MLB's Grapefruit League teams averaged 1.62 million fans for Spring Training games in Florida this year, marking an all-time high and surpassing the 1.5 million mark for the 11th time since '00. The Red Sox new JetBlue Park in Ft. Myers drew 151,417 fans for an average of 9,464 per game. From '04-11, the club averaged 7,800 per game at City of Palms Park. The Yankees were once again the overall top draw with 162,832 fans for an average of 10,855 per game. The club has led the Grapefruit League in attendance each year since opening George Steinbrenner Field in '96. The Marlins' 80% jump in attendance includes two exhibitions against the Yankees held at the new Marlins Park. In Arizona, the Cactus League hit a new attendance record of 1.71 million fans, lead by the D'Backs for the second season in a row. The Cubs saw a slight increase, but have averaged just over 9,300 over game over the past four seasons, down 19% over the previous four springs. The Angels led all Cactus League teams with a 47% year-over-year jump at the gate.
| '12 GRAPEFRUIT LEAGUE ATTENDANCE |
| TEAM | GMS | TOTAL | AVG. | % +/- |
| Yankees | 15 | 162,832 | 10,855 | -0.2% |
| Phillies | 16 | 153,493 | 9,593 | 0.1% |
| Red Sox | 16 | 151,417 | 9,464 | 25.6% |
| Tigers | 17 | 134,899 | 7,935 | 12.9% |
| Marlins | 16 | 126,961 | 7,935 | 80.2% |
| Braves | 17 | 127,321 | 7,489 | -7.2% |
| Twins | 16 | 117,506 | 7,344 | -12.0% |
| Orioles | 15 | 106,398 | 7,093 | -1.7% |
| Cardinals | 13 | 85,857 | 6,604 | 6.9% |
| Rays | 16 | 87,916 | 5,495 | -14.0% |
| Pirates | 15 | 82,390 | 5,493 | -0.1% |
| Mets | 15 | 80,377 | 5,358 | -1.9% |
| Nationals | 15 | 73,206 | 4,880 | 12.8% |
| Blue Jays | 16 | 76,008 | 4,751 | 4.5% |
| Astros | 14 | 56,379 | 4,027 | 4.7% |
| TOTALS | 233 | 1,622,957 | 6,965 | 5.5% |
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| '12 CACTUS LEAGUE ATTENDANCE |
| TEAM | GMS | TOTAL | AVG. | % +/- |
| D'Backs | 16 | 186,828 | 11,677 | 4.6% |
| Giants | 16 | 168,320 | 10,520 | 4.8% |
| Rockies | 18 | 182,565 | 10,143 | -1.2% |
| Cubs | 16 | 153,281 | 9,580 | 1.5% |
| Angels | 15 | 130,126 | 8,675 | 47.0% |
| Dodgers | 15 | 121,769 | 8,118 | 10.2% |
| Mariners | 13 | 102,687 | 7,899 | 4.5% |
| Rangers | 14 | 104,440 | 7,460 | 8.1% |
| White Sox | 17 | 109,092 | 6,417 | 0.3% |
| A’s | 10 | 57,981 | 5,798 | 15.7% |
| Brewers | 16 | 89,176 | 5,574 | 17.8% |
| Padres | 17 | 92,828 | 5,460 | 8.4% |
| Royals | 15 | 76,245 | 5,083 | 4.6% |
| Indians | 16 | 74,832 | 4,677 | 25.0% |
| Reds | 16 | 61,872 | 3,867 | 2.0% |
| TOTALS | 230 | 1,712,042 | 7,444 | 8.7% |
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GET YOUR TICKET! The March 21 Brewers-D'Backs game at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick was the most-searched Spring Training game on StubHub.com from January through March. Three Yankees games ranked in the top 10, while the Red Sox had two games. Seven of the 10 most sought-after spring training tickets this year involved Grapefruit League teams.
| MOST-SEARCHED MLB SPRING TRAINING GAMES
ON STUBHUB FROM JANUARY-MARCH |
| RK | MATCHUP | DATE | PAGE VIEWS ON STUBHUB |
| 1 | Brewers-D'Backs | 3/21 | 61,673 |
| 2 | Yankees-Phillies | 3/3 | 59,508 |
| 3 | Phillies-Yankees | 3/4 | 53,749 |
| 4 | Twins-Red Sox | 3/16 | 50,913 |
| 5 | Red Sox-Yankees | 3/13 | 33,524 |
| 6 | Reds-Giants | 3/9 | 31,695 |
| 7 | A’s-Giants | 3/17 | 29,301 |
| 8 | Yankees-Red Sox | 3/22 | 26,998 |
| 9 | Astros-Yankees | 3/17 | 26,751 |
| 10 | Blue Jays-Phillies | 3/17 | 17,615 |
