Spring Training Bidding War

I tuned in to last night's Red Sox-Reds game care of Fox Sports Ohio. During the bottom of the 5th, George Grande straight up broke one of the cardinal rules of announcing. He started his profile of Cincinnati's spring training home not only with two out, but prior to a 3-2 pitch. Busch league. Lucky for him and Chris Welsh, the inning continued and we got to hear a bit about the westward migration of Spring Training homes.

The Reds thought they had a deal to stay here, [but] it did not materialize. The Reds will move to Arizona, Goodyear, next year, and share a facility with the Indians. It's a beautiful facility; we've talked to some of the Indians folks and they say everything is going great.

There's a lot of remorse going around right here, George, including the city fathers and committee members who all voted the Reds down at the time. Now they wish the Reds could break the contract in Arizona. They would do anything they could to get them to stay in Sarasota. They'll be left without a Major League team for the first time in decades, the city of Sarasota.

That seems like a bit of an overstatement. In a cursory search on the interweb-nets, I found no reference to lawmakers showing remorse. It was more just a vibe of, "Well crap. Now we have to get a different team to come here." Anyway, as Welsh finishes up on the subject:

The Red Sox will move [to Fort Myers] after the facility is completed. The Reds will move next year, which will mean 15 teams in Arizona and 15 teams in Florida - meaning that on any given day one team will have a day off. So there's pressure right now for both states to try to get another team to move.

This is the real point at hand. With six teams having fled to the desert in the last 10 years and one more on the way, it's officially an even split. With the odd numbers in both states (unless you're counting split squads), something's going to have to give.

Florida, whatcha got?

On Big League Stew, David Brown presents Governor Crist's argument:

Crist has brought back the governor's baseball dinner...which featured a few Hall of Famers, commissioner Bud Selig, managers Charlie Manuel and Joe Maddon, plus reps from each of the 16 teams still training here — [which] is a way of reminding baseball how much Florida wants its business. "All the more important to have this dinner to thank the ones that are here," said Crist, who could give George Hamilton a tan for his money. "We’re going to keep fighting to get them back. It breaks my heart. We need ‘em."

And according to his press release, “Spring training alone generates more than $450 million a year in Florida.” Guess that's kind of a big deal too.

Hey, Arizona, how 'bout you guys?

Former Tigers closer Todd Jones weighs in:

Arizona is set up better for a baseball fan. You can see the most teams in the shortest amount of time without having to travel too far. A few teams share complexes, so you can even get two teams for the price of one. That's a good thing for a few reasons. One is you always know that at that complex you can catch a game, because one team will be playing. Plus, in the morning, you can see both teams go through drills and work out.

Russell over at his blog, Arizona via Slough, tracks down an internal e-mail from Arizona to Major League clubs. Okay, not really, but it's hilarious and worth a look. One of its finer pitches:

Friendly Umpires- Don't let your star pitcher lose confidence. If you commit to Spring Training in Arizona before the All-Star Break we will guarantee a "bonus strike" for every batter faced.

I can see it now. 'Full count, three balls, three strikes. And here's the pitch."