Paul Payne
Given Chattanooga’s plans to erect a new stadium for the Lookouts with a price tag north of $110 million, it’s the latest evidence that there’s nothing “minor” about the current business model of minor league baseball.
Since Major League Baseball assumed control, the minor leagues have now become a major enterprise.
Under the new MLB regime, the stakes have increased for communities to retain their beloved local teams. The minor leagues are no longer an eclectic collection of mom-and-pop operators like Joe Engel simply providing a family-friendly outlet for summer evenings.
When MLB ended its relationship in 2020 with the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues - an organization that had governed the minor leagues since 1901 - it became apparent there was a new sheriff in town. The operations were moved from Florida to MLB’s headquarters in New York, followed by a list of 42 teams on the chopping block – including the Lookouts – under plans for contraction due to inadequate stadium facilities.
MLB has raised the bar in requiring minor league affiliates to adhere to updated standards when it comes to stadium amenities. Estimates conservatively place the total cost of the mandated new construction and upgrades in the range of $3 billion in order for teams to meet the new compliance requirements.
Professional baseball first arrived in Chattanooga in 1885, and it was inconceivable to imagine losing the Lookouts. An ultimatum was issued by MLB to either upgrade the aging and landlocked AT&T Field or build a new stadium with a firm compliance deadline of 2025. Failure to do so would mean the end of affiliated baseball in Chattanooga as MLB would relocate the franchise to one of a number of cities eager to land one of the 120 coveted teams.
Thankfully, the Lookouts were able to dodge a bullet. Much credit belongs the steadfast commitment of the Cincinnati Reds leadership who doggedly advocated on behalf of the Lookouts to MLB their desire to remain in Chattanooga despite attractive offers from other suitors. MLB wasn’t interested in the city’s deep baseball heritage nor the fact it would take some time to develop a plan and a site for a new ballpark. The Lookouts were unquestionably on the clock with little time to spare.
Finally, after months of discussion and sometimes contentious debate, both city and county officials unanimously approved in late February a new stadium to anchor the renaissance in the South Broad District, revitalizing the eyesore of abandoned factories that has greeted visitors entering the city’s western gateway for years.
There’s been plenty of debate as to the necessity of a new stadium being built in order to retain the Lookouts. Local leaders should be commended at both the city and county level for rolling up their sleeves and hammering out a deal. After visiting with Reds officials last week at their spring training facility in Goodyear, Ariz. I’m even more convinced that our elected officials have made the right decision moving forward.
“We've remained because the vision from the owners (Hardball Capital, led by Managing Owner Jason Freier) who are willing to put up their own money, indicating their sincere interest in not only doing it right for the Reds, but doing it right for Chattanooga,” said Shawn Pender, the Reds senior advisor to the general manager and the president. “We were given options in three or four other places three years ago, but we love Chattanooga. We love the ownership group. We love the local management team and we love the location. All that had to improve was the infrastructure.”
The takeover of the minor leagues by MLB has prompted a massive overhaul of stadium standards across the country from both private and public funding sources. Six new ballparks opened in 2021, and the Maryland Legislature allocated $200 million for upgrades to minor league baseball stadiums across their state in 2022.
In addition to Chattanooga, new stadiums are emerging in Knoxville, Richmond, Salt Lake City and Hillsboro, Ore. Several teams are relocating to cities lured by the promise of a new ballpark being constructed including Spartanburg, S.C. as part of a $250 million urban transformation project similar to what Chattanooga is proposing. Other cities are infusing hefty amounts of needed capital in order to upgrade their facilities to meet the new standards.
Chattanooga isn’t the only Reds affiliate impacted by the premium now being placed on minor league baseball. The Louisville Bats, the Triple-A stepping stone between the Lookouts and the big leagues, was recently purchased by a privately funded sports management group gobbling up numerous teams. Diamond Baseball Holdings now owns 29 different franchises – including all four of the Atlanta Braves’ affiliates - evidence that there are profits to be made in minor league baseball. The new owners have plans for various upgrades plus plans are in the works for new apartments and a parking deck adjacent to the ballpark.
Daytona, the High-A affiliate just below the Lookouts that was also among the teams slated for contraction, was beneficiary of the investment of local dollars as well. The Tortugas play their home games in Jackie Robinson Ballpark, an iconic stadium that dates back to 1914 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Tortugas announced a partnership with Advent Health as part of a $30 million upgrade to the ballpark and construction of new training facilities. Coupled with a new Marriott and condos nearby, the stadium district has seen a booming revitalization.
The Reds Low-A affiliate in Dayton, Ohio, has been the posterchild of success since first opening their new stadium in 2000. Although situated only an hour’s drive from Cincinnati, the Dragons enter the upcoming season with minor league record of more than 1,500 consecutive sellouts. Even with their successful track record, MLB is requiring additional funding for batting cages and expansion of the weight room in order to bring their facility to the new standards.
So why is MLB suddenly imposing strong-armed mandates when none existed for decades? Quite simply, it’s a matter of protecting their investment in developing players and providing consistent standards for facilities throughout affiliated baseball.
