Third World conditions at Orioles spring facilities-word is out

Suzyn Waldman described the beauty and majesty of opening day at Camden Yards complete with fireworks. Earlier on XM Ken Rosenthal mentioned a Baltimore Sun article about the Orioles' tragic spring training facilities in Florida. Major League teams have complained about unsafe conditions at both major and minor league complexes. Worse for Orioles players and coaches, the two facilities are 3 hours apart (Ft. Lauderdale and Sarasota).

• 3 Major League teams have refused to play at the Orioles minor league complex citing unsafe conditions (Red Sox, Rays, and Reds):

Baltimore Sun: "This spring, Major League Baseball received multiple complaints from umpires about the conditions at Fort Lauderdale Stadium, the Orioles' major league spring training home since 1996. The situation is even worse at the team's long-time minor league complex in Sarasota, where three organizations have boycotted playing at Twin Lakes Park this spring over concerns about the fields....

• A Rays spokesman confirmed their refusal, citing "unsafe conditions" and the fear of injury. A Red Sox official, who requested anonymity because of the subject's sensitivity, confirmed that the team refused to send its minor leaguers back to Twin Lakes Park for a second day after they played there once this spring and experienced infields that he called "substandard, in real bad shape. It was hazardous to infielders, pitchers and baserunners," he said.

Instead, the Red Sox agreed to pay for a bus to transport the Orioles minor leaguers to their facility in Fort Myers to play the game....

• At Fort Lauderdale Stadium, the visiting clubhouse is closer to the size of a janitor's closet than a classroom. There is no cafeteria and the weight room is in the parking lot in a tent that leaks when it rains, and has to be swept regularly to remove leaves.

"When you have a big-league team that has a weight tent with rented weight equipment located in the parking lot, that's pretty sad," Orioles first baseman Aubrey Huff said....

• MLB spokesman Pat Courtney said the league sent a letter to the Orioles documenting complaints from clubs this spring....

The infields are hard and unlevel, and there are soft spots around the bases that have felled many a baserunner this spring.

• "That's the worst field I've ever played on in my life

• and I'm from Venezuela," said third baseman Melvin Mora, who played in Sarasota on a rehab assignment in 2007....

The outfield grass is faded and dead, marred by weeds and anthills. It's a stark contrast to the adjacent Little League field that has plush, green grass and well-manicured dirt....

• In the clubhouse, which includes the facility's only indoor batting cage though it's barely usable, the lockers are made of chicken wire and wood. There is no separate weight room. There is no air conditioning in the clubhouse,

• and the bathroom is so dirty that one Oriole said it "should be condemned.""...

'Complaints Flow About O's Spring Training Sites,' 4/2/09, Baltimore Sun

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