 |
 |
 |
 |
 
 |
|
|
At Bats |
76, Angel Pagan |
Games |
13, Joe Smith |
|
Hits |
25, Angel Pagan |
Innings Pitched |
29.1, John Maine |
|
Runs |
11, Angel Pagan, Jose Reyes |
Wins |
3, John Maine, Joe Smith |
|
Home Runs |
3, Raul Casanova |
Strikeouts |
33, John Maine |
|
RBI |
10, Angel Pagan, Raul Casanova |
ERA (min 10 IP) |
0.75, Jorge Sosa (12 IP) |
|
Batting Average |
.340, Fernando Martinez |
|
|
2008 Attendance Figures
16 games;
97,929 total attendance; 6,121 average per game
Largest crowd: 7,353 vs. Boston Red Sox, Monday, March 10
Directions to Tradition Field
From north and south -- Take I-95 to Exit 121 (St. Lucie West Blvd.); go east approximately 1/4 mile and make first left onto NW Peacock Boulevard. The stadium is straight ahead about 300 yards.
Stadium Information
Parking: $5 per car
Stadium built in 1988, renovated in 2003.
Dimensions: 332 feet down left field foul line, 320 feet to right and 401 feet to center.
Seating Capacity: 7,347
Mets 20th Spring Training at this location.
New York Mets Spring Training Location History
1962-87 St. Petersburg (Al Lang Field)
1988-2008 Port St. Lucie (Thomas J. White Stadium/Tradition Field)
Attending a game at Tradition Field
The Mets trained in St. Petersburg from their inception in 1962 until 1987 and shared Al Lang Stadium with the St. Louis Cardinal. With the offer of its own stadium, the Mets moved to Port St. Lucie's Thomas J. White Stadium, now Tradition Field, for the 1988 season.
The stadium was built in the late 1980s, before the amenities of the current day stadium were commonplace. In August, 2003, after negotiating with the Mets, St. Lucie County commissioners approved a 16-year contract for the team to continue spring training in Port St. Lucie complete with an $8.7 million renovation job.
Getting into the facility has always been among the smoothest in Spring Training, and that should be even better with the renovations as elevators will now also be able to take fans to most seating areas. There is a new picnic area this year (where the left field bleachers once stood). Children's activities are expected to on-site during the games. Like the Big Apple, there's a large Jumbo-Tron screen beyond the outfield fence -- one of the biggest in the Grapefruit League. And finally, there is a bigger souvenir store, accessible from outside the ballpark and will not require a game ticket.
When you're ready to grab some grub, you'll be able to enjoy everything from a lemon Italian ice to a Killian's Red brewski. And like in the Big Apple, they know to move quickly so lines are usually short. Even better: three more concession stands have been added with the renovation.
A unique feature of Tradition Field is the St. Lucie Bat House. In the past, bats were a huge problem, so the county hired a bat expert to bat-proof the stadium. To give the bats an alternate place to live -- since, after all, it would have been cruel to bat-proof the stadium and leave hundreds, if not thousands, of bats homeless -- St. Lucie County constructed a bat house 14 feet off the ground with 160 chambers for hanging bats. The county says that between 10,000 and 15,000 bats can live comfortably in the St. Lucie Bat House.
Mets Spring Training Attendance (2000-2008)
| . | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| Total Attendance | 61,366 | 70,726 | 72,701 | 66,660 | 84,739 | 83,822 | 83,061 | 91,933 | 97,929 |
| Number of Games | 13 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 18 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| Average Attendance | 4,720 | 4,715 | 4,847 | 4,761 | 4,708 | 5,588 | 5,191 | 5,723 | 6,121 |
Area Information
St. Lucie County Tourist Development Council, (800) 344-8443 or
www.visitstluciefla.com
Official New York Mets Web
Site