5 things to know about the Dayton Dragons plans to return to the field in 2021

Here are five things to know as the team prepares to bring professional baseball back to downtown Dayton for the 2021 season:

1. The team will be playing at a new level this year.

As part of a major reorganization of minor league baseball, the Dragons are moving up to Advanced A after competing in Class A for their first 20 seasons in Dayton.

That is likely to mean fans see players who are older and more advanced than in previous years when a significant chunk of the roster would be made up of players who were in their first full season of professional baseball, including some less than a year removed from high school.

“The way it’s been explained to me is that we’re probably going to see better pitching,” team president Bob Murphy said. “We will see better baseball. Just moving up one level can make a difference. We could see players get to the Reds from Dayton sooner.”

2. Other changes should benefit players.

“We will have to upgrade some of the player areas, visitors areas — things like that,” Murphy said. “We will be making investments in the facility to upgrade it, but the Reds and Major League Baseball are also looking at all the other things that are going to help improve the experience for the players.”

That includes scheduling to allow for more days off and using two team buses instead of one for trips.

“Things like that will just improve the experience for the players. It’s a long season and they’re looking to make it a better, easier and more comfortable for the player,” Murphy said.

The Dragons also are still exploring new housing arrangements, but it sounds like the practice of area families hosting players is over.

“Major League Baseball has signaled that host families are probably not going to be an option in 2021, so we’re looking at other housing types that can be put in place for these guys,” Murphy said. “We’ve had people reaching out into the business community for housing alternatives, whether that be apartments or some housing opportunity that will work with us on five- and six-month lease terms.”

3. The players are also due to make more money.

As part of its new agreement with minor-league teams, Major League Baseball has touted players at all levels of the minors getting raises.

The Associated Press reported that means players in Advanced A will draw a salary of at least $500 per week, up from $290 in the past. That comes from the parent club (rather than the Dragons) and does not include signing bonuses and other compensation.

4. Capacity of the stadium has not been determined yet.

The Dragons have sold out every game since they moved into Day Air Park (originally called Fifth Third Field), but actually filling the stands would not be an option if the season were to start today.

An Ohio Department of Health order limits attendance at outdoor venues to 15 percent of regular capacity (based on permanent seating), meaning the Dragons could host between 1,000 and 1,100 fans per game as things stand.

That could increase if the health order is altered or the team is granted a variance that would have to be approved by the state and Public Health — Dayton and Montgomery County.

Dan Suffoletto, the local health department’s public information supervisor, told the Dayton Daily News many factors are considered in regards to a variance, including the amount of COVID-19 spread in the area at the time.

That means a determination isn’t likely to be made until closer to the start of the season, which is expected to be later than usual.

“Regardless of what the size of the crowd may be, there are certain things you want to look at in terms of traffic flow not only for the crowd, but also for the employees and how workstations are set up, particularly around vending situations to make sure there’s enough space between individuals and to make sure that proper precautions are being taken when people are in line,” Suffoletto said. “You want to make sure you have proper signage and make sure the hand washing is available for the staff and in the public areas.”

5. Corporate partnerships have been a big part of the Dragons’ success, and that figures to continue even in a difficult business climate.

“Our corporate partners have just been fantastic,” Murphy said. “They understand the difficulty of what a sports team is going through in this pandemic. The timing for us was a perfect storm (last year). We were spending our cash in quarter four of ’19 and the first quarter of ’20 before we got word that groups greater than 10 were not going to be allowed to gather in Ohio. So we we have been in touch with all of our corporate clients and all of them have been very supportive and understanding. We certainly wouldn’t be coming out on the other side of this without them, so we are grateful and feel blessed that we’ve had this kind of of corporate support this year.”