More people are coming to spring training baseball games across the state and in Lee County.
The number of visitors who watched spring training games in Florida this season rose by four percent to almost 1.5 million spectators.
The Florida Sports Foundation reported the two Major League Baseball teams in Lee County - the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins – finished second and sixth respectively for total attendance numbers.
The Red Sox, who won the 2013 World Series, saw almost 10,000 visitors per game.
The Minnesota Twins saw about 7,700 spectators per game.
Jeff Mielke, executive director of Lee County Sports Development, said more people are coming to games because they know the teams are here to stay.
“I think Southwest Florida is emerging as a very stable spring training destination," he said. "We don’t have teams now that are going to jockey to leave. Fans can count on their teams being here over the next 30 years each."
While teams are here to stay, they have switched up where they practice. The City of Palms Park in Fort Myers formerly featured the Boston Red Sox until they moved to JetBlue Park for the 2012 season. The city’s mayor Randy Henderson will talk about the future of the City of Palms Park at a luncheon on May 13.
