New name on tap for Schaumburg ballpark as Alexian terminates deal

Schaumburg will not only get a new baseball team next year, but the name of the 13-year-old stadium where the team plays will likely change as well.

Alexian Brothers Health System confirmed Monday that it has terminated its contract for the naming rights of the ballpark owned jointly by the village and Schaumburg Park District.

The $275,000-a-year contract had called for Alexian to remain the ballpark’s name sponsor through at least 2014. But Schaumburg Village Manager Ken Fritz said the company sought release from the agreement last winter, citing a violation of its terms by the Schaumburg Flyers baseball team, which was simultaneously being evicted for nonpayment of rent.

In a prepared statement, the leadership of Alexian Brothers acknowledged the beneficial partnership of the past dozen years and confirmed a change of direction for both entities.

“Moving forward our goal is to sustain the Alexian Brothers’ healthcare ministry and continue serving the community through improving the health and lives of its residents,” the statement reads. “We are confident that baseball in Schaumburg will continue to thrive for many years to come.”

David Salvi, vice president of marketing and promotions for the new baseball team, said the club would reach out to other potentially interested corporations in the area during the offseason.

“I think the naming rights is going to be an ongoing process,” Salvi said.

Fritz said the price Alexian Brothers had been paying wouldn’t necessarily be the starting point for new negotiations.

“I think we’re really starting from scratch because the economic landscape is a lot different than it was,” he said.

Under the previous agreement, the village and park district split 80 percent of the naming-rights money. The Flyers were supposed to collect the remaining 20 percent, but had recently been using it to try to make amends on its overdue rent, Fritz said.

But even that did not make up the difference of what the team owed before it was evicted in February, he added. A court ordered the Flyers to pay stadium owners $551,828.92 in back rent.