If you go down a week earlier, which I am, you can see a Braves game every day of the week without having to drive further than an hour.

I’m heading down March 25 to the 28, the week after, so i can catch ST and ESPN the weekend. I did this last year and, of course the Braves ST was very impressive and something every fan should attend. But for a sports fan in general, ESPN the weekend was pretty cool, too. Plus, last year, i got to see BMac, Frenchy and Lowe at the weekend, and it was pretty nice to see them outside of their normal baseball elements.

We were looking at that, however we thought driving around and checking out the different ST sites could be fun in its own right. We’re still undecided though.

First of all, congrats. As a baseball fan, Spring Training is as good as it gets. It’s not as cool as it was in the good old days, in fact every year I go down there’s a new fence or two at the various stadiums, put up in a never-ending attempt to keep the players as removed from the fans as possible, but it’s still better than you could ever get during the season.

Anybody can go down and just attend the games, so I won’t focus on that. Instead, I’ll focus on things from an autograph perspective. I’ve been going for the last 11 years and my main focus is to get autographs (it’s just nice that that activity happens to coincide with getting to meet and interact with the players from my favorite team) but even if you’re not going to try and get any autographs these things will help you if you just want to get to meet some of the players or get close to take some autographs.

Major League Side

When There’s a Game at Disney

Going inside the Major League park to get autographs on a game day is about as worthwhile as going to Turner Field to get autographs. You’ll probably not get any and if you do it’s not going to be anyone special. The place is just not set up well for it. But, if you show up early, you can catch some of the players coming into the park. I’ve never been sure what time the place opens, but aim for 7am. You enter the complex on the 3rd base side of the Major League stadium; if you hang a left around where home plate is and follow a path that takes you down what would be the first base side, you’ll come to a set of stairs. Go down the stairs and head straight, toward the fields in front of you. When you come to the fields, hang another left, there is a high wall that ends here so you’ll see where to go. You’ll be heading toward the Minor League fields, right for the home plate of one. By that field there is a fence which is keeping you from a little street that sits on the backside of right and center field of the Major League stadium. This is where you want to be. The players will walk from the parking lot, on the right, to the clubhouse, on the left, past this fence. If you’re polite, they might come over. Not everyone comes by there, some guys drive, and some guys just won’t sign, but this is a good place to be.

If you’re going to the Major League game, you can hang out there until they’re going to let you into the game, which I think is 11:30 or 12 for a 1 o’clock game. Another option is to either stay out there or leave the game early (when the starters start to be taken out for bench players) because the guys will leave here too. Some players prefer to sign on their way out of the stadium. Another good aspect of this spot is that pretty much every Minor League player enters and exits the complex by walking down this road past this fence, so you can pretty easily meet them and ask for their autograph. If you’re polite, most guys won’t even mind that you don’t know their name.

Another nice aspect is that the field you’re standing by is the one that the pitchers use for their fielding practice, and sometimes for their batting practice. If you’re lucky, you’ll get some of the pitchers to stop, usually after they do their work. I got Tommy Hanson and Ken Kawakami (among others) this way this past year.

When There Isn’t a Game at Disney

It’s fun to see the team play, but when they’re on the road it’s a great time to get autographs from the guys who stay. Remember, a lot of star players stay; this year I got autographs from Derek Lowe and Tom Glavine one of the days the team was on the road.

Setting yourself up at that same back fence is a good option, because it’s still a way that guys go in, but there’s a more direct route that a lot of players take, especially on a day where there’s no game. When there isn’t a game, you can actually go into the Major League stadium; if you go out to the left field grassy area and go all the way until it ends at a waist high fence out in center field, you’ll see a little gravel walkway between the fence and some batting cages. Most players will enter this way and because they’re so close, and there usually aren’t that many people, most everyone will sign. This is one of my favorites because it’s just so easy.

The players who stay will come out and take batting practice, so you can either go down by the dugout and try to get some autographs or stay back by the batting cages for a little bit because many players, usually pitchers, will come back there to hit (this is where I got Lowe and Glavine). And, when everyone there is done, you can catch them all leaving in the same place. If you’re a diehard you can wait around the complex until the rest of the players come back from the road, but I’ve never personally been that committed.

Off Day

Surprisingly, an off day is one of the best days to get autographs. When the team isn’t scheduled to play another Major League team, they typically play a scrimmage against themselves. The rules are just like an away day, the stadium is open, you can catch guys coming in at center field and then go down by the dugout and try to get some autographs there. Typically there aren’t a lot of people so the autographs flow pretty easily.

