Lerner, Rizzo among Nats reps present for groundbreaking at new spring complex

This morning in West Palm Beach, Nationals principal owner Mark Lerner and president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo were joined by Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred and representatives of the Houston Astros at a groundbreaking ceremony for the new spring training complex the two teams will share.

If there are no delays in construciton, the $135 million facility is expected to be ready in time for Grapefruit League action in 2017.

Manfred and the Nationals and Astros officials used spades fitted with baseball bat handles to turn over the first ceremonial shovels of dirt for the new facility, at the southwest corner of 45th Street and Haverhill Road in West Palm Beach.

The Nationals will move from their current spring base at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, while the Astros will relocate from their existing complex at Osceola County Stadium in Kissimmee. The teams partnered on the new complex after experiencing difficulties with long spring training bus trips for road games.

In the Nationals' case, their closest Grapefruit League opponent was the Astros, who were about an hour away; however, many of their road trips required one-way treks of 90 minutes to two hours.

When the new facility opens in 2017, the Nationals and Astros will be a short drive away from the Roger Dean Stadium complex in Jupiter, which houses the Marlins and Cardinals. With the Mets just north in Port St. Lucie, that will mean five of the 15 Grapefruit League teams will be located within about a 45-minute drive. The next-closest opponent will be the Braves in the Disney complex in Lake Buena Vista, more than two hours away.

The new facility will be initially called The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. As part of the deal with the county, naming rights can be sold by the teams, if the words "of the Palm Beaches" or "at the Palm Beaches" are included in the name of the stadium.