Spring training hotspot guide winter antidote
Finally, it’s here. After a winter of our discontent, battling snow, wind and cold, it’s time to pack up and head to major league baseball spring training in Florida. Blue Jays pitchers and catchers are on the field Monday morning at the Bobby Mattick Centre at the Englebert Complex. So what if the construction doesn’t seem finished on GM Alex Anthopoulos’s 40-man roster. Hey, winter’s over and that’s the main thing right now.
Personally, it will be 38 consecutive major league training camps since 1978 — three years in Daytona Beach and 14 springs in West Palm Beach with the Expos, followed by 21 training camps, including this one, with the Jays. And yes, there are special moments from those 37 prior springs when I remember exactly where I was — some for unknown reasons.
There was a press briefing I organized in 1979 at which newly acquired Bill Lee told a group of Red Sox writers that he put marijuana on his pancakes.
I also sat next to Ellis Valentine in the lobby of the West Palm team hotel when Ronald Reagan was shot on a D.C. sidewalk.
I organized the Matt Dunigan press conference when he decided to change sports from football to baseball. Nobody bought in.
I was lost, driving around Lake Okeechobee in the dark for the second time with Dave Van Horne, when Villanova upset Georgetown in the NCAA basketball final. I was at the SuperDome for the Saturday games with Michigan’s Fab Five, two days before Chris Webber’s unfortunate timeout call.
I was writing a column at the Inn on the Bay in Dunedin when the Oklahoma City bombing took over the airwaves. That was at extended spring training after the replacement baseball debacle was ended by judge Sonia Sotomayor.
I also stood next to the Jays’ bullpen down the left-field line at Grant Field and watched Carlos Delgado peel off his catcher’s gear — that was his original position — for the final time.
With all that Florida experience, I often receive requests from Jays fans asking for some helpful information for firsttimers visiting spring training. As a service, here is an elite eight of moments you should experience in February and March as part of a Jays training camp odyssey.
1. Sunset on Clearwater Beach
At the north end of the beach is a glorious strip of white sand between Frenchy’s and the Palm Pavilion. When that bright orange ball of fire begins to clamp onto the horizon and slip quickly into the ocean, finally into darkness, it becomes spectacular.
2. Main Street Dunedin, post-game
Park in one of the lots just off Main Street Dunedin, not at the ballpark. Enjoy the two-kilometre stroll there and back after the game while others are fighting traffic. Have a cocktail in the Chic a Boom Room, then relax at Kelly’s for a great meal with a tasty but reasonable wine list and, traditionally, many Canadian servers on the staff.
3. Blue Jays autographs
If you’re at spring training with the kids, the place to set up is in the right-field corner next to the Blue Jays clubhouse and offices. You might want to be there between noon and game time as players stroll in from pre-game workouts, then back out to get ready for the game in the first-base dugout after lunch. Many, not all, will find time for an autograph or a short conversation. Head to your seats for the first five innings, then come back to the same spot, just as the regulars are removed from the game and head back to the clubhouse to continue workouts inside.
4. Identify future Jays stars
In March, drive over to the Mattick Center on Solon at about 11:30 a.m. There will usually be two minorleague games about to start. Fans can walk right up to the backstop and right behind the fenced-in dugouts. There’s nothing major league about the experience with kids simply trying to make their mark, usually with an assortment of Jays stars helping out from the glory days of the franchise. It will bring you back to the roots of why you love baseball. 5. Night game at the Phillies Just north of Gulf to Bay Blvd. on Highway 19 is Bright House Field, home of the Philadelphia Phillies. Find a night game and get there early to set up a blanket on the grass on the sloping hill just next to the Phillies bullpen, hard by the thatched hut Tiki Bar. The partying is non-stop and if it’s during March Madness, you can follow the hoops on the many televisions. 6. Game at Yankees complex Just across the causeway from Clearwater and just east of the airport on Dale Mabry sits George M. Steinbrenner Field, built and approved by The Boss to meet his high standards of ostentatiousness. Park next to Buccaneer Stadium and take the crosswalk to the park. Legendary Yankees are everywhere and the huge gift shop is a true moneymaker.
7. An afternoon at Tampa Bay Downs
There’s something soothing about a day at the races on a sunny after- noon in March. It’s an old-school track, opened in 1926, with not many bells and whistles. It’s only about 30 minutes north of the Jays’ ballpark and features a golf driving range and, just down the street, one of the largest flea markets in Florida. You won’t find many Northern Dancers or Secretariats but, hey, you only need your plough horse to beat his Clydesdale to cash in. There will be a large Canadian population on hand.
8. Lunch in Tarpon Springs
This small town about 30 minutes north of Dunedin on Alt-19 is as close as one gets to the feel of a small European fishing village in Florida. With a large Greek population, the variety and quality of independently-owned restaurants is outstanding. It’s worth the trip and the sponges are everywhere, fresh out of the gulf. And it was home to the late, great Jim Fregosi.
That’s a head start, an elite eight of activities at the Blue Jays camp. Of course, everyone will have their own list. The best part of spring training is that we want to believe summer is now just around the corner.