Cactus League Wants To Lure Two Teams From Florida



A call to expand the Cactus League, which is enjoying unprecedented popularity, won support from a new governor's baseball commission and from certain fans in the stands Wednesday.

But in Florida, word that Arizona was trying to pluck two Major League Baseball teams from the Grapefruit League was met with alarm.

Saying "Let's play ball," Gov. Janet Napolitano created the Arizona Baseball and Softball Commission, with goals that include expanding the 12-team Cactus League, where record crowds flocked to new and upgraded ballparks last year, producing an estimated $250 million in revenue for the state.

In remarks at Maryvale Baseball Park, commission Chairman Slade Mead, a former state senator representing Ahwatukee Foothills, targeted two expansion candidates.

"I don't want to be too forward, but I think the (Cleveland) Indians would be a logical choice . . . and the Houston Astros," Mead said. "Those are the two teams I'd want to focus on."

Sitting behind home plate at Tempe Diablo Stadium on Wednesday morning, owner Arte Moreno watched his Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim take batting practice. Moreno, a Phoenix resident, said he was all for a larger Cactus League.

"Look at the weather," he said, pointing to the puffy clouds beyond the center-field fence. "Sitting up here having a dog and a beer . . . why wouldn't you want to come here? I think it's great to have more teams here."

Cactus League Association Vice President Robert Brinton also supports the expansion and promotion efforts, citing the league's economic impact.

"$250 million every year is remarkable," he said. "It's a Super Bowl every spring."

The response in Florida, where 18 clubs conduct spring training in 17 communities, was quite different.

David Cardwell, executive director of the Florida Grapefruit League Association, said he had recently attended a facilities conference in Tempe and came away with the sense that officials in both states planned to work together rather than compete.

"This takes me by surprise," Cardwell said from Orlando. "We didn't think there was going to be any raiding going on. I was hoping we would be able to work together on some of the common issues that each one of us have rather than spend our time and resources trying to fend off one another."

The Arizona commission's first meeting will be in March. To attract more teams, the panel likely will look into new sources of funding, because nearly all the funds allocated by the state Tourism and Sports Authority for Cactus League projects have been used or earmarked for upcoming projects.

There was no immediate word on where new teams might play. Goodyear seems to have an edge, because voters last September authorized a $10 million bond measure to help finance a $40 million ballpark project, originally aimed at luring the Angels, who decided to stay in Tempe.

A ballpark on tribal land is also a possibility. The president of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Joni Ramos, was appointed to the commission. That doesn't mean the tribe is pursuing a Cactus League club, tribal spokesman Jacob Moore said, but the tribe hasn't ruled out the possibility of making land available.

"There's always options, there's always opportunities," Moore said. "It's helpful for us to be in the right place when those decisions are made (to pursue new teams), but (there's) nothing that we're actively pursuing."

The Chicago White Sox, who have shared Tucson's Kino Sports Complex and Tucson Electric Park with the Diamondbacks since 1998, have long been rumored to be candidates to move to the Valley. The team's chairman, Jerry Reinsdorf, reportedly would like the club to train closer to his winter home in Paradise Valley.

If the White Sox leave Tucson, that would open a spot for the Indians, who trained in Tucson from 1947 to 1992. They have since trained in Winter Haven, Fla., but have expressed interested in moving.

"The Indians want out of Winter Haven," Cardwell said. "That's no secret."

Efforts to reach Cleveland club officials were unsuccessful.

Because the Cactus League needs an even number of clubs to ease scheduling, officials would try to land another club along with the Indians. Perhaps that's why Mead mentioned the Astros.

But the Astros in 2000 agreed to a lease extension to remain in Kissimmee through 2016, with local government spending about $18 million to improve Osceola County Stadium. Houston first conducted spring training in Apache Junction in 1962 and 1963 before moving to Cocoa, Fla., in 1964. An Astros spokesman said the club had no response to Mead's remarks.

Other candidates include the Cincinnati Reds, who have asked for millions in improvements to Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota, the club's winter home since 1998. The Reds' lease expires in 2008.

The new commission isn't focusing solely on the big leagues. It also will push to attract more amateur baseball and softball events to the state.

The group of 25 includes community leaders and people with ties to the baseball and softball communities, including University of Arizona softball star and U.S. Olympian Jennie Finch and former Arizona State Sun Devil and Seattle Mariner Ricky Nelson.

A state commission was appointed when the Cactus League seemed to be in trouble years ago, but it disbanded.

"It seemed the right time to juice this thing up again," Napolitano said.

The Cactus League has enjoyed massive popularity in recent years, with bellwether franchises such as the Chicago Cubs, who play in Mesa's HoHoKam Park, and the San Francisco Giants, based at Scottsdale Stadium, drawing large crowds. The Diamondbacks have stoked interest in spring training in Tucson since their birth in 1998.

Last year, the Cactus League drew a record 1.232 million fans, Brinton said, with the Cubs drawing a major-league record 177,008.

The push to expand the Cactus League builds on a recent trend in Arizona, where governments have spent lavishly to build and upgrade ballparks. The Valley's newest spring training facility, which opened in 2003 in Surprise and is shared by the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals, cost $48 million. The Tourism and Sports Authority contributed $32 million, and the city paid the rest. The sports authority also has spent $4.4 million toward improvements at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, home of the Oakland Athletics. Renovations also are planned at Scottsdale Stadium and Tempe Diablo Stadium.

John Bebbling, another member, said the revamped commission might consider renovating Chandler Compadre Stadium, where the Milwaukee Brewers trained before moving to west Phoenix.

"Most of the time, we think of industry in terms of manufacturing," Brinton said. "Yet, this is an industry that is bringing in revenue every year, year after year. It's a very dedicated revenue. They're committed and they show up. To focus on it makes sense."

[Home] [Teams] [History] [Roto Index] [Top 100] [Statistics] [Back Issues] [To Order] [Links]