City of Palms Park , home to Red Sox spring training, 1993–2011
The Boston Red Sox have been a member of the American League (AL) of Major League Baseball (MLB) since 1901, and have held spring training prior to each season.
The franchise's first spring training was held in Charlottesville, Virginia , in 1901, when the team was known as the Boston Americans. Since 1993, the city of Fort Myers, Florida , has hosted Boston's spring training, first at City of Palms Park , and since 2012 at JetBlue Park at Fenway South .
List of Boston Red Sox spring training venues
States where the Red Sox have held spring training
Red Sox players in Hot Springs, Arkansas , in 1912
Year(s)
City
Ballpark
Ref.
1901
Charlottesville, Virginia
1902
Augusta, Georgia
Warren Park
1903 –1906
Macon, Georgia
Central City Park
1907 –1908
Little Rock, Arkansas
West End Park
1909 –1910
Hot Springs, Arkansas
Majestic Park
1911
Redondo Beach, California
1912 –1918
Hot Springs, Arkansas
Majestic Park
1919
Tampa, Florida
Plant Field
1920 –1923
Hot Springs, Arkansas
Whittington Park
1924
San Antonio, Texas
League Park
1925 –1927
New Orleans, Louisiana
Heinemann Park
1928 –1929
Bradenton, Florida
Ninth Street Park
1930 –1931
Pensacola, Florida
Legion Field
1932
Savannah, Georgia
Municipal Stadium
1933 –1942
Sarasota, Florida
Payne Park
1943
Medford, Massachusetts
Tufts University
1944
Baltimore, Maryland
Oriole Park
1945
Pleasantville, New Jersey
Ansley Park
1946 –1958
Sarasota, Florida
Payne Park
1959 –1965
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale Stadium
1966 –1992
Winter Haven, Florida
Chain of Lakes Park
1993 –2011
Fort Myers, Florida
City of Palms Park
2012 –present
JetBlue Park at Fenway South
Notable events
In 1918, Babe Ruth hit a 573-foot home run during spring training in Hot Springs, Arkansas .
Norman Rockwell 's 1957 painting The Rookie is set in the team's spring training locker room, which at the time was located at Payne Park in Sarasota, Florida .
In 1987, unhappy about his contract, pitcher Roger Clemens left spring training in Winter Haven, Florida , which prompted general manager Lou Gorman to quip, "The sun will rise, the sun will set, and I'll have lunch."
In 1988, presidential candidate Michael Dukakis took batting practice in Winter Haven.
In March 2020, due to impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports , all MLB spring training was halted and the start of the regular season was delayed. Three months later, team president Sam Kennedy advised that the team would complete its preseason training activities at Fenway Park, upon resumption of preparations for the 2020 MLB season . The Red Sox organization made multiple changes to Fenway Park to accommodate "summer camp", including the use of luxury suites as alternate dressing rooms for players, and adding an additional bullpen area underneath the centerfield bleachers. In 2021, the team returned to JetBlue Park for spring training.
References
^ "Collins' Men Take It Easy" . The Boston Globe . April 11, 1901. p. 7. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Captain Collins Developing a Team of Heavy Hitters" . The Boston Post . April 7, 1902. p. 8. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Americans at Macon" . The Boston Globe . March 16, 1903. p. 5. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Practice Games Monday" . The Arkansas Democrat . Little Rock, Arkansas . March 10, 1907. p. 6. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Pilgrims Come Tomorrow" . Arkansas Gazette . Little Rock, Arkansas . March 2, 1908. p. 8. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox at Hot Springs" . Arkansas Gazette . Little Rock, Arkansas . February 28, 1909. p. 9. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Have Practice" . The Philadelphia Inquirer . April 2, 1910. p. 10. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Spring Trip in Detail" . The Boston Globe . February 9, 1911. p. 7. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Hot Springs Leading Spot" . Billings Gazette . Billings, Montana . January 7, 1912. p. 12. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Get Down to Work" . The Tampa Daily Times . Tampa, Florida . March 24, 1919. p. 9. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox To Train At Hot Springs, Ark" . The Fresno Morning Republican . Fresno, California . January 1, 1920. p. 20. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Ehmke Arrives at the Sox Camp" . The Boston Globe . February 27, 1924. p. 11. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Hot Competition For Wamby's Job" . Brooklyn Daily Eagle . March 18, 1925. p. 24. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "First Workout for Sox Squad" . The Boston Globe . February 22, 1926. p. 9. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Carrigan Outlines Views to Players" . The Boston Globe . March 22, 1927. p. 20. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ Webb Jr., Melville E. (February 22, 1928). "Red Sox Due at Bradenton Today" . The Boston Globe . p. 10. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Start Their Grind at Pensacola" . The Boston Globe . February 26, 1930. p. 20. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Workout Under Warm Sun" . The Boston Globe . March 2, 1932. p. 23. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Land in Sarasota" . The Boston Globe . AP . March 3, 1933. p. 4. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Are In Top Shape" . Asbury Park Press . Asbury Park, New Jersey . AP . April 1, 1943. p. 12. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Ball Clubs Change Only Three Camps" . The Palm Beach Post . AP . January 23, 1944. p. 19. Retrieved November 9, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Red Sox Arrive Today For Oriole Park Drill" . The Baltimore Sun . AP . March 26, 1944. p. 20. Retrieved November 9, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ "Atlantic City Has Plenty of Baseball" . The Boston Globe . March 18, 1945. p. 18. Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
^ Leconey, Bill (March 23, 2017). "War games: When the Yankees, Red Sox trained in AC, Pleasantville" . The Press of Atlantic City . Retrieved November 4, 2018 .
