The sale of the Connecticut Defenders to a Richmond-based group is scheduled to close on April 24.
The sale of the Connecticut Defenders (Class AA; Eastern League) to a Richmond, Virginia group is now scheduled to close on April 24, as MiLB and MLB bodies have signed off on the deal.
Keep in mind those bodies are merely signing off on the sale of the franchise. Any attempt to move the team must undergo another round of approvals. The Richmond group has made no bones about wanting to move the team to Richmond, but the ballpark situation there is unsettled, to say the least; the issue is whether the city should fund a new Shockoe Bottom ballpark or move ahead with a renovation of The Diamond, the former home of the Richmond Braves (Class AAA; International League).
RELATED STORIES: Richmond baseball study didn’t consider renovated Diamond, stacks deck for new downtown ballpark; Richmond ballpark consulting deal draws criticism; Norwich approves Defenders lease transfer; Richmond to study new ballpark; Defenders ballpark lease transfer on tap for next week; new team for Norwich chosen?; Renovated Diamond may do in Richmond; MiLB to Richmond: Show us the ballpark plan; Richmond group applies for permission to buy team; New Richmond ballpark would rely on sales-tax rebates; Richmond group says it’s close to buying team
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