Last week, we had another “Question of the Week” from Mike Chamernik, and he’s back today with his latest QOTW.
Enjoy!
Question of the Week
by Mike Chamernik
Opening Day is officially on the horizon as Spring Training games are underway in both Florida and Arizona. Split squads, tie games, softball tops, rule experiments, picnic blankets — it’s all great, just because it means baseball is back.
Have you ever taken a trip to see Spring Training? What were the best parts? Spring Training is fairly low-key and fan friendly — Did you interact with any players, managers, coaches or broadcasters? If you have attended in both states, did you prefer Florida or Arizona? If you haven’t gone to Spring Training, do you want to go someday?
Are there any hats or uniforms that caught your eye this year? I like the Pirates’ hat.
Thanks, Mike — great question again. I’ve never been to a Spring Training game, though many years ago I did visit Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland (Tigers), and Chain of Lakes Park in Winter Haven (the then-Indians), before Cleveland decamped for Arizona. Both are in Florida, and Detroit still plays in Lakeland. As far as caps go, I’m surprised how much I like the Mets ST caps, almost as much as I dislike the Mets new stealth pullovers.
Looking forward to seeing what the readers submit!
Not really interested in traveling to see Spring Training, as I don’t have much desire to go to Florida or Arizona, but if I found myself in those parts at this time of year I definitely would!
I’m in Chicago, and people love the excuse to go to warm AZ or FL at this time of year. Mostly Arizona, because that’s where the Cubs and Sox are
I don’t blame you/them but flights from Canada to just about anywhere in the US are rarely cheap, never mind the plenty of other reasons Canadians might feel uneasy about traveling south of the border these days.
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As for the hats, I like a lot of them, love a few, and I think overall it’s a very good set. My only issue is with the material – I hate the grid pattern.
My trip in 2015 to ST in Florida was one of the best vacations I’ve taken in a long time. Outside of getting around Tampa (ugh) there were no glitches. I saw eight games involving nine different teams over six days in six stadiums. Night games in Tampa and Bradenton were not part of the original plans but I managed to fit them in so that Tuesday and Wednesday of our week became back-to-back doubleheader days.
I went with a friend who is close to the owners of the Nationals so we had on-field access for their games and we had an intern who was taking good care of us. My favorite parks were McKechnie Field in Bradenton and Joker Marchant in Lakeland. They had the most ‘old school’ feel to them. They also had the best concessions and the friendliest fans. Ed Smith in Sarasota was fun as well because I got to hang with a lot of my fellow Orioles fans.
I was able to interact with some players, coaches and others. I talked to Tony Tarasco who was coaching for the Nats at the time. I asked him about the Jeffrey Maier ‘catch’ . LOL Matt Williams was their manager and he was fun to talk to. We had seats on the railing next to the Nats’ dugout in Lakeland and players would sit in folding chairs right in front of us at times during the game. I jokingly asked Bryce Harper if he would move so I could see the game. He laughed and moved an inch or two. Bob Boone was sitting behind us doing some scouting and was pleasant enough.
Hammond Stadium in Ft. Myers had a couple of older guys set up on the concourse selling ‘beer shakes’ which was surprisingly tasty. The best part of ordering one was listening to their comic banter as they worked.
All-in-all it was a terrific time that made for fun memories. We had plans to go back a couple of years ago but COVID got in the way. Maybe next year.
Tremendous! Ha yeah Tarasco has been asked about the Maier catch, what, 8,000 times? I woulda asked too.
I have lived in central Florida for over twenty years and am a lifelong Detroit Tigers fan. I’ve gone to many Spring Training games in Lakeland, as well as a few other Florida locations. It’s one of my favorite things to do. The stadiums are much smaller than a typical big league ballpark, it’s a relaxed atmosphere and you can see a mix of young prospects and established veterans up close. A highlight I’ve had is meeting and talking with Jim Leyland on a couple occasions.
Tigers have been in Lakeland forever
I took a trip to Austin’s for spring training with my dad, uncles, and cousins, took in three games in three days in addition to golf, hiking, food, etc. I had always wanted to go and loved it. It felt so much more peaceful and pure than regular season games, the just relaxation and happiness baseball brought me in my youth. I’d love to go to Florida next to compare.
Not sure how Arizona autocorrected to Austin’s.
