What will be the new name of Tigers' ballpark? We now know

The Tigers' ballpark has been called Comerica Park since it opened in 2000.

DETROIT — The curtain is falling on the Tigers' season. It's about to come down on Comerica Park, too.

With the Tigers' season entering its final week, after the team failed to qualify for the postseason for the first time since 2023, the team's home ballpark is getting a name change for the first time since it opened in 2000.

Starting with the 2027 Major League Baseball season, the Tigers' home ballpark will be known as Fifth Third Field, following Fifth Third Bancorp's multi-billion-dollar acquisition of Comerica Incorporated this spring.

"I am a lifelong Michigander. Not only was I here 26 years ago for the first game here, one my oldest memories of coming to Detroit was to old Tiger Stadium to watch Mark Fidrych pitch," Steve Davis, region president, Michigan, for Fifth Third Bank, said during the naming announcement on the field Monday, Sept. 22. "So, Tiger Stadium, the Tigers, Comerica Park, now Fifth Third, has always meant a lot to me.

"And so, for us, this is more than just a name. It is about the memories. It is about the families.

"We have a responsibility to be good stewards for many, many years to come."

Officials from Fifth Third and Ilitch Sports & Entertainment attended Monday's name announcement, and said the new ballpark signage, including most noticeably at the main entrances and atop the scoreboard in left field, will start to be installed early in 2027. The Tigers' home opener is scheduled for March 25.

The new name was widely expected, even as Fifth Third officials acknowledged Tigers fans had strong opinions on the subject, and made their feelings known as the bank solicited feedback. Many fans wanted Tiger Stadium to be incorporated in some way.

"Many names that were recommended to us by customers and citizens here in Detroit," Tim Spence, chairman, CEO and president of Fifth Third, said with a smile.

Twenty-two of Major League Baseball's 30 teams have stadiums with corporate naming rights.

Fifth Third has a history of naming-rights deals at sports venues. The Toledo Mud Hens, the Tigers' Triple-A affiliate, play at Fifth Third Field. The West Michigan Whitecaps, the Tigers' High-A affiliate, used to play at Fifth Third Ballpark (it's now called LMCU Ballpark). There is another Fifth Third Park, in Spartanburg, S.C., where the Hub City Spartanburgers play. They are a Single-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers.

Tiger Stadium closed in 1999, and Comerica Park opened in 2000, with the bank — whose roots in Detroit date to the 1800s, when the Detroit Savings Fund was founded — signing an original 30-year naming-rights deal. That deal was later extended through 2034. Comerica moved its headquarters to Dallas in 2007.

Fifth Third officials said the length of the naming-rights deal under Comerica remains unchanged under Fifth Third. Financial terms weren't dissclosed.

"When you look around, it's so much more than where the Tigers play baseball," said Ryan Gustafson, president and CEO of Ilitch Sports & Entertainment. "Everything that's happened in downtown Detroit all started with the dream of bringing the Tigers downtown.

"So many memories have been created for this incredible community since then, and there are so many more memories that are to be created in this incredible ballpark.

"And we're excited for this next chapter."

Following the mega-bank merger, Fifth Third became the largest bank in Michigan and Detroit. As part of the merger, Fifth Third has committed a $20-million investment in its national Neighborhood Program, with that money being earmarked for the Gratiot/Seven Mile and Denby/Whittier neighorhoods.

Fifth Third also plans future outreach initiatives with Tigers fans, starting with this week's final home stand, including an interactive photo experience and a fan vote on the design of a future Tigers debit card.

Fifth Third was founded in 1858 as Bank of Ohio Valley, and its national headquarters remain in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its Michigan headquarters are located at One Campus Martius in downtown Detroit, blocks away from the baseball stadium that soon will bear its name.

"Tigers baseball has been part of Detroit's story for generations, and for the last 25 years, this ballpark has been where those memories are made — where a kid goes to a came with their family, and, years later, brings their own," Spence said. "That's the spirit we're honored and humbled to be part of.

"As a bank with deep roots across Michigan, our job bow is to live up to what this place means to Detroit by showing up for fans, families and communities for the long run."

Names of Detroit Tigers' ballpark through the years

• Boulevard Park, 1894-95
• Bennett Park, 1896-1911
• Navin Field, 1912-1937
• Briggs Stadium, 1938-60
• Tiger Stadium, 1961-99
• Comerica Park, 2000-26
• Fifth Third Park, starting in 2027

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