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By Howard Lestrud Online Managing Editor
Hooray for baseball! In less than two months, the Minnesota Twins will be playing baseball in the Metrodome. The Twins’ home opener is Monday, March 31 against the Los Angeles Angels. It is the first of a four-game series that spills into April.
The Twins’ home opener is the earliest date in the team’s history going back to 1961. With the two ballpark scheduled to be ready to open in two years, it is wondered if snow will still be on the ground for the home opener. Oh well, outdoor baseball is the best, in any weather conditions.
Major League teams begin spring training in about two weeks, with catchers and pitchers usually reporting in mid-February. The Twins’ first spring game is Thursday, Feb. 28 against Cincinnati. The Twins then play the world champion Boston Red Sox on Friday, Feb. 29 at the Twins’ Spring Training facility in Ft. Myers, FL.
The Twins showed off some of their new acquisitions last weekend at TwinsFest, a winter celebration to get baseball back into our arteries. Some of the new Twins include outfielder Delmon Young, infielder Brendan Harris and a couple of infielders from the Houston Astros. It is still likely that some very young prospects from either the New York Yankees, New York Mets or Boston Red Sox may be joining the Twins if Cy Young pitcher Johan Santana is traded. Santana was not at TwinsFest. What does that tell you?
Let’s take a look at some Spring Training Web sites that you must bookmark. One of my favorite Spring Training sites is called Spring Training Online and can be found at http://www.springtrainingonline.com/
This site has links to all of the Major League teams and provides pertinent Spring Training information. Here’s where the teams can be found:
Grapefruit League (Florida)
Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, L.A. Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Washington Nationals.
Cactus League (Arizona)
Arizona Diamond Backs, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers.
Spring training is almost as old as baseball itself. The best evidence points to spring training first taking place in 1870, when the Cincinnati Red Stockings and the Chicago White Stockings held organized baseball camps in New Orleans. Other baseball historians argue that the Washington Capitals of the National League pioneered spring training in 1888, holding a four-day camp in Jacksonville.
“The specific origins really don’t matter. By 1900, spring-training was firmly established as a baseball ritual, with most American and National League teams heading out of town so players could train and managers could evaluate. Small Florida and Arizona communities were suddenly known across the nation because of the allure provided by major-league baseball. St. Petersburg. Fort Lauderdale. Tucson. Sarasota. Bradenton.”
The history of spring training can be broken into three distinct eras:
1901-1942: The Early Years -- http://www.springtrainingonline.com/features/history_1.htm
1943-1945: The Wartime Years -- http://www.springtrainingonline.com/features/history_2.htm
1945-present: Grapefruit and Cactus -- http://www.springtrainingonline.com/features/history_3.htm
Another excellent spring training Web site to put in your favorites is called Spring Training Yearbook Online. Here, you will again find links to each Major League team and at these pages, you’ll find team schedule, ticket information, ballpark map, restaurants, hotels and spring roster.
A guide to enjoying everything about spring training can be found in a Web site called Spring Training Tips. Find it at http://www.springtrainingtips.com/
This site is not the most beautifully designed Web creation but it does allow you to navigate to the spring training information you desire. Find a quote from Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby: “People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.”
The Twins play at Hammond Stadium, 14100 Six Miles Cypress Pkwy, Ft. Myers, FL 33901 612)338-946
For more Spring Training news and a connection to all Major League teams, go to mlb.com
At the mlb.com site, you will find the latest player moves and links to all Major League teams. It was at this site that I learned last week that the Twins were signing Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer to long-term contracts. Good news? Yes!
At the Twins site, twinsbaseball.com, you will find ticket information, schedule and seating chart for Hammond Stadium at the Lee County Sports Complex. There are even two bobblehead days and the Twins park on March 6 and 26. Don’t know the identity of the bobbleheads.
The Minnesota History Center is also planning a special spring training event for Tuesday, Feb. 26. It is called Past Forward: Baseball Springs Eternal, Songs and Stories from America’s Game. The event is a moving tribute to America’s game and the stories and songs written about it.
Actors Karen Wiese-Thompson, Darien Johnson and actor/director Craig Johnson will interpret the words of authors as wide-ranging as playwright August Wilson and sports commentator Frank DeFord. Go to the Minnesota Historical Society for more information at http://www.mnhs.org/index.htm.
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