Minneapolis to bid for baseball All-Star Game
The Minnesota Twins say they are preparing to enter a bid to host the 2014 Major League Baseball All-Star game. Team officials say the All-Star game and the week-long festivities that accompany it attract tens of thousands of fans and journalists.
The announcement of the All-Star Game bid comes days after the conclusion of the Republican National Convention.
Mayor R.T. Rybak says the RNC was a success, and he welcomes the possibility of more visitors and national attention coming to the area. Rybak says the RNC brought a lot of business to downtown Minneapolis.
"Normally hotels are about 50 percent occupied. They were, of course, 99 percent occupied here in Minneapolis. Bars and restaurants that would otherwise be empty because people are up at the lake or they were starting school or at the State Fair, were now filled," said Rybak. "What I thought was even better was that delegates and media all left saying, 'I'm going to go home and tell more people about it.'"
Minnesota hosted All-Star Games in 1965 and 1985. City officials predict the event would bring $50 million to Minneapolis.
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