That sounds like a grand old time. I’ve been hiking in AZ once and it was great
Hello Brett, thank you for your explanation. When you mentioned “more peaceful and pure than regular season games, the just relaxation and happiness baseball brought me in my youth”. I always wondered is the energy competitive where teams are trying to win? Or is it more like playing a round of golf with your best friends and just enjoying the ambience?
thank you
My parents used to winter in Fort Pierce, FL so it was a great excuse to go see the Mets and Dodger at Spring Training. The Mets are my team but Dodgertown in Vero Beach was easily a better place for spring training. The whole complex was open so you could just wander around and watch workouts, etc. One time we were walking along and I heard a golf cart come up behind us as someone yelled “Pregnant lady, coming thru!”. I turned around it was Tommy Lasorda!
My other favorite moment was the spring of Piazza’s rookie season with the Dodgers. I managed to snag a foul ball off the bat of Ron Gant down the third base line. It’s still my only MLB ball I’ve ever gotten. Anyway, there was an enough hype around Piazza at that point that I decided to try and get his autograph at the end of the game. Unfortunately he struck out to end the game. But I pushed ahead and asked for his autograph as he was packing up his gear. His response was a terse “F**k off, kid!” I was in college at the time so I just laughed it off.
Lol what, was Piazza like 2 years older than you at the time?
Yep. 2-3 years older. To be honest, I never really made that connection though. That makes it even funnier!
I went every year to visit my buddy who, then, lived in Phoenix. I’d stay 5-7 days and you could get in at least one and sometimes 2 games in a day. Cactus League is much easier to see a game as all the teams are in the Phoenix Valley. Unfortunately, he doesn’t live in Phoenix anymore. My last trip was in 2019.
Good point about AZ. The centralized locations is what made Will Ferrell’s 2015 stunt possible
Living in FL, I love not only spring training but also the Florida State League. Those Single A players will sign anything for a cheeseburger!
Love of the game (and fast food)
Went to Grapefruit League in 1993.Saw games in Bradenton, Plant City, Sarasota and Orlando. Got Dick Vitale’s autograph one day after he hit fungoes to the Pirates. Relaxed pace is the best part of ST. So chill. and you get to see prospects up close well before they reach the majors. Be sure to try the local restaurants for seafood. Avoid the chains.
love the advice Dan!
I went to a Phillies-Yankees spring training game once when I was 2, but don’t have much interest in traveling from the northeast all the way to Florida for an exhibition game.
As for merch, I like most of the spring training caps, although I don’t love the slightly pastel shades a few teams are using. I’d also like to shout out my favorite piece of spring gear, the unofficial “Clearwooder” Phillies shirts. Sure it’s goofy, and pandering hard to how a Delco accent would say Clearwater, but I think that the core principle of spring training should be FUN. and Clearwooder absolutely counts as fun.
Clearwooder is genius
I grew up in Southern California, and I used to like seeing the Angels in Palm Springs. I believe it was only used part time at the end of Spring Training by them at this time in the late 1970s.
I’ve lived in Scottsdale since 1990, and I love going to the games here. I go to more D-Backs games at Talking Stick, but the Giants have my favorite location in Scottsdale, where you can walk to great restaurants and bars after the game.
I really like the aqua colored Spring Training hat of the Diamondbacks, and I plan to purchase it.
I dig all the teals, baby blues, and mints of the ST hats
I usually take a family trip to northeast Florida every other Easter. Maybe 15 years or so ago it happened to line up with spring training and I drove across the state to Clearwater to catch a Phillies game. They have outfield lawn seating which was great. Very laid back atmosphere, sitting on towels in center field and going back to a tiki bar to get a bucket of beer. Would definitely recommend, but the drive back across the state afterwards was not enjoyable. If I did it again I’d just stay in Clearwater for a few days, great beaches there along on the Gulf of Mexico, which was a much different experience compared to spending my entire life at the beaches in NJ.
I’m only used to the beaches of Lake Michigan
I spent much of my kidhood reading about the Indians’ spring training at Hi Corbett Field in Tucson, never imagining that I would one day get to attend one. But many years later, there I was for a couple days, and I loved it.
We went to a morning practice and my buddy spent about ten minutes chatting up one of the coaches.
The next day, we drove to the Brewers’ home in Chandler, Ariz., to watch Milwaukee play Cleveland.
Many fans there brought blankets and watched the game from a little grassy hill out behind the outfield. The whole experience was so laid back and fun.
(During the same trip, we were able to attend a couple first- and second-round NCAA basketball tournament games at the U of A in Tucson. And the best part was that our employer paid for the whole trip, as we also got some work in while we were there.)
