Frederick Keys Have New Lease On Nymeo Field At Harry Grove Stadium

It was approved last week by the Board of Aldermen.Frederick, Md (KM) Attain Sports and Entertainment, the owners of the Frederick Keys and the still-unarmed Frederick Atlantic League Team, have a new lease on Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium. The Board of Aldermen approved the lease last Thursday.It’s a ten-year lease with the option of extending it to 20 years. During the first two years of the lease, Attain will pay the City $25,000 a year in rent. It goes up to $125,000 from years three to ten. If the lease is expended to 20 years, the teams will pay $150,000 annually in rent.The lease “shows that the partnership is going to be long term and it really gets all parties involved, whether it be ownership of the city or even at the state level with things like the Maryland Stadium Authority to know that we’re making an investment in this facility and in this community long term so that we can get the pieces that we need to get back to what they call PDL compliance. And PDL is Professional Development License. That’s what all the minor league affiliates have,” says Brandon McGee, the Director of Marketing for the Frederick Keys, who was guest last week on WFMD’s “Morning News Express.”The Keys lost their affiliation with the Baltimore Orioles in 2021. The Keys have since  joined the MLB Draft League. McGee says the goal is to get affiliated minor league baseball back to Frederick. “The Orioles personally are still wanting to be in this community and wanting to work with us despite the fact that the minor leagues got shifted around it wasn’t in the cards for that part of it,” he says.Even though the Keys are not longer affiliated with the Orioles, the O’s  still has a relationship with the Frederick Keys. McGee says he would like to seek the Keys once again affiliated with the Baltimore Orioles or another major league team.Mayor Michael O’Connor has said he also wants to see a minor league-affiliated team in Frederick.Despite all of this, McGee says the Keys continue to have a strong fan base. “We’ve been in Frederick since 1989, in our facility since 1990. It’s been something that’s been really good to see,” he said. “I’ve been with the organization for the last few years through shutdowns and things like that. And although the affiliation left, the community support hasn’t faltered.”The Frederick Keys’ first home game is Saturday, June 3rd at 6:00 PM with the Trenton Thunder. The still-unarmed Frederick Atlantic League Baseball team will have its first home game on Tuesday, May 2nd with the Lexington Counter Clocks beginning at 7:00 PM.By Kevin McManus