Following a vote from the Mobile City Council this week, Hank Aaron Stadium, home of the Mobile BayBears (Class AA; Southern League), will receive a new drainage system.
The BayBears have previously expressed a desire to enhance the drainage system at the ballpark. The main problem was the amount of standing water after storms, which the team was causing more rain outs than it should.
Under the terms of an agreement that was finalized this week, the drainage will be replaced as part of a package of $600,000 in repairs to Hank Aaron Stadium. The Mobile City Council signed off on the plan with just one dissenting vote. More from WKRG.com:
“How many times have we gone to the park and sat for an hour or so while they tried to get the water to a place where the game could be played, only to send people home,” Councilmember John Williams asked. “We’ve got to do something if we’re going to have a minor league presence, which I think is important to the youth and to our vibrant city. We need to do what’ss necessary to ensure games are played on time, and that someone from the major leagues sees Mobile as the place to put their minor league team.”
Williams received some pushback from Councilmember Bess Rich who criticized spending the money because the owners of the Bay Bears still owe the City of Mobile money.
” All our parks could use this money. I just feel there’s not enough emphasis on the private sector that’s using this money,” Rich said.
Rich was the only councilmember to vote against the repairs.
In September, the BayBears announced a new affiliation with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, which came after the D-Backs revealed an agreement with the Jackson Generals (Class AA; Southern League).