Catching the Team on the Road

If you are really into watching the Major League team play games then you’re going to want to see them on the road. There are plenty of good parks relatively close. I like the Pirates’ place in Bradenton. It’s good for autographs. The road team is on the 3rd base side, you can catch guys coming off the bus and there’s a lot of space inside to ask guys. The Tigers’ place in Lakeland is really outstanding if you can get yourself in the little corner to the homeplate side of the dugout (3rd base). You have to be fast and nimble, but if you get it you will get a ton of autographs. I got Chipper and Heap last time I was there and amazed my fellow collectors because every Minor League guy with the team made a point of coming over and saying hi to me. The Nats’ place in Melbourne is good too, plenty of room down the line (3rd base) and you can catch them getting on and off the bus. Jupiter, which has both the Marlins and the Cardinals, is nice too. The bus pulls up just behind the left field fence and while you can’t get right up to it, you’re close enough that you can holler at some guys, and when starters come out they usually come out there and sign. Inside is good, especially since during the game you can stand behind the bullpen (3rd base side) and guys will sign autographs between innings. And if you happen to want the Marlins autographs it’s the best set up ever; the entire organization walks right by one spot, you can get anyone (except Hermida, but he’s made of douche, and plays for the Red Sox now).

My favorite place to see the Braves (or anyone) on the road though is right down the road from the Braves’ complex, the Astros’ place in Kissimmee. It’s an outstanding setup; they put up a fence (I told you) so you can’t get near the bus anymore, but inside there’s a huge open walking area right down the first base line that makes it easy to grab a spot by the wall. The players come out of the clubhouse, which is in foul territory behind the right field fence, and they have to pass right by the wall. It’s incredibly easy for autographs; there’s a little cutout area just before the door to the field that a lot of guys will go to and sign. There have been a few days where I literally got an autograph from every player on a road team in Kissimmee. And, because you’re so close you really get to see the guys; the bullpen is right by the wall, so you can stand about four feet from the catcher and feel just how fast the fastballs are.

If you want to know about getting autographs from the home team at any of these places just ask.

Minor League Side

Alright, remember the first place I told you about? The fence by the field where the Major League guys come in? Well, that’s still a good place to catch the Minor League guys coming in, but most people don’t recognize the Minor League guys to ask them. Plus, there are a bunch of fences that take out the accessibility that the Minor League side should have. If, on your way back there, you stop at the bottom of those steps and look to your right, you’ll see the entrance to the Minor League clubhouse. If you hang out between here and the driveway (you’ll know it cause there will be a ton of cars driving through), every Minor Leaguer will walk right by you (no fences!). The guys are usually genuinely happy that somebody is taking the time to talk to them, so they don’t mind if you stop them, ask for their autograph, or even their name. All these same guys will walk by you again, on their way out of the clubhouse and toward the fields; then they’ll be in full uniform so you won’t even have to ask their name, and you can get a bunch of great pictures of guys in their uniforms (blue is position players, red is pitchers). If you wait a little further up, by that driveway, you can catch the Minor League coaches too. They show up earlier so you almost never catch them going in. We have some solid former Major Leaguers coaching, like Leon Roberts and Jose Tartabull.

Again, try to aim for 7am. You’ll probably feel like you’re there too early, but once 150 players start pouring in you’ll forget all about it. They usually have a workout starting at 9:30 or 10 and lasting until either 11 or 12. If you walk back toward the fields, like you were going to the first waiting area I was talking about, and hang a right, so that you’re walking down the first base side of that first field, then hang a left when you get to the end of that fence, you’ll be in the middle of the four main Minor League fields.

This is a good chance to go out and watch guys run drills, take batting practice, and watch pitchers throw bullpens. There are very few places you can’t go and they’re clearly marked. Don’t go there, it ruins it for everyone. There are several bullpens that are very close that are fun to watch and if you walk further down the middle path, past the second set of fields, there is a huge batting cage to your left. You can stand on the outside and look in, standing right with the hitters waiting for their turn.

After the first few days of Minor League Spring Training, which typically starts about the 7th of March, the teams will be playing games every day at 1. They’ll begin by having scrimmages against each other, with the AAA team playing the AA team and the two A ball teams playing each other. These are great because the guys love competing against their teammates. Later on, usually after the 15th or so, they will begin playing against other organizations, almost always the Astros, Tigers, and Nationals. Half of the Minor Leaguers will stay in Orlando while the other half will go on the road to play the other team. For example, the AAA and AA teams stay in Orlando to play the Tigers AAA and AA teams while the Braves A ball teams go to Lakeland to play the Tigers A ball teams. These are great too because you get to see some prospects from other teams. It is a little bit of a pain when the other team is too cheap to put names on their jerseys, but if a guy is playing well just go up to their dugout and ask somebody who he is.

It really is worth spending a full day on the Minor League side, not just a morning. Everyone you see on the Major League side was on the Minor League side at one point and it’s great to be able to say you saw them when they were on the way up.

I feel like I’ve forgotten something, but if I have I’ll post it later. And, of course, if you have any questions just ask.