SARASOTA, Fla. – The usual Florida downpours, sudden and ferocious, could impact whether the Orioles play an exhibition game this spring. Cancellations are part of the spring training routine. They cannot, however, prevent the team from getting in a full workout.

Officials unveiled the state-of-the-art player development complex this afternoon at Ed Smith Stadium, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and tour of the 47,700-foot facility. Control owner David Rubenstein flew into Sarasota and was handed the scissors. Featured speakers included president of baseball operations/general manager Mike Elias, president of business operations Catie Griggs and Sarasota County commission board chairman Ron Cutsinger.

Players who arrived early took some swings beneath a roof that covers 15,970 square feet of batting cages. The complex is carpeted with the same turf used at Rogers Centre in Toronto and Globe Life Field in Arlington, and it contains a fine wood chip filler.

The batting area in the climate-controlled section is called the “aviary.”

“This may be the best indoor hitting facility in the world right now,” Elias said.

And it took less than a year to construct, with ground broken after last year’s camp.

“The technology that’s available here, the space, the comfort, this is something that’s a huge advantage of us as we train and try to get our players better,” Elias said. “To have this space as an indoor year-round option because we play baseball and we do business here in Sarasota 12, 11 months out of the year, this is going to be the anchor of this facility, and this is one of the best. I think it’s the best spring training setup in the state of Florida.”

The rating includes Ed Smith Stadium, which was refurbished after the team moved its spring home from Fort Lauderdale in 2010.

“We love our relationship here with this city and this facility,” Elias said, “and hopefully, this construction signals our long-term commitment to being here and what an important part of our operation that this place is.”

The roughly $21 million complex is adjacent to the baseball operations center and includes a 3,400 square foot biomechanics lab with metal force plates installed on the mound and home plate, a 10,300 square foot covered eight-pack of mounds, an increase and relocation from the previous outdoor setup, a 3,400 square foot section of visiting batting cages behind the row of mounds, and a 33,430 square foot outdoor turf agility field.

The indoor mounds, two more than in the past, provide extra room for pitchers, catchers and electronics, and keeps them out of the elements.

“The covered pitching area will be quite handy in the summer for our player development staff,” said senior director of Florida operations Trevor Markham.

“This is the dream setup. It’s incredible,” said pitching strategy coach Ryan Klimek.

The complex also has classroom space, conference rooms, offices, locker rooms and a players lounge with a couple of screens for video games, two foosball tables and a ping pong table.

“Before the facility, we didn’t really have a place outside of the clubhouse for the players to just sort of be and hang out and just enjoy themselves,” said Matt Blood, the Orioles’ vice president of player and staff development. “The conception of this idea was, OK, maybe we could build a space where they could enjoy themselves while also being able to be close to the action. And we wanted it to be this very inviting, fun space.”

Blood also mentioned how this space is utilized throughout the year with major league camp, the Florida Complex League and off-season winter training. It isn’t just about the six weeks or so that the Orioles are prepping for the regular season.

“They’re very excited,” Blood said. “What they see is an investment in their experience, which is something that’s pretty important to us, as you can see.

“We just really believe that infrastructure and player experience matters and I think that they see that. Intentionality in their ability to learn and train, you should see that throughout the space. There’s a lot of intentionality in the way the cages were designed and our classrooms and in the lab and in the eight-pack outside, and all the things around.”

The expansive batting arena has four big square cages and nets that can raise up and create a massive infield and allow for live BP, and it puts to shame the old building beyond the right field fence at the Camden Yards replica field.

“There’s never really a rainy day,” said director of player development Anthony Villa. “We’ll always be able to get our live BPs in and plenty of activity.”

The biomechanics lab include technology to support analysis, pitch design, swing adjustments and performance feedback. Thirty-seven cameras will be installed with cutting-edge technology. And the netting makes it possible to have batting practice sessions.

“We’re really excited to use this data and then work with our coaching staff and player development staff to increase our guys’ performance and help our guys get better,” said Orioles biomechanist Joey Mylott.

Drafted players will gain immediate exposure to it.

“Provides us a ton of information we’re gonna be able to use at all levels of development,” said assistant pitching coach Mitch Plassmeyer.

Fans will notice two new half fields, with lines and numbers painted on one to replicate a 40-year football field. Forget the orange cones and grass. These line markers provide more precise measurements of a player’s biomechanics.

The athletic development area focuses on speed, movement, conditioning, rehab and injury prevention. The turf field is double the size of the previous area.

The Orioles made substantial increases to the areas where fans can observe workouts on a daily basis, including outside the eight-pack. They will have closer access and, for example, be able to watch pitchers throw behind the Ed Smith Stadium scoreboard area. It begins Wednesday.

“We have a home game, come early, check it out, watch what the guys are doing, even if they aren’t the ones playing that day,” Griggs said.

“Every day, there’s something going on. We have these incredible facilities, but we wanted to make sure that our fans have the opportunity to get closer, so we’ve got roped out spaces throughout the entire area that come a lot deeper into the complex that we ever have before.”

The facility was used to recruit free agents, the sales pitches coming long before the first balls were thrown in a game.

“Whenever we did meetings with players, either on Zoom or in person, had a PowerPoint deck, and part of it is to show them the investment here,” Blood here. “Hitters obviously love this, but pitchers, too, as you’ll find out. You can do a full live batting practice in here when it rains, and so you’re not having to either mess up your daily schedule because it’s raining one day or have to throw a bullpen in a little, tiny cage. This is going to feel like a real outing as much as you can make it feel that way.”

The Orioles opened a new state-of-the-art, 22.5-acre training academy in Guerra, Dominican Republic in January 2024. They are making significant renovations to Camden Yards, including a new scoreboard and video board, LED ribbon boards, an enhanced sound system and a premium club suite behind home plate. And renovations also are happening with three of their minor league ballparks, including Class A Delmarva, which plans to move spring training for its players out of Florida earlier than usual due to the indoor amenities.

“While we’re looking to bring in the best talent that we can with the players, we are also a big believer in facilities and an infrastructure,” Elias said.

“There’s a lot going on here in terms of investment, work, and we’re just very proud, very excited to have this kick off, and to do it on time in such a short amount of itme is a credit to everyone who worked on this project.

“Glad some of the hitters got to test it out this morning. I heard rave reviews. As you guys can see, this is a really special place.”