"Shohei Ohtani influence so strong";"Roki Sasaki to Astros confirmed"- Fans react to Houston reportedly changing home ballpark Minute Maid Park's name

Since 2000, Minute Maid Park has been the center of some memorable moments for Houston Astros fans. However, starting next year, the "Juice Box" will get a new namesake.

Although the Astros scheduled a conference on Monday, ostensibly to release the news, some online sleuths seem to have beaten them to it. On Sunday night, leaks indicated that Minute Maid Park's new name will be Daikin Park. X user DinoLord05 appeared to have uncovered the new name.

Based in Japan, Daikin is the world's largest air conditioner manufacturer. Although the reaction from fans was intense, those on Reddit came equipped with the best commentary. Some even used Daikin's Japanese identity as evidence that Shohei Ohtani's influence permeates baseball. Some suggestions also claimed that Houston could be making a play for Japanese talent like Roki Sasaki

"Roki Sasaki to the Astros confirmed" - stated a fan

"Yusei Kikuchi working overtime, yeesh" - joked another

"The Ohtani influence in the majors is so strong, other Japanese companies are now getting involved" - was an additional observation

For many Astros fans, the death of Minute Maid Park is coincidental. In October, Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, had its roof torn off during Storm Milton. It did not take long for fans to pick up on the fact that 2024 is not a good year for parks with juice-derived names.

"This has been a bad offseason for orange juice stadium" - declared one fan

"Bad year for all kinds of OJ" - claimed another

"Rough year for juice-related stadiums" - added a fan

However, perhaps above all, Houston Astros fans lamented that they will never get to - officially - refer to Minute Maid Park as the "Juice Box" again. While most lamented, some offered a similar spin on the new name.

"Long live the Ice Box" - laughed a fan

"RIP the Juice Box" - offered another

"First they take Tal's Hill. Now it's the Juice Box. Nothing is sacred" - was a final condemnation

Former Minute Maid Park will get an offseason makeover

Set to open for opening day 2025, the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority Board of Directors voted in October to hire a consultant firm to assess the grounds. Likely paving the way for some renovations, HCHSA chairman J. Kent Friedman told Chron:

“Houston has a strong sports brand and hosts some of the best sporting events around, which in turn bring huge economic impact to the entire region"

It may never be known as its former game again, but the Astros will have a shiny park to play in next year.