Gone are the days when stadiums needed limited space only for players, coaches and trainers. The minors is seen as an extension of MLB, and the demand for facility space to house expanded staffing requirements has risen exponentially in this new era of analytics and player development.
Each minor league affiliate must now accommodate space at each stadium for specialists that didn’t exist a few years ago. Greater emphasis is being placed on new roles - video and analytics, health and performance, mental skills, strength and conditioning, sports science and nutrition - which must be on site. Requirements for multiple batting cages and weight training are also now in place. Plus, there must be adequate clubhouse and office space for Reds instructors and officials who rotate among the various minor league affiliates throughout the season as well as media rooms.
“Even though we have fewer players now than in the past, all the new infrastructure that didn’t exist means we now have over 100 more employees on the baseball operation side than when I started 15 years ago,” Pender said.
To be fair, MLB is also investing plenty of its own resources back into the game. Minor league salaries were embarrassingly low for many years, with players responsible for covering their own housing costs and dues owed to the clubhouse attendant from those paltry wages. Last year minor league players agreed on their first collective bargaining agreement in history which increased minimum Double-A salaries from $13,800 to $30,250 in addition to housing being provided.
Protecting the investment major league teams have made into their players through higher wages, improved facilities and organizational support also increases the need for major league teams to be strategic when aligning with the minor league affiliates.
The Lookouts were part of the Cincinnati farm system from 1988-2008, followed by six years as a Dodgers affiliate and four seasons with the Twins. When the Reds moved their Double-A franchise from Pensacola to Chattanooga in 2019, it was a bonus for the parent organization.
“One of the biggest adjustments in baseball is from A-ball to Double-A, so Double-A is something that is incredibly important to every organization,” Pender said. “That’s particularly true for us because of the location of Chattanooga. Remaining here is a huge win for the Reds as far as what we're trying to accomplish developmentally that's still within our footprint. Our general managers, our farm director, our scouting director and scouts can easily travel between Louisville, Chattanooga, Dayton and Cincinnati.”
It’s also an opportunity for the Reds to continue their favorable relationship with Freier’s group as well as Lookouts president Rich Mozingo and his staff while awaiting the stadium funding issues to reach a resolution.
“From everything I’ve seen, we're going from being one of the least attractive options in the minor leagues to the most attractive,” Pender said. “I doubt that there'll be anything that's going to be better than this new development. It is going to allow us to increase the quality of the work we get. We love Rich and Jason and how they've treated us. We've been loyal with them, and they've been loyal to us. It’s a great marriage and we’ve expressed this to MLB.”
The delays leading up to the governmental approval of the stadium’s financing has brought MLB’s 2025 deadline perilously close. But Mozingo is eager to start the process while the last approvals for funding are finalized over the next few weeks.
“We’ll break ground shortly after the last vote is in place, and hopefully that will be sometime in April,” Mozingo said. “Then we build just as hard and as fast as the supply chain will let us build. We've got a great contractor in place in EMJ who's ready to move forward right this second. We’re looking at a timeframe of probably 14 to 16 months out right this minute.”
That schedule makes Opening Day of 2025 an impossibility, but all parties are hopeful MLB will extend their deadline given the unique circumstances surrounding Chattanooga’s dilemma. There’s no need in rushing the process and sacrificing the quality of the venue’s finished product.
“We were willing to wait even if it wasn’t done by 2025,” Pender said. “Where were we going to go? Anywhere we could go was going to have to do what Chattanooga was doing. But we wanted to be in Chattanooga, realizing that by the time it was done it was going to be a five or six year wait.”
Those who have experienced AT&T Field as insiders agree that the current stadium’s limitations make it impractical for the Lookouts to remain there given the new guidelines. Louisville manager Pat Kelly, who had stints managing the Lookouts at both Engel Stadium (1993-94) and at AT&T Field (2019), has seen the transformation in the minor leagues over the course of his 32-year career.
“Chattanooga was one of the first stadiums I knew where the owner built it on his own without any city or county money,” Kelly said. “It’s functional and served its purpose for years. It was passable before MLB stepped in, but it would be impossible to implement the required improvements to benefit
the players at that location. Building a new stadium is the only solution to keep baseball in Chattanooga.”
Reds centerfielder TJ Friedl, who played for the Lookouts in 2019, loved his time in Chattanooga but was filled with trepidation when roaming the AT&T outfield.
“It was a bit scary playing the outfield there,” Friedl said. “You didn’t want to dive for a ball on the rubberized warning track, and the wooden outfield walls weren’t very forgiving. I think a new stadium in Chattanooga will be amazing because it’s such a great city.”
Cincinnati catcher Tyler Stephenson grew up outside of Atlanta and visited Chattanooga often before joining the Lookouts in 2019. He looks forward to seeing the renewal the new ballpark will bring to the Scenic City.
“A new stadium is going to bring a new sense of excitement to Chattanooga,” Stephenson said. “Everything is brand new, and it will be exciting to see what it does for that city. I enjoyed Chattanooga a lot. Growing up in Atlanta, I had been there a ton of times on vacation before they built the aquarium in Atlanta. It’s going to be great for the players, and maybe I’ll be able to make it to a game at some point to check it out.”
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Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com
Rendering of the new Lookouts stadium