Comerica Park video board to be bigger, sharper, louder

The Tigers continued to put offseason roster improvements on the board while looking forward to next year. Come Opening Day at Comerica Park, one of the most noticeable improvements will be the board itself.

As the Tigers continue to make upgrades at Comerica Park, the team on Friday unveiled designs on an expanded and upgraded left-field video board that more than doubles the area of its predecessor while providing better video resolution. The project began Thursday and will continue throughout the offseason in anticipation of being ready for Detroit's home opener on April 5 against Oakland.

The new board, designed and manufactured by Daktronics, will measure 15,688 square feet, compared to 6,096 square feet for the old one. The resolution will include 14.1 million pixels, compared to 2.4 million for the previous version. It will rank as the second-largest video board in MLB when unveiled (after Citi Field's), and it will feature new adjacent speakers to enhance the ballpark’s audio experience. New TV monitors will also be installed throughout the park, including the concourse, featuring additional channels and live feeds of Tigers Minor League games.

“Investing in a world-class entertainment experience at Comerica Park for Tigers fans is a top priority for our organization and we are excited to make these enhancements heading into next season,” Ilitch Sports + Entertainment COO Ryan Gustafson said in a statement. “Fans will see and hear a noticeable difference on Opening Day with a new video board more than double the size of the existing one, and significant advancements to the audio and television systems throughout the ballpark.”

It marks the second consecutive offseason for upgrades at Comerica Park, which opened in 2000. Last year, the Tigers installed LED lighting, overhauled the home clubhouse and brought outfield fences in and down in many areas.