After delays to ballpark renovations caused their 2017 home opener to be pushed back, the Thunder Bay Border Cats (summer collegiate; Northwoods League) have reached an agreement with the city.
Prior to the 2017 season, Port Arthur Stadium received numerous upgrades were completed, with a particular focus on player amenities, including the playing surface. This came as the ballpark was being prepared to host the XXVIII World Baseball Softball Confederation U-18 Baseball World Cup 2017, an event that will be staged in September.
Renovations to the ballpark ultimately took longer than initially anticipated, with the city citing weather conditions–including an ice storm that took place in April–as a culprit. As a result, the Border Cats’ home opener was pushed from its originally scheduled date of June 3 back to June 17. The City and the Border Cats have reached an agreement to compensate the club for the delay, but the terms of the deal have not been disclosed. More from CBC:
The 10 games originally scheduled to take place at home during that period were instead played on the road, which made for a tough start to the season both on the field and in the office, said team president Kyle Smith.
“There’s obviously an impact there, and then there’s additional costs to playing on the road,” Smith said in an interview with CBC News. “You know, when you think about 30 per cent of your potential revenue going away, and then adding additional expense, it is problematic for us to start the season that way.”
Details of the agreement, Smith said, are confidential.
Port Arthur Stadium originally opened in 1951, and has been home to the Border Cats since 2003.