• The Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins are teaming up to support Southwest Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, making a joint financial contribution to assist with relief and recovery efforts

• Each foundation will make a $100,000 donation to five lee county non-profit organizations 

A pair of Major League Baseball (MLB) teams are stepping up to the plate to help Southwest Florida recover from Hurricane Ian.

The Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins announced that each club’s charitable foundation will make $100,000 donation to five non-profit organizations in Lee County to assist with hurricane relief efforts throughout the region.

In a news release, MLB said that $100,000 of the combined $200,000 donation will be provided to the Collaboratory, with the remaining funds being distributed equally to the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida, Lee Health Foundation’s SWFL Stronger Together employee relief fund, Foundation for Lee County Public Schools, Inc. and Community Cooperative’s Lee County Strong relief fund.

“Lee County has been the home of Red Sox Spring Training since 1993 and in that time, we have built a strong bond with countless fans, local officials, and partners in the area. We know how resilient our Southwest Florida community is, and we, along with our neighbors down the road, the Minnesota Twins, will continue to do all that we can to support our community as we recover from the devastation of Hurricane Ian,” said Red Sox President & CEO Sam Kennedy. “We are grateful to the local, state and federal officials, organizations and volunteers on the ground in Lee County who continue to focus on recovery and relief efforts, as well as our Red Sox employees, families and teammates in Fort Myers, who have worked tirelessly everyday to make JetBlue Park available for recovery response teams. As we look to the future, the Red Sox stand ready to support Lee County as we rebuild our community together.”

Hurricane Ian made landfall on Sept. 28, pummeling Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 155 mph before cutting across toward the east coast. The storm left a path of destruction across the Sunshine State, producing deadly flooding and storm surge that resulted in catastrophic damage.

The two American League ball clubs have close ties to Florida, with both having facilities in Ft. Myers.

“Lee County is a special part of Twins Territory, and we – along with our friends and Fort Myers neighbors, the Boston Red Sox – will be there for our Southwest Florida family in this time of recovery, as they have always been for us,” said Twins President & CEO Dave St. Peter. “The Twins have readily given the Lee County Sports Complex to house first responders, stage emergency vehicles and distribute more than 1 million meals through World Central Kitchen; now, we hope these new funds will assist our community partners in their critical efforts to ease the suffering wrought by Hurricane Ian. At the same time, we recognize that much work remains. We are committed to providing our continued support as this beloved region rebuilds in the days, weeks and months ahead.”