The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganization of the minor leagues. The league temporarily operated for the 2021 season as the Low-A Southeast before reassuming its original moniker in 2022.
The Daytona Tortugas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Daytona Beach, Florida, and play their home games at Jackie Robinson Ballpark; opened in 1914, the park seats 4,200 people.
The St. Lucie Mets are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the New York Mets. They are located in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and play their home games at Clover Park. The Mets have been members of the Florida State League since their founding in 1988. They originally competed at the Class A level before being elevated to Class A-Advanced in 1990. Since the 2021 season, the Mets have been a Low Single-A affiliate.
The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex at Hammond Stadium, which has a capacity of 7,500 and opened in 1991. The park is also used as the Minnesota Twins' spring training facility.
Terry Wayne Adams, is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1995 to 2005 for the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Toronto Blue Jays, and Boston Red Sox.
Graig Nettles, nicknamed "Puff", is an American former Major League Baseball third baseman. During a 22-year baseball career, he played for the Minnesota Twins (1967–1969), Cleveland Indians (1970–1972), New York Yankees (1973–1983), San Diego Padres (1984–1986), Atlanta Braves (1987), and Montreal Expos (1988).
LECOM Park is a baseball field located in Bradenton, Florida. It is the spring training home of the Pittsburgh Pirates and is named after a 15-year naming rights deal was signed with the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, which has its main campus in Erie, Pennsylvania, and also a campus in Bradenton. It was formerly known as McKechnie Field, named for Bradenton resident and Baseball Hall of Fame great Bill McKechnie, who led the Pirates in 1925 and the Cincinnati Reds in 1940 to World Series titles. He was also a coach with the Cleveland Indians in 1948.
Frederick Charles Hutchinson was an American professional baseball player, a major league pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, and the manager for three major league teams.
The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the Senior League, was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had eight teams in two divisions and a 72-game schedule. Pitchers Rollie Fingers, Ferguson Jenkins, and Vida Blue, outfielder Dave Kingman, and managers Earl Weaver and Dick Williams were the league's marquee names; and former big league outfielder Curt Flood was the circuit's first Commissioner. At age 54, Ed Rakow was the league's oldest player.
The Fort Myers Sun Sox were one of the eight original franchises that began play in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989. The club was managed by Pat Dobson, while Joe Coleman, Dyar Miller, Jerry Terrell and Tony Torchia served as coaches. The Sun Sox played their home games at Terry Park in Fort Myers.
The St. Lucie Legends was one of the eight original baseball franchises that played in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989. The club played its home games at the then recently inaugurated Thomas J. White Stadium, located in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
The Daytona Beach Explorers was a baseball club that played in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1990. They were a replacement team when the originals Bradenton Explorers relocated to Daytona Beach, Florida, and played its games at the Jackie Robinson Ballpark.
James William Nettles is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played all or part of six seasons in Major League Baseball, between 1970 and 1981, for the Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics. In 1975, he played for the Nankai Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball. Following his playing career, Nettles managed in the minor leagues from 1983 until 1996. He is the younger brother of Graig Nettles.
The Oakland Athletics' 1981 season saw the A's finish with an overall record of 64 wins and 45 losses. They finished the season with the best record in the American League. Due to the infamous 1981 players strike, the league resorted to a split-season format; this new format saw the winners of both halves of the season playing in the first divisional playoff in MLB history. The A's qualified by posting the AL West's best record in the first half of the season. While they swept the Kansas City Royals in the AL West playoff, they were themselves swept by the New York Yankees in the 1981 American League Championship Series.
Sports teams in Florida include many professional, semi-professional, amateur and college teams. In professional sports, Florida has three National Football League teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two National Basketball Association teams, two National Hockey League teams, two Major League Soccer teams, one Women's Soccer team and many minor league teams in various sports. Additionally, since the late 19th century Florida has been a significant spring training destination for Major League Baseball teams and their affiliates.
Daytona Beach Islanders was a name for various minor league baseball teams that have all played in the Florida State League from 1920–1966 and in 1977 and again from 1985–1986. In 1968 through 1973, the team became the Daytona Beach Dodgers, due to their affiliation with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 1977, the team once again took up the Islanders name before becoming the Daytona Beach Astros for the next seven seasons. Then, for the 1985 and 1986 seasons, they were, yet again, known as the Daytona Beach Islanders, playing as a co-op club of the Baltimore Orioles and Texas Rangers for the first of those years and as a full affiliate of the Rangers for the 1986 season. Finally the team became the Daytona Beach Admirals in 1987, before being sold and becoming the St. Lucie Mets.
Richard Eugene Lysander is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He had a four-season career in the majors, spread out over six years.
The U.S. state of Florida has three National Football League teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two National Basketball Association teams, two National Hockey League teams, two Major League Soccer teams and 13 NCAA Division I college teams.
Witter Field is a baseball ballpark located at 521 Lincoln Street in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, United States. It was built in 1928. It served as the home park for multiple minor league teams: the Wisconsin Rapids White Sox, Wisconsin Rapids Senators and Wisconsin Rapids Twins. Currently, it hosts the Northwoods League's Wisconsin Rapids Rafters and youth teams.
The Huntsville Fire was an American professional indoor soccer team based in Huntsville, Alabama. The Fire played in the Eastern Indoor Soccer League during both of the league's seasons from 1997 to 1998. They played their home games in the Von Braun Center. The team began the 1997 season as the Florida-based Daytona Beach Speedkings before financial struggles forced a sale early in the season.
