We've apparently got a passion for America's Pasttime - seven spring training teams set attendance records this year, with several of those in the Tampa Bay area.
The teams setting attendance marks include the Baltimore Orioles, who train at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota; the Detroit Tigers, who have trained in Lakeland since the 1920s, at Joker Marchant Stadium; the Pittsburgh Pirates, who train at McKechnie Field in Bradenton; the Toronto Blue Jays, at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin; and our hometown Tampa Bay Rays, who spend Aprils at Charlotte Sports Complex in Port Charlotte.
The total attendance figure was compiled by the Florida Sports Foundation, a division of Enterprise Florida, Inc., from daily box scores and confirmed by each of the 15 teams in the Florida Grapefruit League. Only games played in Florida between Major League teams were included in the total. Exhibition games against college teams and World Baseball Classic teams are not included in the final totals.
Eight teams topped the 100,000 mark in total attendance for the second consecutive year as the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees led the way with over 164,000 fans at games in Fort Myers and Tampa, respectively. The Red Sox edged the Yankees by 44 fans with a total attendance of 164,840 at Jet Blue Park while the Yankees drew 164,796 to Steinbrenner Field.
The 2013 season celebrated the 125th Anniversary of Spring Training Baseball in the Sunshine State. The tradition began in 1888 when the Washington Statesmen traveled to Jacksonville to work out in the “off season.” Since that time, the “off season” workouts have become an economic benefit to the state as Florida Spring Training Baseball provides the State of Florida a $753 million economic impact each year. The total was determined by an economic impact survey, compiled during the 2009 season, by Bonn Marketing Research Group of Tallahassee.
Here's the 2013 Team-by-Team Florida Spring Training Attendance:
Atlanta Braves - Disney's Wide World of Sports, Lake Buena Vista
18 Games: 134,811 total attendance; 7,490 average per game
Largest Crowd: 10,298 vs. New York Yankees, Saturday, March 16
Baltimore Orioles - Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota
17 Games; 120,455 total attendance; 7,086 average per game
Largest Crowd: 8,797 vs. Tampa Bay Rays, Thursday, March 14
Boston Red Sox - JetBlue Park, Fort Myers
17 Games; 164,840 total attendance; 9,696 average per game
Largest Crowd: 9,987, vs. Tampa Bay Rays, Saturday, February 23
Detroit Tigers - Joker Marchant Stadium, Lakeland
17 Games; 136,858 total attendance; 8,050 average per game
Largest Crowd: 10,451 vs. Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, March 29
Houston Astros - Osceola County Stadium, Kissimmee
16 Games; 53,602 total attendance; 3,350 average per game
Largest Crowd: 5,013, vs. Philadelphia Phillies, Sunday, March 10
Miami Marlins - Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter
15 Games; 65,496 total attendance; 4,366 average per game
Largest Crowd: 6,934 vs. New York Yankees, Friday, March 8
Minnesota Twins - Hammond Stadium, Fort Myers
17 Games (one cancellation); 113,845 total attendance; 6,697 average per game
Largest Crowd: 8,366 vs. New York Yankees, Friday, March 22
New York Mets – Tradition Field, Port St. Lucie
17 Games; 83,412 total attendance; 4,907 average per game
Largest Crowd: 6,761 vs. Atlanta Braves, Sunday, March 17
New York Yankees - Steinbrenner Field, Tampa
16 Games; 164,796 total attendance; 10,300 average per game
Largest Crowd: 11,028, vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, Thursday, March 28
Philadelphia Phillies - Bright House Field, Clearwater
16 Games; 138,313 total attendance; 8,645 average per game
Largest Crowd: 11,100, vs. Baltimore Orioles, Sunday, March 17
Pittsburgh Pirates - McKechnie Field, Bradenton
15 Games (one cancellation); 93,433 total attendance; 6,229 average per game
Largest Crowd: 8,541, vs. New York Yankees, Sunday, March 17
St. Louis Cardinals - Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter
16 Games; 98,715 total attendance; 6,170 average per game
Largest Crowd: 7,629, vs. Detroit Tigers, Saturday, March 16
Tampa Bay Rays - Charlotte Sports Park, Port Charlotte
17 Games at Charlotte Sports Park, 1 at Tropicana Field; 106,102 total attendance; 5,895 average per game
Largest Crowd: 15,167 vs. Detroit Tigers,,Saturday, March 30 at Tropicana Field
Toronto Blue Jays – Florida Auto Exchange Stadium, Dunedin
16 Games; 78,509 total attendance; 4,907 per game average
Largest Crowd: 5,561, vs. Detroit Tigers, Saturday, March 9
Washington Nationals - Space Coast Stadium, Viera
16 Games; 85,270 total attendance; 5,329 per game average
Largest Crowd: 7,415 vs. Atlanta Braves, Wednesday, March 27
Florida Spring Training Total Attendance
247 Games (two cancellations); 1,638,457 total attendance; 6,6,33 per game
