Tucson hemorrhaging spring training teams
The Pima County Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to accept a $5 million offer from the Chicago White Sox to break the team’s contract to play spring training games in Tucson until 2012.
The decision clears the way for the White Sox to play at a new stadium in Glendale in 2009, while leaving in doubt the future of spring training in Tucson, the Arizona Daily Star reports.
And the Republic reports that the overall future of spring training in Tucson is looking bleak as the Arizona Diamondbacks are also considering relocating their Cactus League home to a site near metro Phoenix.
The switch would be one of a series of moves that could mark the end of the Old Pueblo’s tradition of hosting major-league baseball teams.
New facilities in the West Valley and upgraded facilities at other parks already have allowed metro Phoenix to retain teams and recruit five franchises from Florida’s Grapefruit League in recent years.
Now, the Phoenix area appears to be luring the three teams that train in Tucson.
The Chicago White Sox reached a deal Tuesday to move their spring operations to Glendale. Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies officials said that unless Tucson can find more teams for southern Arizona, it’s not feasible or beneficial to stay. Cash-strapped Tucson has no money for new facilities or to lure other teams from Florida.
We hope Tucson doesn’t abandon hope. This entertaining team exhibits real possibilities.
November 19, 2008 at 8:44 pm
The Metro Phoenix area welcomes the teams! The new stadium in Glendale is a great facility and a boon to the West Valley.
November 19, 2008 at 9:49 pm
Tucson’s loss is our gain.
November 20, 2008 at 9:02 am
Spring Training sites are one of the very best opportunities for family entertainment ever invented. Here’s a tip: Games are nice but, getting out to the team’s practice is where the real action is. Kids will never forget the day they walked among their major league heroes. (Best if accomplished before the kid comes to understand multi-million dollar no-trade contracts.)
I hope Tucson doesn’t get shut-out of Spring Training entirely, but yeah, it’s a problem. Those few prima donna “stars” don’t make that long arduous trip between Phx and Tucson. Tickets ought to be half-price since you only get half the team, usually.
Great link to the prospective next tenant for Tucson Electric Park!
November 21, 2008 at 10:53 am
Hate to rain on your parade O’ glee here but how come nobody has looked into the issue of Maricopa County cities canibalizing business from another part of the state. Specifically, was there any state-appropriated funding for economic development that was used to take business away from one part of the state? Can somebody answer that question? And if the answer is “yes” then doesn’t anybody think that this is a waste of state resources, if not outright misuse?
This is it for Tucson and Spring Training–indications are that the other teams are on the way out. I hope the state legislature didn’t inadvertently fund this demise. Tucson/Pima County made their share of bad decisions leading to this (such as building a very nice stadium that is not close to any pre or post game entertainment to leverage off of) as well but as far as I know the fan support was always very strong here in Baja Arizona.