ASTROS' FIELD IS RENAMED MINUTE MAID

HOUSTON -- Juice maker Minute Maid, owned by beverage giant Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta, has acquired the naming rights for the former Enron Field here, home of the Houston Astros baseball team. Minute Maid, also based here, agreed to pay more than $100 million for a 28-year deal to name the stadium Minute Maid Park, according to reports. The stadium had been named Astros Field on an interim basis since Astros owner Drayton McLane acquired the naming rights back from scandal-plagued energy giant Enron. It is the first time that Coca-Cola has allowed one of its brands to be placed on a stadium. Minute Maid rival Tropicana, owned by Pepsico, has its name on the stadium of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Florida.