Yard Goats’ Home Debut Pushed Back Again

Complications have scuttled the Hartford Yard Goats’ plan to open the doors on Dunkin’ Donuts Park on May 31.

Instead, because the developers missed the May 17 deadline for “substantial completion of the park,” according to the Hartford Courant, the team’s new goal is to play its first true home game on June 21, when Richmond is scheduled to come north.

The Eastern League announced the changes on Thursday. In the meantime, the team will play seven more games at Dodd Stadium—the home of the short-season Connecticut Tigers—and shift its series with Reading back to Pennsylvania. The schedule is as follows:

May 31 — OFF DAY
June 1 vs. Trenton at Dodd Stadium — 4:05 p.m. (doubleheader)
June 2 vs. Trenton at Dodd Stadium —  1:05 p.m.
June 3 vs. Portland at Dodd Stadium — 6:05 p.m.
June 4 — OFF DAY
June 5 vs. Portland at Dodd Stadium — 4:05 p.m. (doubleheader)
June 6 vs. Portland at Dodd Stadium —  1:05 p.m.

June 14 at Reading (Reading, PA) — 6:35 p.m.
June 15 at Reading (Reading, PA) —  6:35 p.m.
June 16 at Reading (Reading, PA) —  1:05 p.m.

And while there is a new target date in mind, that date certainly isn’t set in stone. The Hartford Courant reported this morning that the city’s mayor wasn’t ready to commit to a schedule for baseball in Hartford.

“I avoided making predictions about whether they would play May 31,” Bronin told the newspaper. “And I’m going to avoid making predictions about when the opening game will be. Obviously we want that to be as soon as possible.”

Also, the Courant reported, there is the possibility that the city could seek financial restitution from the stadium developers—DoNo Hartford LLC and Centerplate Cos.—because of the continued delay. The proposed fines would be $50,000 for the first day past the initial target and another $15,000 each day afterward.

The team’s owner, Josh Solomon, reportedly toured the stadium on Wednesday morning and noted several areas still in need of completion. As noted in the Courant, those areas included but were not limited to an elevator, a bar and a food preparation area.