For the first time since 2009, with the Northeast's gloom overstaying its welcome more plainly by the day, I flew down to Florida for a restorative weekend around the Grapefruit League. While the play on the field doesn't matter much (unless you're a grinder trying to win an upset victory in a position battle, or a bottom-of-the-roster veteran holding onto the bright sunlight for dear life), the environment surrounding the game might be the purest distillation of the game of baseball.
The stadiums may grow and shift, and the affiliations may flock to Arizona; I'll miss Dodgertown until the end of time. But the history is still palpable in each sweat-flecked moment, and the tradition of baseball's annual pilgrimage remains just as joyous off the field as ever. I watched the Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals play at sparkling new CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, then grabbed a standing room only ticket to see the New York Yankees take on the Cards the next day in Jupiter at the venerated Roger Dean Stadium, hours before my flight. Here's what I really saw.
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10 takeaways from a weekend at MLB spring training with the Cardinals, Nationals and Yankees
Autograph collecting is alive and well...
And I'm not just talking about the bizarrely overpriced souvenir stand from an outside vendor that was set up at both ballparks — I heard the $165 JD Davis signed ball comes with free divorce papers.
No, as someone whose youth was dependent on the sweatiest hobby, I watched kids put themselves through the same torture chamber I did 20 years ago, sprinting from foul line to foul line and cramming themselves into writhing piles, hoping the right player grabbed their baseball from a sea of arms. On my flight home, I saw a pair of brothers, one of whom was wearing a Mets hat signed by three on the brim, and the other with around 25 signatures like graffiti across his entire head, somehow without a single salt stain. To the victors go the spoils.
...and the players really help keep it alive, too
After Willson Contreras of the Cardinals was removed mid-game on Saturday, he stopped and signed for visiting fans down the right field line before making his way back to the clubhouse, something that would've sent my 12-year-old self into a tantrum hurricane. That never happened to me! And it should've!
Regardless, it was amazing to see so many players going above and beyond to interact with the crowd, even as the game action swelled around them.
The Cardinals flew in local beers from St. Louis to perfect the atmosphere
It's the little things: The concessions in Jupiter may have been relatively boilerplate, but if you looked close enough, you could spot two Schlafly varietals from "St. Louis' Original Craft Brewery". Wonder if they swap them out for Miami Marlins home games at the same venue.
A team's spring stadium is best when it really feels like home (but don't sleep on the road crowd)
The Cardinals have trained in Jupiter from 1998 (the stadium's creation) to present. Meanwhile, the Nationals and Astros share the hulking CACTI Park, and each played a game there on Saturday (at 12:05 and 6:05, respectively). CACTI had modern amenities and a brand-new sheen, but for my money, the fleet of custom Cardinals jerseys, hats with patches and pins, and team-logo cabana attire flowing into the stucco stadium up the road had them beat. I saw a woman walk by wearing a t-shirt with screen-printed logos/series outcomes of all the Cardinals road games she'd attended since 2008. Soon, she's going to need a new shirt.
But just because it was plainly Cardinals territory does not mean Yankees fans didn't travel. In fact, they enthusiastically took over the area above the visitors dugout. I even saw a child wearing a split Cardinals/Yankees Paul Goldschmidt jersey directly down the middle; I didn't have the heart to tell him the Yankees don't wear names on the back.
If one side of the stadium is much emptier, there's a very good reason for it
There was ample room in Jupiter for standing room down the third-base line, while the first base line was packed out an hour before first pitch. "Wow," I thought. "No one wants to stand on the Yankees side! How lucky am I?"
As sweat beaded down my face, blurred my eyes and sopped my polo shirt approximately 1.25 minutes after first pitch, I caught on.
Scoring the game has never been more in vogue
You couldn't look 10 feet in either direction wihout spotting a dedicated diehard (typically of the 55+ demographic) taking close care of capturing every play in their scorebook, even though the wholesale mid-game changes of a typical spring training contest make this as challenging as chronicling an All-Star Game. Didn't matter. They were on it.
The vendors aren't really baseball fans — they just love doing this
I spoke to three separate folksy vendors over the course of two games about how their passion for volunteering at spring training must mean they can't wait for Opening Day, and none of the three called themselves diehard baseball fans. They simply adore and rely upon the seasonal tradition and the people they get to help.
Don't drive a dirty car to the game
Midway through the Nats-Cards game, the scoreboard focused for a solid 15 seconds on a black Nissan that appeared to be in serviceable condition. Waiting for an announcement that a baseball had paraded through its windshield, we were instead informed that it was the Dirtiest Car of the Game and had won a free car wash. Honestly, the vehicle looked pretty clean; this driver got off lucky. If the producers of the segment had actually been able to find a mud magnet, this could've gotten nasty and the driver might've shame-spiraled.
If you're struggling to find the "passion" for your injury-ravaged team, it's hiding down in Florida
The Yankees are objectively decimated these days, with Sunday's game occurring between Gerrit Cole's doom-and-gloom presser and the inevitable result. But if you're tired of toxic online fandom, you'd never know the discourse was getting devastating by attending a spring training game. The crowd was overly supportive of Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza, almost willing them towards success and never snarking about Nolan Arenado lurking in the other dugout. My standing-room-mate commiserated about how Peraza would be starting elsewhere, or at least would've gotten a chance to already, and deserves the same grace in New York. "Every day, he's just stinging the ball." Fandom isn't about just being supportive, but it's really nice to hear it echoed every once in a while, especially when morale should be low.
A cherished family moment could be hiding around every corner
Moments before first pitch on Sunday, a Yankee fan spotted a Cardinals family (mom and two young daughters) languishing in the aisle, and offered to take their picture.
"Sure!" she responded enthusiastically. "When does that ever happen for mom?"
It's the small kindnesses of a baseball family, wearing multiple hats but holding hands, that really gets you ready this time of year.