^ Hand, Jack (February 27, 1946). "Williams Hits First Pitch Out of Park" . The Tampa Tribune . p. 13. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ Holbrook, Bob (March 16, 1959). "Sox to Return To Scottsdale" . The Boston Globe . p. 15. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ Birtwell, Roger (February 24, 1966). "Red Sox Off For Sun Land" . The Boston Globe . p. 35. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ "1993 Red Sox are a team in transition" . North Adams Transcript . North Adams, Massachusetts . AP . February 20, 1993. p. 14. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ Leyden, Tom (July 1, 2020). "Red Sox report to Fenway Park for Training Camp" . boston25news.com . Retrieved July 2, 2020 .
^ Abraham, Peter (July 3, 2020). "Friendly Fenway feels different, but baseball is back in Boston" . The Boston Globe . Retrieved July 4, 2020 .
^ "Red Sox get new digs in Florida" . Green Bay Press-Gazette . AP . January 22, 2012. p. D-8. Retrieved July 4, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
^ Browne, Ian. "Sox Spring Training FAQs, important dates" . MLB . Retrieved 22 February 2021 .
^ "Home Run That Changed Baseball" . roadsideamerica.com . Retrieved November 4, 2018 .
^ Monagan, Matt (March 16, 2018). "100 years ago, Babe Ruth became Babe Ruth with a 500-foot homer into an Alligator Farm" . MLB.com . Retrieved November 4, 2018 .
^ Jenkinson, Bill (2011). "The Official Hot Springs Baseball Historic Trail" . Retrieved November 4, 2018 .
^ Anderson, Chris (May 21, 2014). "Who was the rookie in Norman Rockwell's painting?" . Sarasota Herald-Tribune . Retrieved December 22, 2016 .
^ Finn, Chad (April 1, 2011). "Former Red Sox GM Lou Gorman dies" . Boston.com .
^ Shaughnessy, Dan (February 22, 2009). "Around this time of year, great stories spring to mind" . The Boston Globe . Retrieved November 4, 2018 – via archive.boston.com.
^ Mark Feinsand (March 12, 2020). "Opening Day delayed at least 2 weeks; Spring Training games cancelled" . MLB.com . Major League Baseball. Retrieved March 14, 2020 .
^ Abraham, Peter (June 20, 2020). "Red Sox plan to hold spring training at Fenway Park" . The Boston Globe . Retrieved June 21, 2020 .
^ Speier, Alex (July 14, 2020). " 'It was just a jigsaw puzzle.' How the Red Sox reconfigured Fenway Park for summer camp" . The Boston Globe . Retrieved July 17, 2020 .
^ Browne, Ian. "Sox Spring Training FAQs, important dates" . MLB . Retrieved 22 February 2021 .
Notes
^ In July 2020, the team resumed preseason training activities with a "summer camp" at Fenway Park, due to the early termination of traditional spring training that had been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Further reading
Nowlin, Bill (2010). The Great Red Sox Spring Training Tour of 1911: Sixty-Three Games, Coast to Coast . McFarland. ISBN 978-0786461240 .
External links
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