Saturday Book Review: Florida Spring Training

Thousands of anxious baseball fans flock to Florida and Arizona in March every year to take in some sun and some Spring baseball. Unwilling to wait the extra month for the regular season to begin, these fans flock to Spring Training to watch their favorite teams work to get into game shape. If you're a Spring Training novice looking for a bit of direction or an old pro interested in checking out a few different parks this year, Florida Spring Training: Your Guide to Touring the Grapefruit League by Alan Byrd is the only tourguide you'll need.

=> Vitals

# of Pages: 256
Publisher: The Intrepid Traveler
Suggested Retail Price: $14.95
ISBN: 978-1-887140-68-3

=> What's Inside?

Full chapter breakdowns for all eighteen teams that ply their trade in Florida, including seventeen different parks (the Marlins and Cardinals share Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter. Each chapter is broken down thusly:

• An introduction by Byrd
• Contact information including stadium address, phone number and URL
• General directions to the stadium
• Parking information, tips and cost
• Ticket information, including availability, seating chart, seating capacity, ticket prices and average attendence
• Description and review of the game program
• Ease of finding your seat
• Availability of shade at stadium
• Concession variety and quality, including a beer breakdown
• Souvenirs
• Autograph approachability
• Just a game, or a real baseball experience?
• Proximity of seats to game action
• Ease of evacuation at the end of a game
• Things to do before and after a game:
  • Restaurants
  • Sports Bars
  • Attractions
  • Activities
• Hotels near the ballpark

Byrd also provides soup-to-nuts rankings of all of the stadiums, rating each on a ten-point scale for intimacy, autographs, comfort, food and style. The Mets' Spring Training home at Tradition Field in Port St. Lucie ranked sixth out of seventeen with a total score of 39 (out of 50) (Yankees' home base Legends Field in Tampa ranked fifteenth).

If that's not enough for you, Ryan includes five week-long itineraries for the intrepid Spring Training traveler that will empower you to hit multiple ballparks as efficiently and enjoyably as possible.

=> Why Should You Buy It?

If you want to be prepared for your Florida Spring Training experience, this book will give you that and more. For the more adventurous fan, the pre-planned trips will keep you busy for a while.

=> Where to Buy It?

Get it at Amazon.com for around ten bucks.