Florida State League: Guide To Florida’s Minor League Baseball Teams

Something I like to do is go to these little minor league baseball games. I find they are much more enjoyable than going to see the Rays or Marlins. I don’t have to pay for parking (or deal with the headache of parking), tickets are cheap and all the seats are good.

Unfortunately, I have noticed ticket prices have jumped up from the $2 tix I was paying several years ago, but they are still cheap enough to go and enjoy a game.

The league’s first season was in 1919. There are currently 12 teams, each team is affiliated with a major league team and most of the teams play in their affiliate’s spring training baseball stadium (which means all of the stadiums are pretty nice). The Florida State League is classified as Class A-Advanced.

I am fascinated to see how long baseball has been in Florida and the many, many teams that have played in the Sunshine State since the early 1900s. Attending these games is seeing baseball history in action.

All 12 Florida State League Teams

Clearwater Threshers are based out of Clearwater and play home games at Spectrum Field. They are affiliated with the Philadelphia Phillies and were established in 1985. They have two league titles. On May 23, 2011, they played a 23 inning game against the Jupiter Hammerheads.

Daytona Tortugas are based out of Daytona Beach and play home games at Jackie Robinson Ballpark, which opened in 1914. They are affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds and were established in 1993. They have six league titles. The Tortugas the most northward located team in the league.

Dunedin Blue Jay are based out of Dunedin and play home games at Dunedin Stadium. They are affiliated with the Toronto Blue Jays and were established in 1978. They have one league title. In 1995, when the MLB players were being locked out and the MLB was considering using minor league players to fill the MLB rosters, Dunedin would have been the home field for the Toronto Blue Jays, due to worker rights laws in Canada. But, the lockout was resolved before any MLB games were played in Dunedin.

Florida Fire Frogs are based out of Kissimmee and play home games at Osceola County Stadium. They are affiliated with the Atlanta Braves and were established in 1994. They have no league titles. They accepted a buyout for their stadium in 2019 and it is unclear where their 2020 season will be played.

Lakeland Flying Tigers are based out of Lakeland and play home games at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. They are affiliated with the Detroit Tigers and were established in 1960. They have four league titles. The team is named for the Flying Tigers that flew missions over China during WWII. Many of them trained at an airfield that was located were the present day baseball field lies.

Tampa Tarpons are based out of Tampa are play their home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field. They are affiliated with the New York Yankees and were established in 1994. They have five league titles. Their baseball field has the same dimensions as the former Yankee Stadium, as well as similar design elements to the stadium.

Bradenton Marauders are based out of Bradenton and play their home games at LECOM Park. They are affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates and were established in 2010 (although it can be argued that their linage traces back to 1957). They have one league title. The movie, Million Dollar Arm, was based on Rinku Singh, a Marauders player who was an Indian baseball player who came to play professionally in the USA.

Charlotte Stone Crabs are based out of Port Charlotte and play their home games at Charlotte Sports Park. They are affiliated with the Tampa Bay Rays and were established in 1980. They have three league titles. They are named for the Florida stone crab.

Fort Myers Miracle are based in Fort Myers and play their home games at CenturyLink Sports Complex in Hammond Stadium. They are affiliated with the Minnesota Twins and were established in 1926. They have seven league titles. Jimmy Buffett and Bill Murray owned shared in the teams. It’s unclear if they still own part of the team at this time, but it’s a fun factoid.

Jupiter Hammerheads are based in Jupiter and play their home games at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. They are affiliated with the Miami Marlins and were established in 1969. They have one league title. They share their stadium with the Palm Beach Cardinals.

Palm Beach Cardinals are based in Jupiter and play their home games at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. They are affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals and were established in 2003. They have two league titles. They share their stadium with the Jupiter hammerheads.

St. Lucie Mets are based in Port St. Lucie and play their home games at First Data Field. The are affiliated with the New York Mets and were established in 1988. They have five league titles. Tim Tebow played with the St. Lucie Mets and helped set some attendance records for the team in 2017.

I highly recommend adding these games to your Florida Explorer to-do list. They are fun, cheap, and the chances of getting a foul ball are high. Also, there are often special bonuses, such as having fireworks on the weekends or letting the kids run the bases after the game.

Doing it on the cheap…

The standard tickets are already cheap, but you can take advantage of special promotions to do it even cheaper. The best way is to go to the team’s website to see what specials they are running (buy one get one tix, kids get in free, where Star Wars gear and get in free-yup, that was a real promotion once upon a time).