Pirates unveil plan for Latin American academy
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An artist's rendering of the Pirates' Latin American training complex in the Dominican Republic.
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The Pirates' plan for their Latin American baseball academy, unveiled at a news conference this morning at PNC Park, includes 2 1/2 fields, multiple batting cages and mounds, a clubhouse, an observation deck, a wide-ranging headquarters building and a large dormitory.
"It's the next step in the process I started a year ago of having a first-class operation that everyone in Pittsburgh can be proud of," owner Bob Nutting said. "It's going to be an extraordinary facility, and it's going to give us an edge in recruiting talent in that vital region."
Nutting, team president Frank Coonelly and general manager Neal Huntington will attend a groundbreaking ceremony tomorrow in El Toro, Dominican Republic, where the 46-acre complex will be built by summer of 2009. Also expected to attend is Dominican President Dr. Leonel Fernandez.
Coonelly predicted that the facility, which will cost the team $4 million-$5 million, will rank among the "very best" of those being operated in the Dominican by Major League Baseball teams, adding that the Pirates plan to be "one of the most aggressive" in getting talent out of that region.
That would represent a stark contrast from the past decade, when the Pirates have produced almost nothing out of the international market. The most recent internal Latin American signing to come all the way up through their system was second baseman Jose Castillo. He signed out of Venezuela in 1997.
"It's a watershed day for the Pittsburgh Pirates," Coonelly said. "This was a team that once thrived in Latin America, having been the franchise of the great Roberto Clemente. This great facility will help make us, once again, a player there. And a leader. If you're not a leader in that part of the world, it's difficult to compete, especially in a market like Pittsburgh."
Nutting showed slides to illustrate the differences between the Pirates' existing, rented facility and the new one, using photographs of the old and computer models of the new.
The current one has a single batting cage with an uneven mound and weeds surrounding it, cement floors in a tiny clubhouse and a single field. There is no headquarters building, no exercise room, and all residences are in another part of town.
The new one will include:
- Two full fields, including one that will be used for games by the Pirates' Dominican Summer League entry, plus a half-field for infield work.
- A two-story observation deck in the center for evaluators, similar to the one at Pirate City in Bradenton, Fla.
- Covered dugouts and various other shelters to deal with the frequent Dominican rain.
- A headquarters building that includes administration offices for all of the Pirates' Latin American staff, two classrooms, a computer/video training room, a cafeteria and a dormitory large enough to house 90 players and coaches. Each of the 18 players on the Dominican Summer League team will have their own rooms.
- A clubhouse large enough to house two teams, including a weight room, equipment storage room and an additional space to accommodate up to 10 coaches.
Nutting and Coonelly each stressed the importance of the classrooms.
"You want an environment in which the player has a chance to learn English and, in some cases, reading and writing in Spanish, so that he can be as prepared as possible for the next step in baseball or in life," Nutting said. "It's just the right thing to do."
The team also confirmed that its budget for signing bonuses in that region will rise, though no specifics were given. The Pirates generally have had few players in the range of the six-figure bonuses that have become increasingly common in that part of the world.
Players in Latin America, with the exception of Puerto Rico, are not included in MLB's amateur draft. They are free agents who can be signed as young as 16.
"This complex gives us a significant advantage in recruiting, signing and developing talent," Huntington said. "Because these players are free agents, recruiting is very important. They're going to see this facility, and they won't want to leave it."
More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
First Published January 21, 2008 11:33 am
