Sarasota, Orioles Tentatively Agree To Spring Training Deal
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Orioles May Call Sarasota Its Spring Training
Home Next Year If Deal Is Approved |
Sarasota County (FL) and the Orioles have tentatively agreed to a deal for Spring Training that "would bring the team to Sarasota by spring 2010, and team officials will be on hand for two final votes" on the deal today, according to a front-page piece by Roger Drouin of the Sarasota HERALD TRIBUNE. The "basics of the deal are all worked out, after 10 months of on-again, off-again negotiations." The 35-page agreement calls for a $31.2M renovation of Ed Smith Stadium and the city "handing the property over to the county." If the agreement is finalized today, the county and the Orioles "will have 150 days to reach an agreement for redeveloping" the ballpark. The team "would use the stadium as-is in 2010, with construction beginning sometime after spring ball ends." The ballpark "would be expanded from 7,500 seats to 9,000, including a new party deck and clubhouse, and would resemble a larger version" of the Rays' Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte, Florida. The agreement also "outlines plans for a Cal Ripken youth baseball academy at Twin Lakes Park," the Orioles' minor league complex. City and county commissioners said that this deal is "better than previous" proposed arrangements with the Reds and Red Sox "because of the youth academy." Sarasota County Administrator Jim Ley said that the "key to reaching an agreement was the simplicity of it." The county funding is "straightforward, as is the city's participation in providing the existing facility." That was "not the case in previous deals, which involved the city and more moving parts." The deal is also simpler this time because there is a "change in attitude by county officials, who until recently considered the stadium a city obligation" (Sarasota HERALD TRIBUNE, 7/22).
SAFE AT HOME: In Baltimore, Dan Connolly notes "for the first time in 15 years, the Orioles' minor league and major league spring facilities would be within a 15-minute drive instead of on opposite coasts." No other MLB organization has minor and major league camps "more than a few miles apart" (Baltimore SUN, 7/22). In Ft. Lauderdale, Sarah Talalay notes the Orioles, who have held spring training at Ft. Lauderdale Stadium for 14 years, have been "trying for years to find a permanent spring home." The team held spring training in Miami from '59-88 and trained "at least part of the time in Sarasota" between '89-95 (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 7/22). In Miami, George Richards noted if the Orioles relocate to Sarasota, it will be the first time in "more than 50 years" the team has not held camp in Miami-Dade or Broward counties (MIAMIHERALD.com, 7/21).
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