 | |
| Location | 1701 27th Street East Bradenton, Florida United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 27°29′02″N82°31′46″W / 27.483824°N 82.529388°W /27.483824; -82.529388 |
| Owner | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| Operator | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Renovated | 2008 |
| Tenants | |
| Pittsburgh Pirates (NL)1969–present Gulf Coast Pirates (GCL)1978–present | |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
Pirate City is the site ofminor league andspring training activities for thePittsburgh Pirates of theNational League. The complex is located inBradenton,Florida, and serves as the site of the Pirates spring training workouts, while nearbyLECOM Park (formerly known as McKechnie Field) is the site of the team's home spring training games.
While the Pirates have been training in Bradenton since 1969, the Pirate City complex received a major renovation in 2008, the result of a $20 million financial agreement between the team and city that fixed up both the Pirate City and McKechnie Field.[1]
Pirate City also hosts corporate events, retreats, parties, receptions and all types of baseball camps and events. It has served as a training facility for theNetherlands national baseball team during the2009 World Baseball Classic and hosted theLG Twins of theKorea Baseball Organization. The Pirates' rookie-level minor league affiliate, theGulf Coast Pirates of theGulf Coast League, play their home games at Pirate City.
The complex includes player dorms, coaches' suites and offices for staff and front-office personnel. For the majority of the year, the dorms are occupied by the organization's Minor League players, players doing rehabilitation work in Bradenton and those who come to Pirate City for the fall instructional league. Per team policy, all players participating in Minor League camp are required to live in one of the 75 player dorm rooms, each of which holds two people.[2]
There are four full-sized practice fields at the complex, each one named for a PiratesHall of Famer:Roberto Clemente (field 1),Pie Traynor (field 2),Honus Wagner (field 3) andWillie Stargell (field 4).[3]
One of the chapters inRon Luciano's bookThe Umpire Strikes Back is titled "Where The #$@& Is Pirate City?", as various players (and umpires) had difficulty finding the place.