VERO BEACH, Fla. -- It was at this point of spring training in the old days that I'd tell my editor I needed to go to Dodgertown to do some "research."
He knew I was going to get my annual Dodger fix -- I've been a L.A. fan since they wiped out that 3-1 deficit in the 1965 World Series against Minnesota.
So, when I told him I was going to the Vero Beach Sports Village (VBSV) on Monday, he had to wonder what I was up to.
Getting out of the car and noticing that the Jackie Robinson Ave. and Roy Campanella Blvd. signs still are up was neat. Strolling down the old clubhouse hallway and seeing those giant black-and-white Dodger photos on the walls -- especially that all switch-hitting '65 infield of Jim Gilliam (3B), Maury Wills (SS), Jim Lefebvre (2B), and Wes Parker (1B) -- took me back in time.
But when I swung open the door to the playing fields, reality hit.
Sandy Koufax wasn't on the mound, nor was Mike Piazza behind the plate.
Instead, I walked up to a junior varsity game between Baret (Mo.) and Bloomington Central Catholic (Ill.) high schools.
Believe me, there were more balls than strikes being thrown.
Yes, times have changed since the Dodgers left town, but that doesn't mean the VBSV isn't making an impact throughout Indian River County.
With hundreds of college and high school players -- plus many of their families -- in town from February through April, cash registers have been ringing at hotels, restaurants, the mall and everywhere in between.
It's just the first year the VBSV has recruited these programs to come and train here, which makes you think it could only get better.
"Spring training always had a certain romance to it, but once you get past the romance and look strictly at the economics, this has been great," said Indian River County Chamber of Commerce President Penny Chandler of what she's seen from the initial returns of the VBSV's efforts. "There is such a spin-off from it."
Keith Kite, president of Kite Properties that includes the nearby SpringHill Suites by Marriott, agreed.
"The Dodgers were here from late February to the end of March, then gone," Kite said. "Now we are seeing bookings all year long from what's going on over (at the VBSV)."
Jeff Paul, the head baseball coach at BCC has his freshman, JV and varsity teams staying at the village this week, after training at three other sites in Florida in the past.
"It a great experience, a great facility, and we are definitely coming back in the future," Paul said.
His players were equally impressed.
Seniors Jess Heaton (3B) and Tim Coonan (OF), might not know much about Dodger history, but sure do like training here.
"This is awesome," said Heaton, just 24 hours after he arrived. "It's all about baseball while we are here, that's the main thing.
"But being in this location, in the sun, you can't ask for anything more."
Said Coonan, a proclaimed Yankees fan, "Everything is 5-star. This place has a great reputation and is nicer than anywhere we've ever been."
Bob Weir, from St. Charles, Mo., was watching his son Tim, a sophomore outfielder/infielder for Baret, and basking in the sunshine.
"It's been terrible," Weir said of the weather just west of St. Louis. "In fact, a week ago it was 70 degrees one day, and the next day we got four inches of snow.
"It's been a long cold winter up there."
Ok, so it's not major league baseball and it never will be again.
But with the additional youth baseball/softball cloverleaf complex tentatively scheduled to be completed by Christmas, a soccer/lacrosse field already being constructed -- plus lighting on most fields in the future -- the VBSV could actually end up being a better economic boost for the county than the Dodgers were.
If they could only bring back those tasty Dodger Dogs.
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