Which MLB teams host spring training in Florida? Full list

MLB spring training is nearly here. Get familiar with the Florida teams and the history behind the Florida Grapefruit League.

The days are getting longer, and the earth is starting to smell more, well, earthy. That must mean that MLB spring training is nearly upon us!

Here’s everything you need to know about the country’s East Coast iteration of spring training, which takes place in Florida.

Where is spring training 2023?

MLB spring training is held in Arizona and Florida.

What is Florida’s spring training called?

Florida’s spring training league is called the Florida Grapefruit League. Florida has housed spring training for the MLB in some capacity for 130 years according to the league’s website, so there is a great deal of history associated with the tradition of migrating south before the season begins.

Also according to the site, all but six teams have at one point or another held spring training in the state of Florida. Here are the cities with the most spring training history, according to the site:

• St. Petersburg and Tampa: 87 years
• Bradenton and Clearwater: 76 years
• Lakeland: 75 years
• Sarasota: 74 years
• Fort Myers: 64 years
• West Palm Beach: 63 years
• Orlando: 62 years
• Vero Beach: 58 years
• Winter Haven: 55 years

Is spring training only in Florida?

Spring training takes place in two states: Arizona and Florida.

Why is MLB spring training in Florida?

The following great history is summarized from the Florida Grapefruit League website, where a worth-reading full and expanded timeline is posted that covers 1988 until the present day.

There were multiple attempts of players and teams, dating back to 1888, to head to the warmer climate of Florida to get a jump on training for the year. Connie Mack went to Jacksonville to train in 1988 and his experience there convinced the Washington Nationals to head down in 1988. They finished 48-86 and teams didn’t come back for over a decade thanks, in part to that performance which was directly correlated with the then-bold decision to go to Florida. Then, the A’s came back in 1903 and finished 14.5 games behind the Red Sox. There was this notable excuse from manager Connie Mack:

"“Predictably, Mack blamed the year-long slump on the tropical temptations of Jacksonville, where his star pitcher, Rube Waddell, had been distracted by several misadventures, including a wrestling match with a live alligator and an attempted suicide following a jilting by a local brunette.”"

It wasn’t until 1914 that multiple teams would regularly make the trip down, and enough were in attendance in the region to play some exhibition games and start the groundwork on a spring league. Then, Babe Ruth and the Yankees spent the springs of the 1920s in Tampa Bay where Ruth became a local icon, which reinforced the Yankees’ yearly trip. They still have facilities there to this day.

From there on out several teams made their way down to Florida for preseason training, with exceptions for World War II and the Covid-19 pandemic.

What teams host spring training in Florida?

These teams will be in Florida in 2023:

1. Atlanta Braves
2. Baltimore Orioles
3. Boston Red Sox
4. Detroit Tigers
5. Houston Astros
6. Miami Marlins
7. Minnesota Twins
8. New York Mets
9. New York Yankees
10. Philadelphia Phillies
11. Pittsburgh Pirates
12. St. Louis Cardinals
13. Tampa Bay Rays
14. Toronto Blue Jays
15. Washington Nationals