Diamondbacks inducted into Arizona Million Dollar Circle of Excellence for sixth year

The Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team this week announced it was inducted into the Arizona Million Dollar Circle of Excellence for the sixth year in a row.

The Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce presents the honor to companies that promote supplier diversity by spending more than $1 million annually with minority- and woman-owned businesses in the state, according to a press release from the Major League Baseball team.

“Arizona is one of the most diverse states in our nation, and the D-backs are excited to help lead the way in expanding those opportunities in not just baseball, but by encouraging our partners in the community to do the same,” said Derrick Hall, president and CEO of the Diamondbacks.

The Arizona Million Dollar Circle of Excellence is based on the international Billion Dollar Roundtable, which was created in 2001 to recognize and celebrate corporations that spent at least $1 billion annually with minority- and woman-owned suppliers.

“Having a diverse workforce and supplier base is very important to us, and we are proud to support minority and women-owned businesses across the state,” Hall said.

More than 30 companies submitted their spending reports and were inducted into the 2019 Circle of Excellence, including the Diamondbacks.

Hall also serves on the Arizona-Mexico Commission board of directors and is a member of MLB’s International Committee. Under Hall’s leadership, the Diamondbacks hosted the first round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic and have played six games in Mexico during his time at the helm, most recently in the 2019 Monterrey Series, according to the team.

The Diamondbacks will return to Mexico in April 2020 to play against the San Diego Padres on the international stage at Estadio Diablos, a new facility in Mexico City.

“Having an MLB series played in Mexico is a tremendous bit of outreach for tourism,” Luis Ramirez, president of Ramirez Advisors Inter-National, said in August. “Baseball is a common thread between the two countries. Something like this only builds loyalty between Mexico and Arizona. In the future, as these regular season games become more established, we anticipate more Americans going down there to see the games and stay.”

The Arizona Million Dollar Circle of Excellence was created in partnership with the Greater Phoenix Black Chamber of Commerce, the American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Arizona, Associated Minority Contractors of America, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Arizona, the Pacific Southwest Supplier Diversity Council, the Asian Chamber of Commerce, Women’s Business Enterprise Council-West and other community partners.