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.
Polk County is located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. The county population was 725,046, as of the 2020 census, and estimated to be 787,404, as of July 1, 2022. Its county seat is Bartow, and its largest city is Lakeland.
Bartow is the county seat of Polk County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1851 as Fort Blount, the city was renamed in honor of Francis S. Bartow, the first brigade commander of the Confederate Army to die in combat during the American Civil War. It is part of the Lakeland−Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 787,404, as of July 1, 2022. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 19,309.
Davenport is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. While the city of Davenport itself is very small, the area north of the city close to Interstate 4 and US 27 is experiencing explosive growth. It is part of the Lakeland–Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 9,043 at the 2020 census.
Lakeland is a city in Central Florida. Located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa and west of Orlando, it is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,641. Lakeland is a principal city of the Lakeland–Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is sometimes locally referred to by the nickname "Swan City" due to its sizeable population of swans, all of whom are descendants of two mute swans gifted to Lakeland by Queen Elizabeth II in 1957.
Winter Haven is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Neighboring Lakeland to its east, Winter Haven is located about 51 miles east of Tampa and about 47 miles southwest of Orlando. The city's population was 49,219 at the 2020 census, making it the second most populated city in Polk County after Lakeland. It is a principal city of the Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Chain of Lakes Park is a baseball field in Winter Haven, Florida. The stadium was built in 1966 and holds 7,000 people. It was the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox from 1966 to 1992, after which the Red Sox moved operations to City of Palms Park in Fort Myers.
Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium is a baseball field in Lakeland, Florida. The 8,500-seat stadium was opened in 1966 and has had multiple renovations, most recently in 2017. It was named after local resident and former Lakeland Parks and Recreation Director Marcus "Joker" Marchant. It is the spring training home of the Detroit Tigers and the regular-season home of the minor league affiliates Lakeland Flying Tigers and Gulf Coast Tigers.
BayCare Ballpark is a baseball stadium located in Clearwater, Florida. The stadium was built in 2004 and has a maximum seating capacity of 8,500 people.
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.
Southeastern University is a private Christian university in Lakeland, Florida. It was established in 1935 in New Brockton, Alabama, as Southeastern Bible Institute, relocated to Lakeland in 1946, and became a liberal arts college in 1970. It is the largest Assemblies of God educational institution in the United States.
Winter Haven High School is a four-year public high school located in Winter Haven, Florida, a city of 27,855.
Jack Russell Memorial Stadium is a baseball field in Clearwater, Florida. It opened as Jack Russell Stadium in 1955. It was the spring training home of the Philadelphia Phillies Major League Baseball team from 1955 through 2003. Since 2017, it has been home to the Clearwater High School and St. Petersburg College baseball teams.
Henley Field is a historic site in Lakeland, Florida. Built in 1922, it is located at 1125 North Florida Avenue. Clare Henley, for whom the park was named in 1942, encouraged its construction in an effort to persuade a professional baseball team to train there. On May 23, 1997, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Henley Field is located adjacent to Bryant Stadium, a football stadium.
Clearwater Athletic Field was a stadium in Clearwater, Florida. It was first used by professional baseball teams for spring training in 1923 and was the Phillies' first spring training ballpark in Clearwater. The grandstand sat approximately 2,000 and bleachers increased capacity to close to 3,000. Home plate was located on Pennsylvania Avenue, which ran south to north along the third base line, near Seminole Street. Left field ran parallel to Palmetto Street, and right field ran parallel to Greenwood Ave. The grandstand was destroyed by fire in April 1956.
Flamingo Field is a ballpark at the corner of 15th Street and Michigan Avenue in Miami Beach, Florida, home to Miami Beach minor-league clubs and the spring training home of the New York Giants in 1934 and 1935, the Philadelphia Phillies from 1940 to 1942, and again in 1946, and the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1947. Capacity was approximately 3,000 for baseball. The center field fence was 386 feet from homeplate. The park was also referred to as "Flamingo Park", which is also the name of the area in which it was located.
Lodwick Field is a former airport located 2.1 miles (3.4 km) north-northeast of Lakeland, Florida. It was closed about 1960, with all flight operations being moved to the larger Lakeland Linder International Airport.
Cooke Field was a stadium located in Leesburg, Florida, used primarily for baseball and football. The stadium was named after R.F.E. Cooke, a local banker, and had been the site of local baseball games.
Fleming Field was the first on-campus home for the football and baseball teams representing the University of Florida in Gainesville. Construction began in 1910, and the facility debuted as the home field for Florida Gators outdoor sports programs during the spring semester of the 1910-1911 academic year.
