Ottawa

Baseball set to return to Ottawa in 2015

Baseball should return to Ottawa in two years after city council approved an agreement with the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball to bring an independent league team back to the capital.

Can-Am league team approved by city council for May 2015

Ottawa city council has approved a deal with the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball to bring an independent league team back to the capital.

The Ottawa Stadium has hosted a number of baseball teams, including the Ottawa Lynx, Fat Cats and Rapidz. (Google Street View)

The city had tried to bring a double-A team to Ottawa, which would have been affiliated to a Major League Baseball franchise. But the cost of renovating the stadium was deemed too steep.

The deal approved on Wednesday has the Ottawa team starting in May 2015. The city last had a team in the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball in 2008 when the Ottawa Rapidz lasted just one season.

There are two other Canadian teams in the league, both in Quebec, and three others in the northeastern United States.

The lease agreement is better than the status quo, councillors said, which is to leave the stadium empty. The agreement also states the city is responsible for the day-to-day management of the building.