VERO BEACH — Spring training is expected to return to the former Dodgertown facility next year, although it won’t involve a major league team.

“In March when people are used to spring training we will hopefully have spring training baseball again in Vero Beach, just at a different level,” said Dave Barnard, owner and president of RussMatt Baseball, who is currently marketing the complex for use by college and high school teams next year.

Barnard’s group has reached an agreement with the Minor League Baseball, which is now operating the facility, to use it from Feb. 20 through April 24 for what is being advertised as the RussMatt Invitational at Dodgertown.

Barnard said the colleges would probably be using the facility from the last part of February to the last week in March, with high school teams coming in from late March to the end of April.

RussMatt is hoping to attract some of the 400 to 500 college and high school teams that come to Florida for spring training every year. Many of the college teams will be coming from the East Coast and seasonal and year-round residents may have some affiliation with or interest in seeing them, said Barnard, although he acknowledges it won’t be the same atmosphere as Major League Baseball spring training.

“It’s the ping of aluminum, rather than the crack of wood,” he said.

Vice President of Minor League Baseball and Vero Beach resident Craig Callan said Minor League Baseball also is close to reaching a deal with the United Football League for use of Dodgertown for a practice facility for the fledgling league’s two East Coast teams between Sept. 15 and Nov. 25 of this year.

The UFL will play its regular season games on Thursday and Friday evenings beginning in October and the championship game is scheduled for Thanksgiving weekend. The first-year teams include ones in New York, Orlando, Las Vegas and San Francisco.

Callan said Minor League Baseball is working with the Treasure Coast Sports Commission to market the facility for other uses, which could include such activities as softball, soccer, lacrosse and fantasy baseball camps.

“It’s going well,” said Callan.

“I wouldn’t say better than expected because we expected a lot,” he said.

Callan said discussions continue with the Los Angeles Dodgers about the new name for the facility, which could be Historic Dodgertown or Dodgertown-Vero Beach.

As the facility is booked, more employees can be brought back to work at the site. Callan said potentially there could be as many as 70 to 100 part- and full-time employees working there as agreements are reached for regular use of the facility.

The RussMatt Web site urges teams to register right away to play at the facility next year “as we have a strict limit of 30 schools per week and expect to fill up quickly.”

Barnard, however, said it is too early to tell how many teams might be coming to the facility. He said the cost for a team going to Dodgertown would be less than going to the Disney facility, while the Dodgertown facility is much more attractive than the Cocoa Beach complex.

He said the ability to have all the players room at Dodgertown also would be attractive to high school coaches wanting to keep them all together.

Ed Bierschenk, TCPalm.com

Tags: baseball, college, Dodgers, dodgertown, Sports, spring

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