A sports vacation (or work trip) like that sounds electric. I’ve never been to ST, but if I did I would pick AZ — one, to see the Brewers, and two, to watch a Suns game (assuming they’re in town)
Good answers everyone!
Never been to ST, but my dad is in central Florida now, so some year I’ll have to visit him and go to a few games.
My parents went to Spring Training once, the Cubs camp in the early 1990s. They said Ryne Sandberg and Mark Grace were rude to them. It’s always stuck with me for whatever reason.
First trip to ST was my last year in college in 1978. Drove with a buddy from St. Louis to Sarasota, where his brother was living and where we could crash at his place. Stayed a week, saw games in Sarasota, Bradenton, Lakeland, and St. Pete. Met Bill Veeck, who owned the White Sox and sat with the hoi polloi in the stands in Sarasota. Needless to say, one of the great weeks of my life.
Did a similar trip the following year, then later in the 1990s when I lived in Utah attended several STs in Arizona with my young son, mostly following the Rockies when they were headquartered in Tucson. Spring training is always a great experience!
Bill Veeck was truly a man of the people. He lived to hobnob and BS
I lived in West Palm Beach in the late 70’s and early 80’s. The Braves and Expos shared the local stadium.. This was the plain white/blue era Braves with Bob Horner and Dale Murphy, etc, Hank Aaron was around frequently. I rode my bicycle to the stadium every weekend and sometimes after school. Saw every team that trained in Fla. My team, The Reds only made one appearance during that time and they were quite popular at the time. Pete Rose created a big sensation and he was interacting with the people in the stands. Reds lost, but did pull a triple play. Saw Sadaharu Oh smash several homers against The Braves once. The guys from Rush were there occasionally for Expos games. The kids would line up by the busses and hand their programs to the players. They would come back signed by any random number of guys. I wish I still had those. I can still smell the hot dogs.
I’ve done Florida once (Twins) and Arizona once (Cleveland). I had hoped for much more hobnobbing with players, but that wasn’t quite the case for us in either place. Both facilities are nice, the gulf coast was a draw after a long Minnesota winter, but I think I lean Arizona. Florida highways are, frankly, quite ugly, and we spent way too much driving them. Got in some really nice hiking in the Phoenix area when not at ballgames .
Yeah everything is pretty spread out in Florida, so it’s a lot of time on the highways
40+ years ago, spring training was so laid back and sparsely attended.
Then the autograph collectors ruined it.
Mmm yeah I can see that
I’ve lived in the Phoenix area for the past seven years and have visited each of the 10 ballparks at least a few times each. As others have pointed out, the longest you would have to drive from one to another is under an hour. There’s an area in South Scottsdale that you’re no farther than 15 minutes to one of five ballparks.
I was also part of the “Cactus Crew” at Salt River Fields (Diamondbacks and Rockies) and worked every game for two years. If I were to generalize, I would say the the fans from the East (Cleveland, Cincinnati, KC and Milwaukee) were the most pleasant, and the fans from the West (especially SD, LA and SF) were the least.
The REAL gem for baseball fans is the Arizona Fall League, which is played at six Cactus League stadiums over a six-week period. Cheap ($13 at the most), free parking, plenty of room to sit where you want, relaxing atmosphere, high likelihood you’ll end up with a ball, and a chance to chat with scouts. As for the quality: Approximately 40 percent of all players named to the 2024 MLB All Star Game were AFL alums.
I believe SABR ties some of its events to the Arizona Fall League. So if you love baseball, it’s a full experience
One quick story: The night of the Indiana State-Michigan State NCAA final, I sat in an almost empty Cactus League stadium. I walked down to the front row along the right field line where the Oakland bullpen was. I took out a book of trivia which was broken down by team and loudly asked questions about the A’s. Some of the players in front of me raised their hands when they were the answer to my question. Memorable night for baseball teenage nerd like me.
Ha love it!
We went to the 1999 NCAA Final Four in Tampa-St. Pete. Two games on Saturday and the championship game on Monday. So, with Saturday free, we decided to go watch a spring training game at Legends Field, home of the Yankees. The Yankees happened to be hosting the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. What I remember most about the game was the absolute hatred that some of the Yankees and Devil Rays fans had for each other. Frequent shouting matches, constant taunting after base hits, strikeouts, pretty much anything. You’d have thought it was a playoff game between the two teams, not spring training. Locals filled me in. The Yankees “owned” Tampa and their fans didn’t like the Devil Rays being in St. Pete. And newbie Devil Rays fans didn’t like being looked down upon by Yankees fans. So the game was fun to watch, but definitely not a relaxed atmosphere.
