David Samson
David Samson
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Miami, the Gateway to the Americas, could well be the first American city in 35 years to see its baseball franchise leave. People in Washington D.C. know very well how long it took to get a team back.
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We thought it would be a good opportunity to have a chance to say hello and get to know them. The commissioners are very important people in the community. We want to spend a quality nine innings with them.
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We're marketing no expectation, and we're trying to introduce people to players.
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We scheduled it that way. They were spring break games and we turned them into afternoon games so people who had commitments at night would be able to come to the game in the afternoon. It's keeping all the options open for everybody.
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There were no deal discussions. It was very much an introductory meeting. It was 'getting to know you' day. We got to meet people and talk to them and learn more about Portland than what you can read about in the paper and in typical analyses.
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This is important because it shows it's not just about baseball. We've always said that the community is what matters the most. In order to have fans, you have to have a community. For people who lost their homes, it's hard for them to be fans if they have no place to live. This is a far bigger priority.
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I haven't seen a spot that really sticks out anywhere in South Florida. There is no perfect site. If you are too far south, the people north are unhappy. If you're too far east, the people out west are unhappy. So, I believe now the new perfect site is anywhere, and we'll teach people how to drive to the stadium. We'll build a tradition in this building for 30-40 years, and people will be more comfortable attending baseball games.
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We're definitely negotiating with everybody, and we're trying to get a deal done here because it is our first choice. But we recognize it may not happen and we don't have much time left.
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Our focus is on staying in South Florida, that's our only goal. Five of the last seven new (major league) ballparks were built after teams started to relocate and didn't.
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We have made progress from an initial conversation to an indication of interest from the business community, from the cooperate community, from the fans, from the political community. We're serious, because Jeffrey and the mayor would not allocate their time this way if they weren't.
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We asked them a few questions, they asked us a few questions. We're both going to answer each other's questions and then see about another meeting.
commented until
We have been contacted by many cities, and we have not really commented until if and when we visit.
early somewhere temporary
We have to be somewhere in 2011 and we could be somewhere as early as 2008. There is a temporary place to play in Norfolk, which is something we could look at strongly.
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We've discovered now that our best chance, and the best chance for baseball in South Florida, is to get a building built somewhere and making it work. The important thing is keeping the team here.