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REV says they're not moving the DEWDs anywhere. Not that I totally believe that. The current lease with Kinston runs through 2031. The Texas Rangers can afford to pay the lease even if they abandoned Grainger. They've committed a billion dollars on just three players in the last year. They could even cover ticket sales since very few people attend Ducks games. Tickets sold may be over 1500 per game, but only a small fraction of those people actually show up at game time.
It may all be irrelevant because it's likely that Low A will eliminated in next few years, possibly High A in the distant future. MLB is going to want a smaller minor league system due the unionization of minor leaguers and the increased costs that go along with that. The preference going forward can very well turn to mainly drafting players out of colleges. For those bypassing college, they may be limited to playing a couple of seasons in instructional leagues before being assigned to AA, playing indy ball, or attending some kind of baseball academy.
I don't think the DEWDs will be in Kinston through 2031 for one reason or the other, and they likely won't be playing in Wilmington either. Or anywhere else...
Last edited by Phil A. Delphia; 02-02-2023 at 08:03 PM..
REV says they're not moving the DEWDs anywhere. Not that I totally believe that. The current lease with Kinston runs through 2031. The Texas Rangers can afford to pay the lease even if they abandoned Grainger. They've committed a billion dollars on just three players in the last year. They could even cover ticket sales since very few people attend Ducks games. Tickets sold may be over 1500 per game, but only a small fraction of those people actually show up at game time.
It may all be irrelevant because it's likely that Low A will eliminated in next few years, possibly High A in the distant future. MLB is going to want a smaller minor league system due the unionization of minor leaguers and the increased costs that go along with that. The preference going forward can very well turn to mainly drafting players out of colleges. For those bypassing college, they may be limited to playing a couple of seasons in instructional leagues before being assigned to AA, playing indy ball, or attending some kind of baseball academy.
I don't think the DEWDs will be in Kinston through 2031 for one reason or the other, and they likely won't be playing in Wilmington either. Or anywhere else...
Maybe not. The Wilmington market is probably big enough for a Double A club, but a 4k stadium isn't going to be AA. I question whether or not they can get New Hanover County folks to cross the river for minor league baseball. I believe the entertainment complex is going to have to be pretty big to do that. I keep thinking about a regional mall type facility. Mayfaire west so to speak.
During its meeting on February 16, the Wilson City Council approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Mudcats Baseball to explore a baseball redevelopment project in Wilson. The non-binding agreement represents an understanding between the city and the Mudcats to continue to work diligently and in good faith to determine if the project is feasible for the city and the Mudcats organization.
I was concerned something like this could happen. Greenville has shuffled it's feet for too long now when they could have started a project like this years ago . Interesting to say the least!!
I was concerned something like this could happen. Greenville has shuffled it's feet for too long now when they could have started a project like this years ago . Interesting to say the least!!
I take it Five County Stadium doesn't meet the new baseball requirements. Here is an excerpt from an article in the Star News in Wilmington about the team there...
"a laundry list of required stadium improvements to enhance the experience for players and fans: minimum lighting wattage, better dugouts, pitching and hitting tunnels, locker room facilities. Also included were items required by the game’s growth and evolution, including locker room facilities for female umpires and coaches, and improved internet access.
Hardly any of the 120 stadiums had all these items in place. Many of Minor League Baseball’s oldest facilities would need significant improvements made by the start of the 2023 season in April, or at least present a timeline and funding. And those fixes aren’t cheap.
The city of Asheville’s McCormick Field, one of the oldest in all of minor league baseball, needs at least $30 million in improvements. Owner Brian DeWine has told the Citizen-Times he’s afraid the team will have to leave by the end of 2024 if a financial and physical roadmap cannot be created.
Meanwhile, Segra Stadium in Fayetteville is one of the newest facilities in the minors. It, and its surrounding entertainment district, ended up costing just over $41 million"
The "Feelers" are obviously out as to who will build and who will not. just because you had a minor league team for awhile doesnt mean you will keep it.
I take it Five County Stadium doesn't meet the new baseball requirements. Here is an excerpt from an article in the Star News in Wilmington about the team there...
The "Feelers" are obviously out as to who will build and who will not. just because you had a minor league team for awhile doesnt mean you will keep it.
Yes, this is more of a "we have options" move by the Mudcats to try to get improvements done. But i'm sure Wilson is taking this seriously and is putting something together in case the Mudcats really do come calling. I'd imagine they could get something done at the old mall site.
There's going to be a lot more contraction and movement in minor league baseball over the next few years. I'm sure a lot of leagues and teams will go an independent route once MiLB starts kicking out the dead weight.
This should be a wake up call to Greenville to start looking heavily into a facility. They should have had something in place long ago.
Yes, this is more of a "we have options" move by the Mudcats to try to get improvements done. But i'm sure Wilson is taking this seriously and is putting something together in case the Mudcats really do come calling. I'd imagine they could get something done at the old mall site.
There's going to be a lot more contraction and movement in minor league baseball over the next few years. I'm sure a lot of leagues and teams will go an independent route once MiLB starts kicking out the dead weight.
This should be a wake up call to Greenville to start looking heavily into a facility. They should have had something in place long ago.
Its a wake-up call that doing some piece-meal renovations to Guy Smith stadium doesn't cut it. That Fayetteville put $40 million into a downtown ballpark should tell everyone what they need to know. That is the model for minor league baseball now. Truist Point in High Point cost $36 million. Charlotte has a legit downtown minor league ballpark as does Durham and Greensboro.
Its a wake-up call that doing some piece-meal renovations to Guy Smith stadium doesn't cut it. That Fayetteville put $40 million into a downtown ballpark should tell everyone what they need to know. That is the model for minor league baseball now. Truist Point in High Point cost $36 million. Charlotte has a legit downtown minor league ballpark as does Durham and Greensboro.
Absolutely is a wake-up call. I wonder how Greenville's mayor feels about this. He's a former ECU player and has been all for a minor / summer league team in Greenville. With the CPL reaching out a few times now and nothing happening, I wonder how quickly he can get the council to take another look.
Wilson isn't playing around. Even if the mudcats never happen, they can definitely get some investors on board with the "thought" of a minor league team coming in. I don't think they would have agreed to anything if there wasn't some sort of plan in place. Mudcats posturing or not, Wilson is preparing itself to take that next step as a city.
Yes, this is more of a "we have options" move by the Mudcats to try to get improvements done. But i'm sure Wilson is taking this seriously and is putting something together in case the Mudcats really do come calling. I'd imagine they could get something done at the old mall site.
Wilson already has plans for the mall site, so the ship may have already sailed for that location.
I didnt see any plans. The outparcels are retained by the owner, including the movie theater, a park is planned to help with water storage and "commercial redevelopment" is planned for the site.
The article above indicated that if a ballpark is built in Wilson it would be surrounded by other amenities. Sounds like it could be exactly the place...and the City is about to own it.
One thing to keep in mind when it comes to building a stadium is that if a city owns a good site, then the cost for the development is much cheaper than if it has to buy the land. For example, the City of Wilmington had to pay $4 mill for the land for its convention center and then also build it. It had to pay $4 million for the land where the Riverfront park and Amphitheater is. High Point spent $15 million on the land for its stadium.
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