– The Final Four games were held at Tropicana Field, home of the Devil Rays. It was strange enough watching a basketball game in an enclosed baseball stadium. But what I’ll really never forget was the slanted roof of the dome. I’ve been inside a few enclosed stadiums, but none were odder than Tropicana with its slanted roof and catwalks above your head.
Of course this all comes full circle, as the Rays are playing in a Yankees complex this season
Was there any reason why Steinbrenner lived and worked in Tampa?
Steinbrenner moved his shipbuilding company to Tampa in the 1980s I believe.
I was always curious about that!
My dad was from Jacksonville and that was our default summer-vacation destination from Atlanta. But anywhere south of Daytona was literally unthinkable–might as well have planned a getaway trip to NYC! In our family, south Florida was an indecent concept not to be named among polite human beings.
Florida, a sneaky long state geographically
I went to Tampa for a Yankees game last year! It was my first time. Little getaway for “baby moon #2.” Definitely loved the smaller crowds, and my pregnant wife loved fewer stairs and the ice cold lemonade. I was little sad to NOT see Joker Marchant Stadium, but we are Yankees fans, and my wife only wanted to do one game (only had a weekend), so we figured we’d go with a “home team” experience for our first time. So we did Yankees vs Blue Jays at Tampa, instead of Yankees at Tigers in Lakeland. Oh well, next time, Joker Marchant! It’s my mission in life to hail a strawberry shortcake from an aisle vendor.
What else did we do, aside from just one game? Glad you asked. We explored Tarpon Springs for Greek food, made a pilgrimage to Columbia Restaurant for the famous Cuban sandwich (Tampa Cubans have genoa salami along with ham, roast pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard…Miami Cubans don’t have the genoa…the bread is a little different too), and visited the Salvador Dalí museum. The Dalí museum is a truly mandatory spot, cannot recommend it highly enough.
I was in Tampa only once and I wanted to see the Dali museum but I didn’t have time (it was a work trip)
Fun fact: Tarpon Springs has the highest percentage of Greek Americans in the US
Yep! Knew of the town and the ethnic population thanks to Taste the Nation, a Hulu show by Padma Lakshmi
Have only been to AZ for game regularly since 2015. Been to 5 of the 10 parks there. Our average home weather in March can be fairly mild upper 50/60’s and rarely any snow. The few times we have been, our weather at home was almost as pleasant as Phoenix. . But in 2019 we got buried by 2 feet and subzero temps in early March. Stepping off the plane in Mesa was like stepping into Heaven. 70 degrees and sunshine and baseball and green grass and family. It was Heaven.
I went to many Grapefruit League games back in the 1970s when I was in grade school. Spring training was much more casual back in those days. You could just stroll up and get game tickets minutes before the game and ballparks were rarely full.
My two strongest memories are about the Dodgers and Astros games.
Everything about Dodgertown was first class. The facilities were immaculate and Vin Scully announced the games. There was no outfield fence at the ballpark, though. There was a grass covered berm past the warning track with kumquat trees growing on it. I remember watching at least one game from the top of the berm and eating kumquats.
We also saw the Astros play in Cocoa Beach, which was at a minor league stadium and the whole operation seemed very minor league in contrast to Dodger Town. The players’ clubhouse was in a stand alone cinderblock building down the third base line, surrounded by a three foot high chain link fence. We would wait by the gate in that fence to get autographs as the players walked out to go to their cars.
After one game Cliff Johnson walked out of the clubhouse wearing a t-shirt, gym shorts and shower flip-flops, holding a lit cigarette and open can of beer in one hand, with the forefinger of his other hand hooked through the empty loop of the remaining five pack. That was the first time I realized that there could be a difference between a baseball player and an athlete, as John Kruk so famously noted many years later.
Since I have never made it to spring training – not out of want mind you, and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading everyone’s experiences – I will go with Mike’s Part 2 question, in particular regarding the ST hats.
In rebuilding my cap collection following our engulfing house fire in December 2021 and now a week from turning 58, I have been more selective in buying what I know that I will wear. When I saw the Royals’ light blue crown/royal blue bill ST model cap last year (and had a good discount offer), I knew it had to be an addition to my rebuild. And I’ve had several compliments about it when I have worn it.
I do aspire that the wife and I can make a trip to the ST Valley of the Sun, as our three favorite teams (Royals, Rockies and Rangers) all train there.
I’m actually heading to Arizona on Saturday to take in a few games next week.