TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Team Planning Academy In Brazil

ADVERTISEMENT

By MARC LANCASTER

mlancaster@tampatrib.com

Published: December 5, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG - The Rays lagged well behind their peers in establishing a serious presence in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, but they hope to serve as trendsetters when it comes to developing baseball talent in Brazil.

The team announced Thursday that it plans to establish a presence in South America's largest country that will include the first baseball academy there affiliated with a major-league organization.

Construction on a complex in the city of Marilia that will include two full playing fields, two youth diamonds and dormitories capable of housing up to 40 players is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2009. The local and federal governments in Marilia, which is about 230 miles northwest of Sao Paulo, will handle construction of the facility.

The effort was spearheaded by Rays special assistant for baseball operations Andres Reiner, who pioneered scouting and development in Venezuela while working with the Astros organization in the 1980s. Reiner has traveled to Brazil several times in the past year, and the Rays have employed a scout in the country, Adriano de Souza, who will coordinate the new academy.

Because there is no baseball tradition to speak of in Brazil, the Rays will help build interest in the game from the ground up. They don't expect to see a return on their investment in the form of a Brazilian-born player reaching the majors for several years, but they believe it will happen eventually.

"Obviously, it's very long-term, but we hope to engender a lot of goodwill by being down there now and working with coaches in the area, working with the youth," said Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman. "There may be one or two prospects now, but for the most part our expectations are 8-12 years from now."

NO ROOM AT THE INN: Though Friedman already had said (and reiterated Thursday) that David Price will be a starter rather than a reliever next season, there is no guarantee at the moment that he'll break camp in the Rays' rotation.

"We have five starters who pitched extremely well for us and were a big part of us winning the American League East, so I certainly wouldn't say he's penciled in there," Friedman said. "We've got five incumbents that, rightfully so, should be penciled in."

Of course, Scott Kazmir, James Shields and Matt Garza aren't going anywhere. But the names of Edwin Jackson and Andy Sonnanstine have been and will continue to be circulated heavily in the trade rumor mill. If one of them goes in a deal for a hitter or bullpen help, it shouldn't take long for Price to settle into the starting five.

TAKE YOUR TIME: The Rays don't expect CF B.J. Upton, who had surgery last month to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder, to be at full strength for the exhibition opener Feb. 25.

"I doubt he'll be ready for the first spring training game; I don't even think we'd try to push him to do that," Friedman said. "Our goal is to have him ready for the opener on April 6."

LINES ARE STILL OPEN: Though Trever Miller has moved on and signed with the Cardinals, the Rays remain in contact with their other three free agents - Rocco Baldelli, Cliff Floyd and Eric Hinske. Whether they return to Tampa Bay could depend on how the rest of the market shakes out.

"We certainly haven't closed the door with any of them," Friedman said. "With the lack of movement so far this offseason, it's hard to say exactly what will happen, but we've stayed in touch with their agents and will continue to do so."

Marc Lancaster

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT