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E AST O REGONIAN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2018 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS | FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS MLB Group eyes ballpark in Portland B1 BMCC softball adds seven new players for 2020 season By BRETT KANE East Oregonian Contributed by Portland Diamond Project An artist’s rendering of a ballpark in Northwest Portland. The Portland Diamond Project is trying to bring Major League Baseball to Oregon, but will have to work with the state’s industrial land use rules to make the dream a reality. Oregon’s rules could hamper development of Willamette River plan By ANNA GRIFFIN Oregon Public Broadcasting O ut at the Port of Portland’s Termi- nal 2, the only signs of life on this particular day are two big birds of prey and Bob Sallinger, the conserva- tion director for the Audubon Society of Portland. He’s probably the only person within a mile’s radius eagle-eyed enough to identify the birds. “This is really basically an aban- doned site,” Sallinger said from a perch just outside the chain-link fence that guards this Northwest Portland cargo terminal. “It’s just vacant parking lots and unused cranes and empty warehouses. So really the only activity at all over the last half an hour or so has been these two bald eagles that have been sitting on this light post in the middle of the parking lot.” The silence helps explain why rep- resentatives of the Portland Diamond Project, the group trying to bring Major League Baseball to Oregon, sounded so optimistic last month. They announced a tentative deal to develop Terminal 2, owned by the Port of Portland and all but unused in recent years, as a poten- tial baseball stadium and mixed-use development. “If everything happens the way we expect it to,” Portland Diamond Proj- ect spokesman John McIsaac said, “we expect the fi rst pitch to happen in 2022.” But there’s at least one big logistical hurdle between that rosy prediction and making sunny summer nights watching baseball on the west bank of the Willa- mette River a reality. Terminal 2 — and pretty much everything around it on this stretch of the Willamette Riverfront — is zoned for industrial use. That means it’s been set aside, and legally protected, for uses such as manufacturing, shipping and construction. The people who care about such things are already prepping for a fi ght. “Industrial land is such a fi nite resource in the Portland area right now,” said Ellen Wax, executive direc- tor of the Working Waterfront Coali- tion, a business group that represents the interests of big waterfront users such as Union Pacifi c, Advanced Amer- ican Construction and Gunderson Inc. “I don’t know what their strategy is for being able to justify removing this land. But it seems like a pretty high bar.” In another state, none of this might matter. But Oregon prides itself on smart, balanced growth. The law actu- ally requires communities to keep a certain amount of industrial land tucked away. Preserving land for economic growth is No. 9 on the state’s 19-point list of land use planning goals. “These industrial businesses are really the best paying jobs for people without college degrees. We call them middle-wage jobs,” said Tom Arm- strong, a supervising planner with the city of Portland. “And so our ability to have this industrial base in our city pro- vides those jobs that contributes to the See Ballpark, Page B2 BECAUSE OF ITS RIVERFRONT LOCATION, TERMINAL 2 ACTUALLY HAS EXTRA SPECIAL ZONING PROTECTION — SOMETHING CALLED A PRIME INDUSTRIAL OVERLAY. Before 2019 has even begun, Blue Mountain’s 2020 softball season is already shaping up. Timberwolves head coach Steve Richards has signed seven new recruits for next year’s roster. “They all have excel- lent character and aca- demics in addition to their softball skills,” Richards Costa said of the new players in a press release. “It’s one of the best classes of recruits, top to bottom, that we’ve seen here in a while. Everybody hits the ball well, so our games should be exciting. It will Harn be fun to see how far they can go.” Angelina Costa (Tracy, Calif.), catcher/ fi rst baseman — “Ange- lina brings left-handed power to the Timber- wolves’ lineup,” Rich- Snead ards said. “She’s a very enthusiastic and vocal player.” Costa’s Tracy High School softball team won a Division 1 sectional championship last spring. Cierra Harn (Sparks, Dalke Nev.), catcher/infi elder/ outfi elder — “Cierra is a very versatile player who can catch and play both the outfi eld and infi eld.” Harn’s Spanish Springs High School team won this year’s state Wiest championship in Nevada. Camille Snead (Nampa, Idaho), pitcher/infi elder — “Camille is another very versatile player who has solid fi elding skills and should see some time pitching as well.” Hawkins Snead received an honorable mention as an infi elder at Nampa High School last spring. Maddie Dalke (Medford), pitcher/ See BMCC, Page B2 Ducks QB Herbert says he’ll return for his senior year EUGENE (AP) — Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert says he’ll return for his senior season. Herbert announced his decision Wednes- day before the Ducks (8-4) left Eugene for the Redbox Bowl in Santa Clara, California. Oregon plays Michigan State on Monday. “As we prepare for our bowl game, I would like to ensure that there are no distrac- tions outside of this game,” Herbert said in a statement. “My commitment to my team- mates, our coaches, Duck fans, and the Uni- versity of Oregon has never been stronger.” Herbert has thrown for 2,985 yards this season with 28 touchdowns. He’s rushed for 173 yards and two TDs. He has thrown at least one touchdown in 27 straight games, the longest current streak in the nation. For his career at Oregon, Herbert has thrown for 6,904 yards and 62 touchdowns. The Ducks have averaged 39.4 points per game in his 27 career starts. Next season he will be joined at Ore- gon by his brother, tight end Patrick Her- bert, a four-star recruit from Eugene’s Shel- don High. “We couldn’t be more excited for Jus- tin to return for his senior season. He is a special talent on the fi eld, but, more impor- tantly, a special person and leader off the fi eld,” coach Mario Cristobal said in a state- ment. “Being a native of Oregon, Justin wanted to make sure the announcement was made here in Eugene before we left for the bowl game.” This Nov. 17, 2018, fi le photo, shows Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert throwing down fi eld against Arizona State during the fi rst quarter of an NCAA college football game in Eugene. AP Photo/ Chris Pietsch, File SPORTS SHORTS Sigi Schmid, winningest MLS coach, dies at 65 AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sigi Schmid, the winningest coach in MLS history, has died. He was 65. Schmid’s family said he died Tuesday at Ronald Rea- gan UCLA Medical Center. Schmid was hospitalized three weeks ago as he awaited a heart transplant. “Our family is deeply saddened by his passing and is taking this time to grieve the loss of a tremendous hus- band, father, leader and mentor,” the family said in a state- ment Wednesday through the Seattle Sounders, one of the three MLS teams Schmid coached. “We also recognize how much Sigi meant to so many people across the U.S. Soccer landscape and around the world at different levels of the game. That community meant a great deal to him as well. While we mourn his loss, we appreciate privacy during this challenging time.” Schmid had an MLS-record 266 regular-season and postseason victories in 18 seasons with the LA Galaxy, Columbus Crew and Sounders. He led teams to two MLS titles, the fi rst with the Galaxy in 2002 and the second with the Crew in 2008, and was a two-time MLS Coach of the Year. He stepped down as coach of the Galaxy in Sep- tember with six games left in the regular season.