Reds, Goodyear ready to move forward

The news just keeps getting better. I highlighted some interesting points.

Sides nearing an agreement for exclusive negotiations

By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com

CINCINNATI -- The Reds' flirtation with Goodyear, Ariz., appears to be headed to the next level.

The Goodyear City Council is scheduled to hold a special meeting on Monday to consider entering into an agreement that calls for exclusive negotiations between the sides that would bring the Reds to the Phoenix suburb for Spring Training.

If approved, it would take a couple of days to go into effect. The Reds would have to halt negotiations with any other city or facility -- including their current spring home at Sarasota, Fla. -- for 90 days. It also would prevent Goodyear from courting another team.

"It's not a done deal, but both parties are serious enough to do this," Reds consultant John Allen said Friday night.

Goodyear currently is building a $75 million complex and has been trying to lure a second Major League team to share it with the Indians. The Tribe will begin Spring Training at the new facility in 2009, but if the Reds were to join them, it wouldn't be until 2010 at the earliest. Both teams would use the main stadium but have their own workout fields and clubhouses.

The Reds' lease agreement with Sarasota expires in October, but it carries three one-year club options that could extend the stay until 2011.

Last week, Allen and Reds owner/CEO Bob Castellini were in Arizona for a presentation given by Goodyear's mayor and city manager. Allen and Castellini came away impressed with the site.

"The proposed facility will be the best in baseball for Spring Training," said Allen, the team's former chief operating officer. "It would allow us to do everything a Major League team needs to get ready for a full season."

The Reds began a Spring Training site search in November after Sarasota residents refused a $16 million referendum to fund ballpark renovations.

On Tuesday, the Sarasota County Commission delayed voting outright on providing $17.6 million for a $41 million alternative funding plan to remodel Ed Smith Stadium. The Reds would have to contribute about $9 million to the plan, while the state and city governments would chip in about $7 million each. The county currently lacks enough votes to approve the proposal.

It's believed the Reds wouldn't have to contribute much, if anything, financially for the construction costs of the Goodyear facility. Allen declined to discuss specifics of any proposals, and he said the exclusive negotiating agreement also carries a confidentiality clause.

"I can say it's a very attractive economic situation for us out there," Allen said.

Mark Sheldon is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

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