SunTrust Park stays -- at least until early next year

Credit: AJC

5 things to know about Atlanta Braves' SunTrust Park

The SunTrust name will remain on the gates to the home field of the Atlanta Braves at least until early next year.

Although the merger of SunTrust and BB&T was finalized Monday, creating Truist, the nation's sixth-largest bank, it will take up to two years for the now-obsolete brand names to be replaced, officials of the new entity said.

“While we are proud to have completed our merger of equals, it will take some time for Truist to convert all existing SunTrust and BB&T branded assets,” said Thomas Crosson, spokesman for Truist. “We are still in the process of finalizing the Truist brand, and plan to reveal it in early 2020.”

That goes for branches, office buildings, Web sites and automated teller machines – as well as for the Braves Park.

The Braves' first home game of the 2020 baseball season is April 3 against the Miami Marlins.

The former home of the Braves, in downtown Atlanta, was named after Ted Turner, longtime owner of the team.

Corporate naming is increasingly common, although there have been mixed conclusions from academics about their value. And after departing Atlanta, the Braves opened their 2017 season in the new Cobb County stadium under the SunTrust logo.

The bank, which was based in Atlanta, agreed to a 25-year pact in which it would pay $10 million a year for the right to place its name on and inside the ballpark, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported.