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Phillies purchase 13-acre property near Clearwater ballpark for $22.5 million

The team intends to work with local officials to formulate a plan for how to develop the distressed site, which currently houses a Floor & Decor store.

BayCare Ballpark, the spring training home of the Phillies, pictured in March. The Phillies have trained in Clearwater, Fla., since 1947.
BayCare Ballpark, the spring training home of the Phillies, pictured in March. The Phillies have trained in Clearwater, Fla., since 1947.Read moreSTEVEN M. FALK / Staff Photographer

Three months shy of the 20th anniversary of the opening of their current spring-training ballpark, the Phillies are expanding their Florida footprint again.

A group connected to the Phillies purchased a 13-acre retail property in Clearwater, Fla., adjacent to BayCare Ballpark, for $22.5 million, according to Pinellas County records. The site, located at 21688 U.S. 19 North, houses one tenant, a Floor & Decor store, and was a distressed asset of a company that filed for bankruptcy with five years left on the lease.

The Phillies say they don’t have immediate plans for the property.

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“As of now, it is pretty much a blank canvas,” Phillies director of Florida operations John Timberlake said Friday. “The property will eventually be developed, but it may be several years.”

The Phillies have trained in Clearwater since 1947. They built offices and minor-league fields, which came to be known as the Carpenter Complex, in 1967. In 2004, they opened a city-owned spring training ballpark alongside the main facility. Renovations were made in 2009 and 2013.

A few months ago, the Phillies reportedly briefed Clearwater officials on a plan for a player-development center near the Carpenter Complex. It’s unclear whether they intend to use the newly acquired property as part of that project.

“I envision the Phillies working with the city of Clearwater to determine the best and highest use of the property,” Timberlake said. “There could be some component such as player housing developed on a portion of the property. But everything regarding the expansion of our current facilities is still very much conceptual at this point.”

The Phillies are due to open their 2023 spring training schedule Feb. 25, with split squad games at 1:05 p.m. against the New York Yankees in Clearwater and the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. They will play 16 games at BayCare Ballpark.