By Steve Klamkin WPRO News
Governor Gina Raimondo says she is “thrilled” that the new ownership of the Pawtucket Red Sox want to keep the team in Rhode Island, and she vows to “do our due diligence” to accommodate the group’s plans to build a new ballpark on former I-195 land along the Providence River.
“You know, the Pawsox are a Rhode Island institution, and I am thrilled to hear that the new owners are mainly Rhode Islanders and are very interested to keep the team in Rhode Island,” Raimondo said Wednesday in her first comments since the sale to a group of ten investors was announced on Monday.
“Of course, we’re sad to see them have to leave Pawtucket, but my goal as governor is to work with the new owners to see if we can keep the team in Rhode Island,” she said.
“It’s part of who we are,” she said of the Pawsox. “And if we do it right, you know, my job as governor will be to structure a deal that’s good for the state, and we’re going to do our due diligence, we’re going to make sure that this state gets a good deal for all the people,” said Raimondo, a former venture capitals.
“But, if we can get a deal that financially makes sense, it’s also good for economic development.”
She said that it’s too early to determine what kind of infrastructure improvements or other concessions the state should make to the new owners, which include Providence attorney James Skeffington, Boston Red Sox executive Larry Lucchino as principal owners, and eight other members of the new ownership group.
