Show Me the Money: Who Paid for What at Fleming Stadium?

Good morning gentle JOCO Readers,

Part 3 of the series...

Show Me the Money: Who Paid for What at Fleming Stadium?

Last time, I introduced the Tobs and their very old ballpark. This time it’s about money: who paid for what, who asked for what, and why a $17,000 rent check ended up mattering so much.

The Wilson Times reported that the Tobs paid the city $17,000 a year to lease Fleming Stadium, the city maintained everything, and the Tobs dragged and painted the field. The Tobs were on a three-year lease with the city, with priority scheduling for both sides at different points in the year. City Attorney Jim Cauley said the Tobs asked to renew on the same terms, which included no capital contribution. Tobs president Greg Suire has said the team traditionally operated on three-year leases and acted as caretaker of the historic structure.

The city’s own page says it invested more than $1 million in Fleming over the last decade, including $368,000 in short-term seating repairs finished before the 2023 season. It adds that some seating was closed during the 2022 season because of structural problems. A Wilson Times columnist put the city’s spending even higher, at upwards of $600,000 on grandstand issues, and said the 2013 renovation cost $580,000, with the Tobs contributing $50,000 in cash and value in return for a 10-year lease. The column is opinion, not a city record.

Hotel taxes fund Wilson County’s Tourism Development Authority grants. The Wilson Times reported that in 2024 the Tobs asked for $45,000 and received $15,000. In July 2025, the authority rejected a $40,000 request, saying the team had no lease in place for Fleming. Tourism’s director said the board couldn’t award a grant for a season not guaranteed to happen in Wilson. Suire’s view was that the denial was the first domino toward forcing the team out of town.

The city’s account: City Manager Rodger Lentz said the main issue was the stadium’s condition. In his words, if Fleming could be made structurally safe for the long term at a reasonable cost, there would be no question about the Tobs staying. The city presented a $1.75 million renovation plan. The Wilson Times reported the city asked the Tobs to contribute $500,000 toward it and said there would be no 2026 lease without a financial commitment. The city also says negotiations stopped after the Tobs demanded a new lease or $2.6 million for damages.

The Tobs’ account: Stadium Journey reported that team ownership accused the city of refusing to negotiate in good faith and argued the renovation plan was inadequate for a full-time tenant. Suire told the Wilson Times the city had been unwilling to realistically negotiate a lease.

I haven’t seen anything explaining what the $2.6 million damages claim was based on.

While Fleming’s lease was being argued over, the city was building a different ballpark. Wilson approved $73 million in bond money for the Mudcats’ stadium, as WRAL reported. Suire referred to a $75 million stadium going up just as the Tobs’ lease expired. WPTF reported the Mudcats’ contract bars any Coastal Plain League team from playing in the new stadium. That clause is reported, not confirmed. If it’s real, the Tobs were never going to move to the new ballpark, which makes the fight over Fleming’s grandstand a very different negotiation.

By September 2025, the Tobs had a plan B. The Wilson Times reported that on Sept. 16 the team and Smithfield signed a nonbinding MOU saying the town would build a stadium for the team. Under it, the Tobs would have year-round use and control all concessions, while the town sought builders’ qualifications. Construction would be phased over two to three years, depending on funding.

The Wilson Times reported that Johnston County commissioners approved $2 million by a 5-2 vote after extensive debate. A commissioner stressed the money went to the town, not to the Tobs. The town manager said the town was prepared to invest $3 million.

In November, WRAL reported the team announced its move to Smithfield, with the first season set for summer 2027. Suire said the team had told fans it would stay in its geographical footprint. In April 2026, WPTF reported the town selected 58 acres behind Community Park as the Tobs’ future home.

Documented: the rent, the city’s repair spending, the denied grant, the $500,000 ask, and the county’s $2 million.

Disputed: whether either side negotiated in good faith, and whether Fleming could have been made workable at a reasonable cost.

Missing: the lease text, the basis for the $2.6 million claim, the Tobs’ own financials, and the Mudcats contract language.

Next up: the leases themselves. If the paperwork is public, I’m going to find it.

That is all for now!

Carry on!

©2026 The JOCO Sass Dispatch, LLC

Sources

Wilson Times (via Restoration NewsMedia): “Council weighs options for Fleming Stadium,” “Tobs hope to keep rolling beyond 2025,” and “‘They don’t want us in town’”

Wilson Times: “‘The 11th hour is here’: City ends negotiations with Tobs,” “There are no bad guys as Tobs face the end” (column), “Tobs exploring move to Smithfield,” “Tobs, Smithfield make initial step to move team,” “Tobs, town detail their agreement,” “$2 million stadium plan for Tobs moves forward in Smithfield”

City of Wilson: “An Update on Fleming Stadium” (wilsonnc.org)

Stadium Journey: “Wilson Tobs Eye Potential Move to Smithfield, NC”

WRAL: groundbreaking coverage and “Tobs baseball team to have new name and new home in Smithfield”

WPTF: “Politics, baseball culture muddle feelings on Carolina Mudcats’ move”; “Smithfield announces plans for new Tobs home”