Arizona's Cactus League is “losing spring games to Las Vegas and Tokyo this season, but league officials are confident they can come close to matching last year's record attendance of 1.59 million fans,” according to Peter Corbett of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. The Cactus League, which opened Friday, will have “232 games, weather permitting, through April 4,” and Cactus League Association President Brad Curtis said that ticket sales “have been brisk.” Curtis: "I anticipate another good spring." He added that teams are “reporting double-digit increases in ticket sales.” Attendance at the Cactus League's first five games on Friday and Saturday “averaged 9,215 fans, up from last season's average of 6,848.” The D'Backs-Rockies game at Salt River Fields on Saturday “had a sellout crowd of 12,528.” Curtis said that the league's “economic boost has grown to $350 million based on a 31 percent surge in attendance over the past five years.” D’Backs President & CEO Derrick Hall said that the one-year-old Salt River Fields complex not only has been a "box-office bonanza," but he credits the venue "with improving the team's strength and conditioning.” He said that it has been “a big tool in attracting players.” Corbett notes elsewhere in the Cactus League, the Angels have “attracted their own free-agent superstar” in signing 1B Albert Pujols, who has “created buzz for the Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium.” Curtis said that ticket sales are “up 20 percent for the Angels” (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 3/4).
