All the more reason for a stadium downtown. I like the ideas of it being where the Coke plant is now. What would it really take for that to become a reality though? (..Besides the obvious..)
I don't understand how Florence, Athens and even Tuscumbia can have actual downtowns and Huntsville just doesn't seem to get it. Wouldn't it be great to go downtown, stop by the bank, pick up some new clothes, have a bite to eat and maybe even grab some groceries for dinner?
Brewers may not return as Huntsville Stars' big league partner
Published: Wednesday, August 18, 2010, 8:59 AM Updated: Wednesday, August 18, 2010, 9:13 AM Mark McCarter, The Huntsville Times
HUNTSVILLE, AL -- The Huntsville Stars are among the few Class AA teams not assured of a major league partner for next season and indications are that the parent club, the Milwaukee Brewers, is interested in exploring options elsewhere because of dissatisfaction with Joe W. Davis Stadium.
Stars owner Miles Prentice said he "has no idea" whether the player development contract with the Brewers will be renewed and he has not engaged in formal talks with Milwaukee officials.
"At the end of the day, they need to find the best possible facility," Prentice said.
However, the Stars will continue operations in Huntsville next season, even if a different major league partner is obtained.
If Milwaukee doesn't return, the most likely potential major league affiliates for Huntsville are the California Angels, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants or Seattle Mariners.
"Baseball will be here next year," General Manager Buck Rogers said. "I've got next year's schedule sitting right here."
"We've extended the lease so I certainly plan to be there next year," said Prentice, who announced in April a five-year extension on the city-owned ballpark.
Prentice downplayed recent published reports from Panama City, Fla., that groups there want to build a stadium and obtain membership in the Southern League, and they have talked with him about purchasing or moving the Stars.
He had a conversation with Panama City real estate developer Donald Jackson nearly a year ago but said it was a general inquiry.
Prentice, a New York-based attorney who heads a group that purchased the Stars in 2001, said, "I have a lot of people call me all of the time" who have questions or interest in buying a team.
Prentice has seen the Huntsville franchise plummet to the bottom of the league in attendance, and Monday afternoon's game drew only 440 fans.
Currently 22 of the 30 Class AA working agreements have been renewed or are in the process of renewal. (They are done so on even-numbered years, for either two- or four-year terms.) Four Southern League teams have announced renewals in the past two weeks, leaving Huntsville, Carolina (Cincinnati Reds) and West Tenn (Seattle Mariners) unsigned. Major league teams can shift their affiliations among the three Double-A leagues.
Teams must notify their respective league offices by Sept. 11 if they do not plan to renew their player development contracts, then there is a period from Sept. 16-30 where potential new deals may be negotiated; there are stiff fines for negotiating with new teams outside that two-week window.
It is clearly a situation where Huntsville's ownership will be wooing the Brewers once Prentice can begin discussions with Milwaukee Executive Vice President/General Manager Doug Melvin and his chief aide, Gord Ash.
"We'd certainly love to have the Brewers back," Rogers said. "They're one of the classiest organizations around."
Brewers' officials have grown weary of the lack of response by Huntsville and Stars ownership for improvements to the 26-year-old stadium since the Brewers began their relationship with the Stars in 1999.
"Obviously there are certain areas that need to be addressed with the facility at Joe Davis," said Scott Martins, business manager for the Brewers' minor league operation. "It's a stadium that has had relatively little maintenance. There are few stadiums that old that haven't undergone some major renovation. I think anybody who has been to any other park and then to Joe Davis knows there are issues that need to be addressed."
Stadium problems
Among the issues: poor playing surface, drainage problems (that led to two cancellations last week), stadium lights angled for football play not baseball, a visitors clubhouse that barely meets the lowest standards in minor league ball and the lack of an adequate batting-practice area.
"They like the people here," Prentice said, "but they're frustrated with (the stadium)."
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My mom, grandfather, and I flew to Baltimore via AirTran in July.
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