The Round Rock Express are proud to announce that the Texas Rangers have selected Dell Diamond to host the club’s Alternate Training Site prior to the start of the Triple-A baseball season. In accordance with Major League Baseball (MLB) protocols, a group of 20 to 28 players not added to the Rangers’ 26-man Opening Day roster will report to Round Rock to continue preparation for the Minor League Baseball (MiLB) season.
“We are grateful to Mike Daly, Paul Kruger and the entire Rangers player development staff for allowing us to host their Alternate Training Site,” Round Rock Express General Manager Tim Jackson said. “Many of the players that will report to Dell Diamond in April will likely be members of the Express at some point in 2021, so for them to be able to familiarize themselves with this great ballpark and the city of Round Rock will be a huge benefit as we head into the summer.”
Created during the cancelled 2020 MiLB season, the Alternate Training Site concept provides a secondary location within close geographic proximity to each MLB club for players to train and be ready to quickly and safely be called up if necessary. At MLB’s request, the Alternate Training Site model will be implemented for the month of April after the start of the Triple-A baseball season was postponed until early May.
“We greatly appreciate our partnership with Round Rock and for the Express to host our Alternate Training Site in Central Texas,” Texas Rangers Assistant General Manager Mike Daly said. “This is an exciting first step towards baseball returning to Dell Diamond in 2021.”
The group of players attending the Alternate Training Site is expected to be determined and announced prior to Rangers Opening Day on Thursday, Apr. 1. Those players will report to Round Rock in early April with workouts at Dell Diamond expected to begin the week of Sunday, Apr. 4. The Round Rock Express open the 2021 Triple-A West League season on Thursday, May 6 at home against the Oklahoma City Dodgers.
The Round Rock Express and Texas Rangers are working with MLB to develop a plan that would allow for limited fan attendance at select workouts, scrimmages and potential exhibition games. Additional information regarding potential fan attendance at the Texas Rangers Alternate Training Site is expected to be announced in the coming days.
Dell Diamond will also continue to serve as Williamson County’s largest COVID-19 vaccination hub while concurrently hosting the Texas Rangers Alternate Training Site. Approximately 5,000 COVID-19 vaccinations are being administered per day in Dell Diamond’s east parking lot. For more information about COVID-19 vaccinations at Dell Diamond, please visit RRExpress.com.
