April 1, 200422 yr http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=knig...night&type=lgns BY BARRY JACKSON, bjackson@herald.com Each spring, Muriel and Paul Bouchard venture down from New Hampshire to Florida for a spring training sojourn. This year, they noticed something different. More fans. Lots of them. ADVERTISEMENT "Our friends stood in line three hours to get Red Sox tickets," Muriel Bouchard said from Sunday's Boston-Marlins game in Jupiter. Long lines and packed bleachers have become commonplace this spring, with the Marlins experiencing the second-largest attendance increase in baseball and the Orioles on the cusp of setting an attendance mark at Fort Lauderdale Stadium. Despite negative publicity from the ongoing steroid controversy, baseball has enjoyed a spring training renaissance, with 27 of the 30 teams experiencing jumps in attendance. Only the New York Mets (who train in Port St. Lucie), the Los Angeles Dodgers (Vero Beach) and the Milwaukee Brewers (Phoenix) have seen spring crowds decline from a year ago. The Marlins and Baltimore Orioles -- two teams that have enjoyed significant spikes -- meet at 1 p.m. today in Fort Lauderdale Stadium's final spring training game of the year. With a good crowd expected, the Orioles are set to establish a spring attendance record in their ninth year in Fort Lauderdale. "Through our first eight seasons, we had one sellout -- in 2002 against the Red Sox -- and we have two this year alone, against the Red Sox [March 21]and Marlins [March 27]," said Bill Stetka, the Orioles' public relations director. "As we've become more entrenched, we've become more active in marketing here." And it's not just the Orioles who are drawing fans in droves. Overall average attendance for Florida's Grapefruit League has risen from 5,356 last season to 5,871 this year. In the Arizona-based Cactus League, the figure has grown from 6,089 to 7,057. With five days left, the 18-team Grapefruit League -- which reportedly has an annual $4.5 million economic impact -- is on pace to come very close to its record of 1.58 million fans in 2000. The 12-team Cactus League is on pace to draw 1.3 million, topping the 2002 record of 1.09 million. The Marlins' average home attendance in Jupiter has jumped from 3,875 last year to 6,477 -- the largest average increase of any Grapefruit League team and the second-largest in baseball, behind only Seattle, which trains in Peoria, Ariz. Before last spring, the Marlins moved their spring-training headquarters from Melbourne to Jupiter, where they share Roger Dean Stadium with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Marlins close their Grapefruit League schedule Saturday against the Mets in Jupiter. LOWELL LIKES CROWDS "It's [more fun] to play in front of more people," Marlins third baseman Mike Lowell said. "Eight thousand really doesn't feel like a major league game, but it's a lot nicer than 2,000." The Orioles, meanwhile, entered Tuesday averaging 6,085 fans, compared with 4,764 last season. The team's all-time high in Fort Lauderdale was 5,507 in 2001. Several factors have contributed to the boost. There's renewed interest in the team because of the off-season additions of former All-Stars Rafael Palmeiro, Miguel Tejada and Javier Lopez. The Orioles also have benefited from the popularity of the Marlins, who have drawn well for three games in Fort Lauderdale. "I've been here three years, and I've definitely noticed the crowds have been bigger," right fielder Jay Gibbons said. "I've noticed more that have come down from Baltimore. They're excited about this team." Spring training pumps about $30 million annually into the Broward economy, according to Vince Gizzi, superintendent of special facilities for the city of Fort Lauderdale. "The turnout has been excellent," Gizzi said. "We saw it coming. We got a lot more publicity and promotion this year." Before spring training, the Orioles announced they're interested in remaining long term in Fort Lauderdale if they can secure state funds to renovate and expand Fort Lauderdale Stadium, which opened in 1962. The team is seeking as much as $15 million from the state and will match the Legislature's contributions. The Orioles have agreed to cover operating expenses at Fort Lauderdale for at least the next two years, pending expected approval by the city commission on April 20. The commission earlier had considered closing the stadium if it didn't find a company willing to cover the operating costs. PHILS, ASTROS RISE Other teams with large attendance jumps include the Phillies (Clearwater), who have benefited from the opening of a new stadium, and the Astros (Kissimmee), who have capitalized on the buzz from acquiring ex-Yankees pitchers Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte. The jump throughout baseball can be attributed to numerous factors, including big-name players changing teams and eased concerns about the safety of travel. The Yankees (12 in Tampa) and Red Sox (14 in Fort Myers) sold out all their home games. Crowds in Arizona also have swelled. The Chicago Cubs, who train in Mesa, have drawn more fans to spring training than any team in history, breaking the Yankees' record of 173,247 in 1996. Good news amidst stadium turmoil.
April 1, 200422 yr and all this attendance came from the extreme north of Palm Beach County and yet, the team still refuses to put the new stadium anywhere else than downtown Miami thus pretty much alienating all of their Palm Beach County fan base
April 1, 200422 yr so guys, i guess its safe to say that no one is drawing more fans than Florida right now :shifty :lol
April 1, 200422 yr Its not the 2nd largest attendance in spring training, its the second largest growth from last year. It seemed to me like people were taking this to mean the Marlins had the second most attendance of any ST team. The Cubs average like 10-12,000 a game I think so they are probably #1 in that category.
April 1, 200422 yr Its not the 2nd largest attendance in spring training, its the second largest growth from last year. It seemed to me like people were taking this to mean the Marlins had the second most attendance of any ST team. The Cubs average like 10-12,000 a game I think so they are probably #1 in that category. grrrrrrrrrr darn cubbies
April 1, 200422 yr and all this attendance came from the extreme north of Palm Beach County Not all of it. No way there's six thousand people living in PB County.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.