{"id":2280833,"date":"2026-02-13T18:06:38","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T18:06:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2280833"},"modified":"2026-02-13T18:06:38","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T18:06:38","slug":"tournaments-drive-year-round-entertainment-options-in-surprise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/tournaments-drive-year-round-entertainment-options-in-surprise\/","title":{"rendered":"Tournaments drive year-round entertainment options in Surprise"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOregon State fans watch a 2022 game at the College Baseball Classic.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndependent Newsmedia\/Jason Stone\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Decorative<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDecorative baseballs circle the entrance to Surprise Stadium.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndependent Newsmedia\/Jason Stone\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Surprise<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSurprise has scheduled an upcoming teen adventure to Surprise Stadium with a spring training game between the hometown Arizona Diamondbacks and the Kansas City Royals, one of two home teams in Surprise.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIndependent Newsmedia\/Jason Stone\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

Baseball once put Surprise on the world map.<\/p>\n

When the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals agreed in 2003 to move to a stadium in a city with just about 60,000 people, it was no surprise people had not heard of that name before then.<\/p>\n

Now as the city welcomes in the first game of the city\u2019s 24th season of Cactus League baseball on Friday, Feb. 20, baseball continues to be a driving force of the Surprise tourism economy. Besides the 30 days of games through Saturday, March 21, Surprise is hosting this weekend\u2019s College Baseball Classic, dozens of amateur tournaments \u00ad\u2014 and for the first time, the Big 12 Conference baseball tournament in May.<\/p>\n

It is all part of a bigger plan to bring entertainment options to Surprise year-round, said Kendra Pettis, director of the city\u2019s Sports, Entertainment and Culture Department.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the years, we\u2019ve just kind of grown on both sides \u2014 on the sports side and then now with adding in the arts and culture division,\u201d Pettis said about the change last year from the Sports and Tourism Department to what it has expanded into as the city begins to also produce shows at the Vista Center for the Arts. \u201cWith the shows at the Vista, it\u2019s really kind of just expanded to events and entertainment throughout the city and leads to that year-round drive for activity here in Surprise,\u201d<\/p>\n

To help attract tournaments like the Big 12, which will bring Surprise national attention like the spring training season, the city council last month voted to reimburse groups up to $100,000 for reaching certain benchmarks, like the number of hotel rooms the events attract.<\/p>\n

For spring training, that feat is no problem, Pettis said. The city has around 900 rooms available at hotels on any given day, but Pettis said she expects the city will be at capacity again starting this weekend with fans of the Rangers and Royals descending on the furthest northwest stadium in the Valley.<\/p>\n

Pettis said reimbursing groups as a way to sweeten the pot for them to come here is a great way to use money specifically dedicated for tourism events<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could really attract big events into Surprise,\u201d Pettis said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of how it\u2019s done all throughout the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

ESPN\u2019s platforms in May will cover the five-day event Big 12 tournament, which Pettis said could have a residual effect of other tournaments coming here.<\/p>\n

The Big 12 plans to collaborate with the city to execute a marketing campaign that reaches one million combined followers on social accounts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re we\u2019re obviously getting the opportunity to be on the national stage,\u201d Pettis said.<\/p>\n

Big 12 Conference and REV Entertainment, the marketing arm of the Rangers, are helping the city produce the single-elimination tournament, which as an automatic NCAA Tournament bid at stake for the top 12 teams in the standings of the 16-team conference.<\/p>\n

The city estimates 40,000 fans will attend across the five days with about half of them coming from outside of the Valley.<\/p>\n

The tournament itself is expected to generate an estimated 3,500 hotel nights for 12 teams, coaches, officials, family and fans.<\/p>\n

The city partnered with REV after it began to search for a new place to host the conference tournament after hosting it for years in Arlington, Texas, the Rangers\u2019 home, Surprise made the cut because of its quarter century partnership with the Rangers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey know that we, obviously, can host these types of events because we host spring training and other events similar to it,\u201d Pettis said.<\/p>\n

One of those events is this weekend\u2019s College Baseball Classic, featuring four big-name colleges for four days of baseball. The city previously used corporate sponsors to help pay for the tournament, but the city now has a dedicated entertainment producer helping put on the show.<\/p>\n

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The city estimates the Big 12 economic impact to Surprise could be about $3.5 million. It is unknown how exactly Surprise benefits from spring training games, but the Cactus League as a whole determined that the season attracts $700 million for the state as a whole each year. There are 15 teams in the Cactus League across 10 stadiums, and Surprise is one of five complexes that house two teams.<\/p>\n

Pettis said the city will try to bid for future tournaments now that the council has approved for up to three years the reimbursement money for hotel nights the events bring.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have to hit those numbers in order to get the full reimbursement,\u201d Pettis said. \u201cIt\u2019s an incentive to make sure that they\u2019re getting the attendance that they\u2019re expecting and getting the hotel nights that they\u2019re expecting. It\u2019s a good thing when they\u2019re getting fully reimbursed.\u201d<\/p>\n

ExploreSurprise.com is the site the city uses to get the word out about local events. Recent attractions in Surprise included the West Valley BBQ Festival, a dog show, an art nature festival, and tennis and pickleball tournaments.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s a lot of things that people aren\u2019t aware of that we already have here,\u201d Pettis said.<\/p>\n

She said events are focused on benefiting tourism and Surprise residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re really just trying to kind of build out that year-round calendar and make sure there\u2019s a variety of different activities, whether it\u2019s sports or arts and culture or special events,\u201d Pettis said. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to kind of build our partnerships with a lot of these event groups and make sure there\u2019s things to do for both residents and visitors to Surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jason Stone can be reached at jstone@iniusa.org. Submit comments at yourvalley.net\/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Jason Stone
Senior News Editor | Surprise<\/p>\n

jstone@iniusa.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Meet Jason
<\/strong>Jason Stone joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2019, after a distinguished three decade media career that included stops at the Arizona Republic, iHeart Media\/Clear Channel and Beckett Sports Card magazine. He remembers when airports sold newspapers.<\/p>\n

Community:<\/strong> He is a big supporter of the Valley’s original sports team: The Phoenix Suns.<\/p>\n

Education:<\/strong> Northern Arizona University with a BS in broadcast journalism and a minor in sports coaching.<\/p>\n

Random Fact:<\/strong> The capital of Nebraska is Lincoln.<\/p>\n

Hobbies:<\/strong> Surfing, backgammon and men who aren’t afraid to cry.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n