Page "Arizona Diamondbacks" Paragraph 2

The first serious attempt to land an expansion team for the Phoenix area was mounted by Elyse Doherty and Martin Stone, owner of the Phoenix Firebirds, the city's triple-A minor league baseball team and the top affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.

In the late 1980s Stone approached St. Louis ( football ) Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill about sharing a proposed 70, 000 seat domed stadium in Phoenix.

It was taken for granted that a domed stadium was a must for a major-league team to be a viable venture in the Phoenix area.

Phoenix is by far the hottest major city in North America ; the average high temperature during baseball's regular season is, and game-time temperatures well above are very common during the summer.