience options compared to MLB and other entertainment venues in Toronto,” said club president and CEO Mark Shapiro. “The next phase of renovations will introduce more of the amenities we know Blue Jays fans want -- compelling premium experiences that uniquely cater to the Greater Toronto Area.”

Sections like these are common across baseball, including at Minute Maid Park, where the Blue Jays are currently facing the Astros, and at the stadiums of several other AL rivals like the Yankees. Here’s how they’ll look:

Batting Tunnel Club
Behind home plate on the third-base side, this section will have “direct views over the home dugout and into the Blue Jays’ batting cage.” This will have a sports-bar atmosphere with memorabilia from past Blue Jays moments.

Home Plate Club
Located directly behind home plate, this will offer “an unprecedented culinary experience” and the best “in-the-action” seats in the ballpark, according to the team. Members of the Home Plate Club will have access to all three premium clubs.

The Lounge
Behind home plate on the first-base side, this will be the largest of the three clubs and it will act as a professional backdrop for fans to move between the lounge and the ballgame. This will include an “expanded culinary menu, live-preparation chef’s table and in-club entertainment from pre to postgame.”

These clubs will be a major focus for the second phase of renovations, which will also include the entire lower bowl and many other areas underneath, including the home- and visiting-team clubhouses. The Blue Jays’ plans for their own clubhouse, in particular, will be expansive. In the first phase, they added a new weight room, family room and barber shop, among other elements.

Premium seating had been in the plans for this second phase after much of the first phase focused on the outfield district and 500 Level seating. That included the addition of several new “neighbourhoods” across the outfield, which host bars and social areas. The Blue Jays also raised the bullpens and changed the stadium’s dimensions, which could lead to more long balls down the road.

During this first phase, Toronto battled concrete as much as anything. For as well as Rogers Centre has held up, the building itself can only be so flexible, which is where planning and timelines come in. The Blue Jays opened this season with three consecutive series on the road to ensure that there was enough time to complete renovations, and a similar scheduling quirk could be required to open 2024.