Ed Smith Stadium was built in 1989 to replace Payne Park as a Spring Training and Minor League Baseball site.

[3] Baltimore had trained within Sarasota County previously at Twin Lakes Park in 1989 and 1990, as well as at Ed Smith in 1991—before moving to St. Petersburg and then Ft. Lauderdale for spring games.

On November 1, 2008, Barack Obama gave a speech to a crowd of 10,000 spectators as part of his 2008 presidential campaign.

The Reds, whose lease with the city and the stadium expired after the season, announced that they intend to seek a new spring training home.

A fabric sunshade system extends from the stadium's original roof to nearly double the number of seats in the shade.