Braves, Red Sox, Rays and Twins preparing for 2020 spring training to begin

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Boston Red Sox pitcher Travis Lakins prepares to pitch as the pitching clock winds down during a spring training baseball game against the New York Yankees in Fort Myers, Fla., Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Boston Red Sox pitcher Travis Lakins prepares to pitch as the pitching clock winds down during a spring training baseball game against the New York Yankees in Fort Myers, Fla., Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Spring training baseball kicks off in Southwest Florida on Wednesday when pitchers and catchers report for the Braves, Twins, and Red Sox and Rays.

RED SOX

One Southwest Florida resident, Dareen Arsenault, who has been with the Red Sox for 26 years says she is ecstatic the season is finally back.

“People come in and they’re so happy to see familiar faces whether it’s myself or any of my girls behind the counter, they feel like they know you even though they’re only here a few weeks of the season,” Arsenault said.

The Boston Red Sox begin spring training on Feb. 22 when they play the Tampa Bay Rays at Jetblue Park. You can find a full spring training schedule for the Red Sox here.

ATLANTA BRAVES

The Braves will begin their spring training at a new state-of-the-art sports complex in North Port called CoolToday park that just opened in 2019.

The Atlanta Braves kick off spring training on Feb. 22. against the Baltimore Orioles in CoolToday park. You can find a full schedule of the spring training games here.

MINNESOTA TWINS

Pitchers and catchers reported to Hammond Stadium for the first day of workouts. This year the Twins are welcoming new faces including right-hander Kenta Maeda and former American League MVP Josh Donaldson.

Long time Twins fans say when the team comes to Florida it’s sort of a main event around here.

“You walk through the parking lots out here and you see a lot of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Iowa license plates… we flood down here to follow our twins,” said Twins fan Mark Langemo.

The Minnesota Twins begin spring training on Feb. 22 as well when they face the Pittsburgh Pirates in Bradenton Fl, at LECOM Park. You can find a full spring training schedule for the Twins here.

TAMPA BAY RAYS

The Rays begin the season with back to back games against the Boston Red Sox. One game will be at the Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte and the second being at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers.

You can find the full spring training schedule for the Tampa Bay Rays here. They begin their season on Feb. 22.

Spring training is a big moneymaker for the Southwest Florida area, bringing in millions of dollars a year.

“This is a time where a lot of the inland hotels make all of their money for the year when we’re talking about spring training baseball it will bring about $70 million into our community from the outside,” said Lee County Commissioner, Brian Hamman.

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