Opinion

Triple-A baseball here rekindles stadium talk

Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff, an advocate of baseball in San Antonio, left, speaks with Pacific Coast League president Branch Rickey after a press conference to announce that San Antonio will host a Pacific Coast League Triple-A baseball team beginning in 2019. The city is well-suited for Triple-A ball, but should be cautious about public financing for a stadium. less Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff, an advocate of baseball in San Antonio, left, speaks with Pacific Coast League president Branch Rickey after a press conference to announce that San Antonio will host a Pacific ... more Photo: Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News Photo: Billy Calzada /San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Triple-A baseball here rekindles stadium talk 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

The San Antonio Missions will jump to Triple-A ball in 2019, a move that has renewed talk about a new minor league ballpark.

This is one move in a reshuffling of teams by the Elmore Sports Group. Its Double-A franchise in San Antonio will move to a new stadium in Amarillo in 2019, and its Triple-A franchise in Colorado Springs, Colorado, will come here.

But just where the Triple-A Missions will play and what it might cost taxpayers is decidedly unclear.

In making this announcement, Elmore Sports Group said the Triple-A Missions will “initially” play at Wolff Stadium on the Southwest Side. So what would come next?

Missions President Burl Yarbrough told Express-News reporter Tom Orsborn, “While we have not yet determined what the specific baseball stadium needs are to advance to Triple-A, nor have we secured private sector development partners or a stadium development plan, we will begin the process immediately.”

We like the measured response from Mayor Ron Nirenberg, who said until the team submits its plans, there is nothing to talk about. But we know the conversation will include public financing for a new stadium or renovations to Wolff. The city and Bexar County should tread cautiously.

Just over a year ago, then-Mayor Ivy Taylor announced an ill-fated deal to bring Triple-A ball to town in a new downtown stadium. But then, as now, no one could ever say where the stadium would be built, how it would be paid for and what it might cost taxpayers. The idea faced withering criticism from taxpayers and sports fans.

There just wasn’t much public support for paying for a minor league stadium, and there were legitimate policy questions about whether a minor league stadium would be the highest and best use for precious land downtown.

There is the underlying question of aspiration. This city — the seventh-largest in America, rapidly growing, on the cusp of its tricentennial and filled with promise — is yearning for another major league team. Studies have shown soccer is our best fit — and our soccer team, San Antonio FC, is thriving in a minor league stadium that could expand to major league size. Soccer has to be the priority.

The same studies have said Triple-A ball is right for San Antonio, too. And we are excited about a higher level of play here. But public officials shouldn’t trip over themselves to accommodate Elmore Sports Group in funding for a new minor league stadium.