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Hurricane Milton spares Florida spring training facilities

Significant damage to spring-training facilities in Florida was avoided as Hurricane Milton lost major steam when entering the Gulf Coast area, diminishing to a Category 1 storm when reaching landfall in the Tampa Bay region and Sarasota County. 

Hurricane Milton was hailed as potentially one of the most devastating Florida storms in recent years, with communities ranging from Orlando to the north, Fort Myers to the south and Miami/Palm Beach to the east prepping for major damage. And while there was some significant impact from Milton and its 120-mph winds, ranging from flooding and power outages to wind damage, the damage was less extensive than anticipated. That anticipation was felt in the baseball world, where ballparks were pressed into action as emergency facilities and staging areas for cleanup efforts.

The most significant damage encountered in the baseball world came not to spring-training facilities but to Tropicana Field, as 120-mph winds tore Teflon-coated fiberglass panels from the facility’s roof. The Rays are not set to play at the Trop until March 27—though a traditional March 25 exhibition tuneup at the Trop had not been announced yet—and the Rays are investigating options before announcing a game plan.

Similarly, the team is evaluating the condition of Charlotte Sports Park, the team’s spring home in Port Charlotte. That complex, as you’ll recall, was hit by Hurricane Ian and closed for spring training 2023 to address water-damage repairs, with the team shifting spring-training operations to the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando’s Disney World and the Trop. The team returned to Charlotte Sports Park for spring training 2024, and post-Hurricane Milton inspections focus on how well those repairs held up. (So far so good.)

The hardest-hit spring facility, it seems, was Bradenton’s LECOM Park, spring home of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The outfield fence was torn down by the heavy winds, as was the mesh shade awning sitting above the left-field bleachers. At nearby Pirate City, an outfield fence and batter’s eye was taken down by the heavy winds. Nothing, it seems, that can’t be addressed by February.

Other Grapefruit League teams fared better.

Even though Sarasota’s Ed Smith Stadium, spring home of the Baltimore Orioles, was smack dab in the middle of the storm’s path, the Baltimore Orioles announced the ballpark, the adjoining training facilities and the minor-league operations at Twin Lakes Park did not suffer any significant damage.

“We are evaluating the Sarasota complex at this time, but initial assessments have not yet uncovered significant damage,” Orioles senior vice president of communications Jennifer Grondahl said in a statement. “FP&L (Florida Power & Light) is activating from our facility to help restore power to our community. We will share additional ways in which we intend to support the response efforts as plans are finalized.”

Sarasota is on the northern end of Sarasota County, with the entire county impacted by storm damage and power outages, but no damage was reported on the southern end of the county at North Port’s CoolToday Park, spring home of the Atlanta Braves. The team is still evaluating conditions, we’re told, but no major problems were initially noted.

Also, minor issues involving wind damage was reported at Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field, spring home of the New York Yankees, and JetBlue Park, spring home of the Boston Red Sox. In fact, JetBlue Park never lost power despite widespread outages along the Gulf Coast. Some water damage was reported at BayCare Ballpark and the Carpenter Complex, spring home of the Philadelphia Phillies.

So, the good news for spring-training attendees: Hurricane Milton, in an early review of conditions, didn’t cause much in the way of damage that could impact what happens in 2025. 

Photo of Tropicana Field damage courtesy St. Petersburg Police.

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