After the Ricketts family purchased the Cubs in 2009, team President Crane Kenney offered Tom Ricketts two items for his windowless office — a mousetrap and a fly swatter.

The Oakland A’s are now focusing on two sites in the city for a new ballpark: Laney College near Lake Merritt and Howard Terminal on the waterfront next to Jack London Square, according to four knowledgeable sources. Two of those sources say the Laney College property has edged into the lead as the team’s preferred spot. The A’s now view the Oakland Coliseum site as a distant-third choice.

On the last night of the first homestand at SunTrust Park, two Braves executives — both of them immersed in the stadium project for years — expressed satisfaction and exhilaration about the ballpark’s opening week.

The last time I saw so many people slow-walking on bridges over an Atlanta highway it was on “The Walking Dead.” They spilled in from everywhere Friday, on concrete bridges slung over highways they had successfully traversed to get to SunTrust Park. They crowded in a wide line, on concrete suspensions, above a morass of multilaned freeways

As negotiations of a potential Miami Marlins sale reach new depths, the team has tabled its search for a corporate partner to buy the naming rights to Marlins Park, president David Samson said Tuesday.

A’s president Dave Kaval said that in response to fan suggestions, the A’s will be taking down the tarps that have covered the third deck and will make those seats available for all games for $15 for the rest of the season.

There was a time when going to an MLB game meant eating peanuts, hot dogs, and Cracker Jacks, which you could wash down with a soda or a beer, depending on your age and preference. Over time, the typical ballpark hot dog was accompanied by sausages and brats, and popcorn became a fan favorite.

Right now, somewhere in the United States, a city is trying to attract or retain a major league sports team with the promise of a state-of-the-art stadium. At the same time, municipal officials are busy crunching numbers for bond issues and tax increases, trying to raise public money to sweeten the deal for the team owners who are their quarry. How many public dollars will be enough?

The past 25 years have been a boom period for new baseball venues. Starting with Oriole Park at Camden Yards in 1992, major league teams have opened 21 new ballparks, with another joining the list this season, when the Atlanta Braves start playing at SunTrust Park.

The Rockies on struck an “11th hour” deal with Colorado after four years of difficult negotiation designed to keep the team at Coors Field for 30 more years. The Rockies agreed to a $200 million, 30-year lease with the Metropolitan Baseball Stadium District, the state division that owns Coors Field. In trade, the Rockies will be allowed to lease and develop a valuable plot of land directly south of the stadium for 99 years.