The Boston Red Sox and Sarasota county and city officials will begin formal negotiations over the funding and design of a new spring-training ballpark and training complex, with the first sitdown meeting slated for 9 a.m. Friday. The two sides have been trading proposals for the last month and spent a rather engaging evening in a suite at Tropicana Field recently when the Red Sox visited the Tampa Bay Rays. There's already broad agreement on the scope of the project: a 9,999-seat ballpark with berm seating, luxury boxes and parking. The Red Sox began the negotiations asking for all the revenues from the project (including concessions and parking) without putting any money up front; the city and county are expected to counter with some sort of request for upfront money. We doubt the Red Sox will put any money into the project, though some advance of rent may be possible; it's more likely the team would scale back its demands for all the suite and parking revenue to make the project financially work. Under the plan, the new ballpark would be built in Payne Park -- where the Red Sox trained in the Ted Williams era -- and the current Ed Smith Stadium site would be converted to a training facility.

Meanwhile, Lee County officials say they've identified four sites that could accommodate a new Red Sox training facility, though it's not clear there's any appetite from a developer to actually build a training complex. Judging by the lack of enthusiasm from those interviewed for this article, it's hard to say there's a lot of passion to keep the team in Lee County.

With spring training slated to be almost a week longer than normal in 2009, the Chicago White Sox are looking at a plan that would have them train at a new complex in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale and fulfill their lease obligations at Tucson Electric Park by busing in players for "home games" while playing the rest of their home games in Glendale. Some reports peg the number of contractually obligated games for the Sox at the TEP at 15, but that seems high to us (most leases call for 10 to 11), so we'll be checking on that. With a long spring training, 10-11 games in Tucson isn't a huge obligation, but it seems Tucson would be getting the worst of both worlds.

The Fort Myers newspaper has decided why the Boston Red Sox are looking at spring-training operations to Sarasota: it's not because of the promise of a new ballpark or land for limited development -- it's the fact co-owner John Henry reportedly would prefer to spend February and March in Sarasota because he finds Fort Myers to be too low-rent. Or that's the claim by former Fort Myers Mayor Wilbur Smith, who helped bring the Red Sox to Fort Myers in the first place. For the record, we don't think Fort Myers is quite as gritty as portrayed here (though City of Palms Park is in a not-so-great part of town), and Naples is close enough for someone who likes a more upscale experience. Sarasota, we find, isn't quite as upscale as this article indicates.

We've posted schedules for the Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals. They're tentative, but we're pretty confident they will hold up. You can expect teams to begin releasing schedules now that the World Series is near an end. Besides these teams, we've also posted partials for the Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants.

To say the future of spring training for two teams and three cities will be determined in the next three days is an understatement, as Lee County officials debate an $80-million deal to keep the Boston Red Sox and Sarasota officials look for $10 million to close an $80-million deal for a downtown facility at Payne Park. Lurking in the shadows are the Baltimore Orioles, who may end up in Sarasota, Fort Myers or Vero Beach. Here are the various scenarios:

• The Boston Red Sox and Sarasota officials have been discussing a $70-million facility that includes a new ballpark in Payne Park -- the team's spring-training home during the Ted Williams era -- and a renovated training facility at the Ed Smith Stadium site. Currently Sarasota officials have identified $60 million in funding sources, leaving a gap of $10 million. There's been discussion of raising the county hotel tax by a penny to make up the difference. An October 29 county commission meeting will clarify the situation.
• As a backup plan, Sarasota officials have also discussed renovating Ed Smith Stadium for the Baltimore Orioles, who must vacate Fort Lauderdale Stadium and are looking for a new home. Renovation of Ed Smith Stadium would be the lower-cost option for the county, but the Orioles traditionally have not attracted the rabid spring-training fans found in Red Sox Nation. The Orioles have a history in Sarasota; their minor-league teams train at Twin Lakes Park. In theory, both the Sox and the O's could end up in Sarasota, but there doesn't appear to be enough money both for a new Red Sox ballpark and a renovated Ed Smith Stadium.
• Fort Myers officials are looking, and received initial approval, for a half-cent sales tax to fund an $80-million spring-training complex, preferably out in Bonita Springs or Estero. A Nov. 5 meeting will help clarify that situation, but there's some confusion as to exactly how close Lee County officials are to a plan: they have a set of conceptual drawings but no land, and no commitment from the Red Sox. Under one scenario, the Red Sox move to a new facility and the Orioles take up residence in City of Palms Park.
• Vero Beach officials have made a lot of noise in recent months about being close to a deal with the Baltimore Orioles, but it may take more than just a $12 million overhaul of Dodgertown -- like Vero Beach officials want -- to land the team. Holman Stadium is quaint and lovely, but it doesn't generate the income an MLB team expects.

Predictions? We have none. Sarasota had the Red Sox ready to commit and blew it by demanding $10 million from the team -- something the Red Sox ownership made clear they were not willing to pay. Baltimore officials seem happy to let the Red Sox take the lead and then adjust. Vero Beach seems a long shot at this point to land the O's or the Red Sox: $12 million isn't enough to turn Holman Stadium into a modern facility.