Return of professional baseball having big economic benefit for Hagerstown
HAGERSTOWN, Md. (DC News Now) — The Hub City lost their minor league baseball team after 40 years during the pandemic.
But a new professional baseball team, the Flying Boxcars, came to the city and are in their very first week, having a positive economic spinoff for the community.
“I’ve bumped into a lot of people from the Washington, D.C. metro-area and a lot of people from Baltimore who have been learning about our new ballpark from seeing our ads watching the Orioles and Nationals,” Dan Spedden with the Greater Hagerstown Convention and Visitors Bureau, said.
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The chair of the Visit Hagerstown board, Katie Clutz, said the return of baseball for Hagerstown was good for more than just tourism.
“It’s a good opportunity for people who are looking for investment in downtown Hagerstown,” Clutz said. “With the ballpark coming here there’s going to be a lot of interest, a draw, for a lot of industries.
Spedden said marketing the return of baseball was paying off for the Hub City.
“People all over our drive market are learning about this new ballpark and are curious enough to come see it,” Spedden said. “Tourism spending here has reached $355 million. It’s a very important industry and it is growing quickly.”
Already plans are underway to cut the ribbon on a new visitors center for the city just over the left-canter field wall of the ballpark.
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