They aren’t the reigning World Series champions like the neighboring St. Louis Cardinals, but in one area of performance, the Kansas City Royals are leading both leagues.

During the off-season, both Missouri major league teams installed solar arrays at their ballparks, providing the Cardinals with 32,000 kWh of energy each year at Busch Stadium and the Royals with 36,000 kWh annually at Kaufmann Stadium.

Not only did Royals outshine their closest (by distance) rivals; they are now the best and the brightest team in the game – with more “stellar” power than the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Boston Red Sox, the Cleveland Indians, the San Francisco Giants and the Seattle Mariners.  


Above, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, the venue for the 2012 All Star Game, the Royals have partnered with KCP&L, the local electric utility, to install a solar array capable of producing 36,000 KW of energy each year.

“The Royals are committed to making Kauffman Stadium one of the most environmentally-friendly facilities in sports,” said Kevin Uhlich, the Royals’ senior vice president-Business Operations.  “We are excited to partner with [our local utility] KCP&L to bring the latest technologies in sustainable energy to the ballpark, especially as we prepare for the 2012 All-Star [Game].”

The partnership also ties into the renewable energy initiatives of Major League Baseball, which will be highlighted during the 2012 MLB (News - Alert) All-Star Game at Kaufmann Stadium and related festivities in Kansas City this summer. 

The solar array comprises over a hundred 240-watt solar panels on the roof of the ballpark’s Outfield Experience canopy.  The panels face south and are mounted in two groups of 60 panels each – one on each side of the Crown Vision screen in the outfield. 

“KCP&L is proud to partner with the Kansas City Royals on their first renewable energy endeavor,” said Chuck Caisley, KCP&L vice president of Marketing and Public Affairs. “KCP&L has a long-standing history of supporting renewable energy projects because it brings a significant benefit to our customers.”

In addition to the solar energy at Kauffman Stadium, KCP&L will have approximately 600 MW of renewable resource capacity by 2014. This includes wind generation, hydropower and landfill-gas-to-energy projects.

On Opening Day, KCP&L introduced an educational kiosk at the Outfield Experience to educate Royals fans about the solar energy system. Fans can learn how to monitor the production of solar energy and how solar energy benefits Kauffman Stadium and the greater Kansas City region.

Below, Microgrid solar experts at Busch Stadium prepare for installations before Opening Day.

Meanwhile, 45 miles away at Busch Stadium, the National League’s St. Louis Cardinals have installed 106 solar panels on the roofs of the concession area and ticket building in the Ford Family Plaza, in cooperation with St. Louis-based Microgrid, a premier Midwestern comprehensive building energy services provider.

The solar array at the stadium’s northeast corner will produce up to enough energy annually to cook four million hot dogs!

"The Royals and Cardinals have such a strong presence in our state, so it is exciting to think about the far-reaching impact their solar projects will likely have on growing interest in solar in Missouri,” said Rick Hunter, CEO of Microgrid Energy.

The Cardinals will celebrate Solar Day on April 29, when they take on the Milwaukee Brewers.