Hialeah, Florida - The City of Hialeah, Major League Baseball, and the Florida Marlins join Mayor Julio Robaina in a joint partnership to create and construct a MLB Urban Youth Baseball Academy within the City at a cost of over 3 million dollars.  The new state-of-the-art facility will provide free baseball and softball instructional sessions to Hialeah youth ranging in the ages 8 through 18.  The partnership agreement will be signed at the future site of the Academy, located at the intersection of the new annex area within the City of Hialeah.

Mayor Julio Robaina, the City Council, MLB President and Chief Operating Officer Bob Dupuy, MLB Executive Vice President, Baseball Operations Jimmie Lee Solomon, and Florida Marlins President David Samson will be present at this exciting expansion.

In addition, the MLB Urban Youth Academy will feature a show field complete with score board, a grandstand that seats nearly 200 fans, dugouts and lights, two auxiliary fields, four softball/little league fields and batting cages; and a clubhouse consisting of a weight room, a locker room, and other training facilities.

Over the course of its first year of operation, the Academy expects to offer the free program to a minimum of 2,500 youths. Academy staff will consist of former Major and minor league players. Additional instructors, collegiate coaches, scouts, and certified athletic trainers will also participate in the academy.