Where Could Pawtucket Red Sox Relocate To?

NBC 10– A group of New England business leaders confirmed Monday that it has purchased the Pawtucket Red Sox from the Mondor family and other interests with the intention of moving the team to Providence. A news release said the group is led by Boston Red Sox president Larry Lucchino, who will be chairman, and James Skeffington, who will be president. All of the current PawSox front office members will retain their roles with the club under the new ownership.

Monday it was reported first by NBC 10 that the Pawtucket Red Sox had been sold to a group of New England business leaders including current Red Sox front office head Larry Lucchino. Reports than surfaced that the group was looking to move the team out of Pawtucket sooner rather than later, and while the initial reports are saying that a move to Providence is likely we thought of a few other cities where the PawSox could play baseball.

NEW BRITAIN, CT

May 18, 2013; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz (34) looks on from the dugout during batting practice before a game against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The city of New Britain, Connecticut has been host to the New Britain Rock Cats since 1983, serving as the minor league affiliates to the Red Sox, Twins, and currently the Colorado Rockies. 2015 begins their first season as the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, before that they were the affiliate of the Minnesota Twins for 19 seasons. They currently play their home games inside New Britain Stadium, a 6,000 seat ballpark so if a move to New Britain were to happen then undoubtedly a renovation of the stadium would need to occur.

The only caveat to this is the Rock Cats are expected to relocate to Hartford in 2016, so if the City of New Britain couldn’t keep a Double-A team what makes them want to bring in a Triple-A ball club?

Famous Rock Cat Alumni

Tori Hunter (1996-1998)

David Ortiz (1997, 2001)

Joe Mauer (2003)

Justin Morneau (2001-2003)

Worcester, MA

Worcester is the second largest city in the state of Massachusetts, so why not have the Pawtucket Red Sox relocate to Central Mass? In the past there have been independent baseball teams play out of Massachusetts, the Worcester Tornadoes were CAN-AM team that called Worcester home from 2005-2012. The team played its home games at Litton Field, the current home of Holy Cross’ baseball team, which seats around 3,000. Again another revamp project for Lucchino and company if they want to relocate to Worcester, but moving it to the second largest city in Massachusetts would make Massachusetts a central location for the Red Sox and their farm system.

Norwich, CT

Norwich, Connecticut may not sound familiar to those outside of the Eastern Connecticut area, perhaps the only time you heard of Norwich was when you were passing by trying to go to Mohegan Sun or Foxwoods. But make no mistake, Norwich is a spot for Minor League Baseball and has been for the past 20 years. In 1995 the Norwich Navigators debuted as the Double-A affiliates to the New York Yankees, and over the years they churned out future stars for the team in pinstripes. After their affiliation from the Yankees ended they joined up with the San Fransisco Giants in 2005, a partnership that lasted four seasons. Now Norwich is home to the Single-A (short season) affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. The now Connecticut Tigers play at Dodd Stadium, a 6,000 seat stadium which would be closer to the number of seats found at McCoy stadium however the issue remains the location of Dodd Stadium. Located in a business park, it can be difficult for newcomers to find the stadium.

Feb 19, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner throws a bullpen session during spring training practice at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Famous Navigator/Defenders Alumni

Mike Lowell (1997)

Alfonso Soriano (1999)

Matt Cain (2004)

Pablo Sandoval (2008)

Madison Bumgarner (2009)

Springfield, MA

Springfield, Massachussetts is home to the Basketball Hall of Fame, so why not try to bring a little baseball into town during the summer time? Springfield is another one of Massachusetts largest cities, as it inhabits over 150,000 residents and is home to one of the most popular colleges in New England, Western New England College. If the team of Lucchino and Co. want to move to Springfield though they would likely need to build an entire new stadium, which again wouldn’t be a huge problem because you get the feeling that is what the team is looking for by moving them out of Pawtucket. Moving them to Springfield would certainly bring in those 150,000 residents as well as residents right on the boarder of Connecticut as well as Rhode Island.

Providence, RI

Providence does make the most sense in terms of availability, and availability. The city of Providence is only a quick drive from Pawtucket, so loyal fans of the PawSox wouldn’t have to drive far to see their favorite minor leaguers. Along with that Lucchino and Co. would get to build their new stadium in a larger city with more opportunities to increase revenue in the third largest city in New England. You would also have to imagine that with the train transportation, Lucchino would hope/imagine the possibility of fans taking the train down just to see some of the future Red Sox play ball in Providence. There are tons of possibilities for the new ownership group to generate revenue in Providence, and since there hasn’t been a professional baseball team located in Providence to speak of it makes all the more sense for them to break new ground in Rhode Island’s capital.

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