State-of-the-art PNC Park scoreboard among upgrades to enhance Bucs fans' experience

When Pirates fans arrive at PNC Park for the team’s home opener vs. the Chicago White Sox on April 7, they will immediately notice a massive new scoreboard in left field with all the bells and whistles modern technology makes possible. Among its many impressive features will be a display area twice as large as the previous version, with stunningly clear images and wider viewing angles.

Despite its dominant presence, the new scoreboard will not inhibit the breathtaking view of the Downtown Pittsburgh skyline that visitors to the ballpark know and love.

On Tuesday, the Pirates announced details for the project, which will also include new fascia ribbon boards and a new sound system. The improvements are designed to enhance the fan experience at PNC Park just as new eateries and bars, a larger play area for kids and displays that celebrate Pirates history did along the outfield concourse last year.

“We know from our many interactions with fans that the way in which they consume game action is ever-changing. The new scoreboard, facia displays and sound system will allow our fans to be even more immersed in the action on and off the field,” Pirates president Travis Williams said. “It is important that we continue to build upon and enhance everything that makes PNC Park a unique and special place. Last offseason, we successfully debuted the revamped River Walk. This season, we are excited to unveil additional fan-focused enhancements, beginning with the new sights and sounds our fans will experience.”

With its modern 10-millimeter pixel spacing display, resulting in more than 4K pixels in width, the new scoreboard will provide vividly clear imagery to fans throughout the ballpark, even from sharp angles. Additionally, true HDR capability combined with higher brightness will yield vibrant colors and brilliant images, enhancing the action on the field for both day and night games.

In addition, the new fascia ribbon boards will improve the clarity for in-game stats and messaging, as will the new home plate, field level and dugout LED displays. The speaker system has also been replaced with a new version that will provide crisp and consistent audio throughout the ballpark.

The project, which is well underway, will also include replacement of the video components in the scoreboard control room. Those enhancements will allow for seamless gameday production with the new displays as well as new fixed and wireless cameras that will cover the action more closely.

“There are a lot of different things in the modern era of technology that you’re able to bring to the home experience -- whether you’re looking at your device or watching on television. We’re bringing that to the in-game experience at the ballpark and enabling our fans to be immersed in that,” Williams said. “There’s a lot more space for us to display a lot more things -- like stats, spray charts that show where hits go, how far home runs travel, the rotation of a pitch, or how much it moves vertically or horizontally. It will allow for many more in-game entertainment elements as well.”

The Pirates engaged Warrendale, Pa.-based Mitsubishi Electric’s Diamond Vision Systems to oversee installation of the 83,000-pound scoreboard and the other displays throughout the ballpark. The project is being jointly funded by the Pirates and the Sports & Exhibition Authority.

“The Sports & Exhibition Authority, the city of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County worked with us in a public-private partnership to make sure we could bring all of this to life,” Williams said. “We also had a lot of consultants on board along the way -- WJHW, Mitsubishi and others -- who poured in and made sure we have an awesome board for our fans to enjoy.”

Since being hired by Pirates chairman Bob Nutting in November 2019, Williams’ priority has been to strengthen the organization’s connection with its fanbase. Enhancements to the ballpark -- those that have been made and those to come -- are an element of that strategy.

“When I came here, one of the things that Bob and I committed to was making sure we listened to the fans," Williams said. "We heard what they had to say, and we were able to act upon that. All of the improvements we made last offseason and the improvements we’re making this year are features our fans will enjoy and that will enhance the experience of coming to PNC Park.”