SAN FRANCISCO -- The name "Pacific Bell Park" certainly had a nice ring to it.

But it's a part of history now. With the New Year came a new moniker -- SBC Park -- even though a handful of fans have protested the change, declaring with picket signs and graffiti they were endeared to the old name despite its brief four-year tenure.

 

The majority of Giants aficionados don't care what the park is called. They just want to see baseball there, although curiosity seekers are currently frequenting the park at 24 Willie Mays Plaza to witness ongoing physical changes, as signage referencing Pacific Bell Park is removed.

 

Pacific Bell as a company per se, of course, doesn't exist anymore, gone the way of Ma Bell -- no relation to Buddy Bell -- and the granddaddy of them all, Alexander Graham Bell, who created the "electric speech machine." It's believed Bell was a right-hander.

 

SBC Park, sans the "Communications, Inc." part of the full corporate name, remains a grand facility by the bay, made of 653,280 bricks, some 4,000 tons of steel, eight miles of railing and millions of memories.

 

Workers continue to unscrew old signs in a massive project that could have taken place a year ago, but SBC kindly allowed a year's grace in erecting the new signage, which will retain the original lettering style. By March, all Pacific Bell signs will be gone, to be replaced by bright new ones with the SBC name.

 

We're talking everything, even the large trash cans.

 

"It's a little surreal, but we've anticipated this for a long time," said Staci Slaughter, the Giants' vice president of communications, who said about 200 signs will be replaced, the cost borne by SBC. "The nice thing is the look and feel of the park won't change. We took great lengths to make sure the look stays consistent."

 

Slaughter said most people have accepted the ballpark's name change, and noted any plaques and markers and photos referring to historically significant Giants events and games at "Pacific Bell Park" will be kept.

 

Marc Bien, spokesman for SBC, said the name change "reflects the SBC brand name, which we transitioned away from Pacific Bell a year ago. We have evolved from being a group of regional companies into a national brand that's a reflection of that evolution."

 

In a nutshell, all the "baby Bells" became part of the new SBC family.

 

Some fans may have forgotten that Giants owners originally approached the communications company in 1995 and asked for corporate sponsorship to help build the new, privately funded, ballpark. A 24-year, $50 million agreement -- it ends in 2019 -- was accepted.

 

"We stepped up to the plate," said Bien. "We wanted to keep the team here. We're proud of that and the park -- it's one of the best venues in San Francisco. As for corporate sponsorship, times have changed. It's a part of professional sports.

 

"The bottom line is people do get attached to names, we understand that," said Bien, a longtime Giants fan who witnessed some wonderful milestones himself at, er, Pacific Bell Park, including Barry Bonds' 500th and 600th homers. "There have been magic moments."

 

And more to come at SBC Park.

 

Rich Draper is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

east west shrine game was the first time it was called SBC park.

east west shrine game was the first time it was called SBC park.

yeah, but all the Pac Bell signs were still up