Sarasota County would get two more years to find a new spring training baseball team to replace the Cincinnati Reds, according to legislation the Florida Senate is expected to take up this afternoon. State Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, said she'll propose an amendment to Senate Bill 1308 that would essentially give Sarasota and Sarasota County two more years to build a new stadium. If they don't find a team by the end of two years, the money would go back to the state. ...more

March 10, 2009

Alex Rodriguez had a two-hour meeting with Major League Baseball officials Sunday. How much he told them about steroids is a secret - at least so far. ...more

March 1, 2009

Three innings into the Rays' first game at their new spring training home, it seemed just about everything was operating as planned inside the ballpark. ...more

February 25, 2009

Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg made his first appearance at the team's new spring training facility today. After taking a tour, he spent about 20 minutes chatting with reporters about various topics, including the new digs, the effect of the economy and his team's flexibility when it comes to adding to the payroll during the season. Here's a transcript of the highlights of the Sternberg Q&A session: ...more

February 24, 2009

The Rays refrained from audacious predictions on the first day of camp, but Dioner Navarro still might have reached uncharted territory Sunday. ...more

February 16, 2009

Hundreds of people lined up in the cold for the grand opening of the community's first major department store today. Within 20 minutes after Bealls' officials celebrated the ribbon cutting at 9 a.m., hundreds more had walked through the doors. ...more

February 6, 2009

This community's first department store opens Friday. A new 80,000-square-foot Bealls on South U.S. 301 in the Summerfield Crossings plaza is ready to open for business. The new store features wide aisles, large departments and new spring fashions as part of a corporate campaign, Fashion for Real Life. ...more

February 4, 2009

Shoppers are getting used to those 75 percent off sale signs, and that's bad news for merchants who worry they will also have to quickly slash prices on spring goods to attract customers. ...more

January 7, 2009

Architectural design is moving forward on the new law enforcement building for the Highlands County Sheriff's Office on George Boulevard. ...more

December 19, 2008

The Cardinals' interest in signing Trever Miller is strong enough that the left-hander was invited to St. Louis to meet with the team's doctors and take a physical Thursday, but he apparently left town without finalizing a deal. ...more

November 21, 2008