Road Trip: Tampa
Tampa has a long history with baseball. A short-lived Florida State League took place in 1892. In 1913, the first spring training game took place. Chicago Cubs played the Cuban Athletics, an amateur Cuban Championship team. The following season, the Chicago Cubs took on the St Louis Browns for the first spring training game in Florida.
This was not a real road trip for me. Afterall, I live in a suburb of Tampa, but I wanted to see these sights and pass it on to my readers. I encourage all fans of baseball to visit these sites. Tampa is more than spring training, the Rays, and the Marlins. Please join me for this journey of baseball in Tampa.
My first stop was to the Henry B. Plant Museum. Henry Plant was a wealthy businessman from the 19th century. He played a significant role in the expansion of the railroad system in Florida. This boosted Florida’s economic and population growth. In 1891, Plant built the Tampa Bay Hotel for three million dollars. It was a Victorian railroad resort with all the amenities one could desire of the time. The hotel was an instant success. The richest of the rich vacationed at the hotel. It was so popular it was used to house soldiers mustering in Tampa during the Spanish-American War. Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders camped on this property.
What does this have to do with baseball? The baseball field on the premise could be the first one in Florida’s history. According to museum staff, there are no records of who stayed in the hotel. Those logs have been lost in time. However, there are records that show this is where the Cubs and the Cuban Athletics played the first spring training game in front of six thousand spectators. All this was interesting, but it is not why I went there. On April 4, 1919, at Plant Field, the Boston Red Sox played a preseason game verses the NY Giants. In that game, George Herman “Babe” Ruth hit a 587-foot home run in front of 4,300 fans. Although the ball field is no longer there, a historic marker is there, and the ball is on display in the museum. Also, museum staff member claims that Ruth signed a contract with the Yankees inside the hotel. Is that true? Not sure. Further research is required.
Next, the wife and I went to the Tampa Baseball Museum. It is sometimes referred to as the Al Lopez Museum. The building is Lopez’s childhood home converted into a museum. Al Lopez is the first Tampa native to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Lopez did not have much success as a player, but it was his time as manager that made him a Hall of Famer. This museum celebrates the numerous players from the Tampa Bay area who have played/managed in the MLB. Hall of Famer manager Tony LaRusso and third baseman Wade Boggs call Tampa home. Other notable players that are from the Tampa area are Garry Sheffield, Fred McGriff, and Dwight Gooden. Current Rays manager, Kevin Cash is from Tampa too. Multiple bats and gloves are on display for all to photograph.
This building is in a section of Tampa called Ybor City and is known for its limited parking. Tickets are reasonable $12 for adults and two dollars less for military, seniors, and students. Please plan accordingly because the museum is only open Thursday through Saturday. This is a definite don’t-miss visit if you want a real feel of Tampa’s beginnings with baseball.
Our final stop of the day was to BayCare Stadium. It is where the Philadelphia Phillies spring training is held. In summer months, it is home for the Clearwater Threshers, minor league affiliate of the Phillies. It is a beautiful ballpark with a modern look. We bought tickets the day before for $11 each and sat 13 rows behind home plate. The stadium was built in 2004, seats 8,500 and tonight’s attendance was 3,101. A larger than average crowd size was generated due to the First Responder Night theme and the postgame fireworks show. The well-preserved grass on the field was greener than green. There was no outfield seating. Instead, a grass berm that doubles as a picnic area is there. It was covered with youngsters playing catch.
As for the game, the Clearwater Threshers took on the Palm Beach Cardinals. Innings one through three were uneventful. Cardinals put zero runs in the top half of the fourth. Then the Threshers offense exploded! Second baseman, Kendall Simmons launched a solo home run. A rally followed and loaded the bases for Jamari Baylor. Baylor took the pitch over the fence for the ultimate of all homers- a grand slam! Threshers led the game 5–0 after four. Cardinal players tried to answer back. Two-run home runs were hit in the fifth and six innings. Stretch time came and I devoured a hot dog and started working on a bag of peanuts which brought up the subject of the triple peanut legend. The myth of finding three peanuts in a single shell. My wife is not a baseball fan and does not understand the obsession of the sport found the fable to be absurd and immediately proved me wrong by discovering multiple shells with three peanuts in them. She should be sent to find Bigfoot. Back to the game, Threshers pitching staff was stingy with their plate offerings. Cardinal bats were quiet, and the game ended with a final score of 5–4 Threshers.
I am a huge fan of minor league baseball and genuinely believe fans get more for their money. Games like these are much more intimate. Stadiums are smaller and fans are closer to the players. There is more interaction between fans and players. Every kid there had their glove with them, as if wishing someone from the dugout would ask for volunteers from the stands to fill in for a player. However unrealistic it may seem, as a child with the mixture of the ballpark plus the magic of wearing your glove, the possibilities are endless. I bet those players on the field attended a game once as a child with their glove.
That was baseball and that was fun.
References
Quesada, A. d. (2000). Images of Sport: Baseball in Tampa Bay. Charleston, South Carolina, USA: Arcadia Publishing.
