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Florida Spring Training: Your Guide To Touring The Grapefruit League |
A big orange dome. That’s the thing I think of when I think of Chain of Lakes Park. It’s the one thing that has remained constant in all my years of coming to this stadium, and I’ve been coming since I was a kid. Every time I drive into the parking lot, the first thing I see is that big orange dome sitting next to the entrance. And it’s not even part of the ballpark. It’s on a nearby building. The dome strikes me as a symbol of this quirky old Winter Haven stadium. Over the years, Chain of Lakes Park has been added on to, moved around, and improved. Yet there’s still only one entrance to the main stadium and one to the outfield bleachers. There’s barely enough room to walk down the center aisle. The concession stands are in strange places and the bathrooms are round and have no doors. And while the Cleveland Indians call the stadium home, the New England retirees, who moved nearby when the Red Sox called Winter Haven home, outnumber those from Ohio. They have only reluctantly adopted the Indians, even though the tribe has been in town for more than 10 years. In many ways, Chain of Lakes Park is what Spring Training should be like, even though it has taken away many of the fan benefits. For instance, you want an autograph? This is one of the worst stadiums for autograph seekers. For some reason, the city planners built the right field bleachers about 10 feet off the ground. Well, most likely the reason was to discourage fans from asking for autographs as players walk back to the clubhouse. Still, even though Chain of Lakes Park has adopted the no-autographs stance of many of the newer stadiums, you can tell this park is from a different era. It’s intimate and the layout is just plain quirky. For instance, it’s one of only a couple of parks in the Grapefruit League that has no main concourse. When you walk in to the main entrance, you’ll be forced to make a decision. Go straight ahead to the bleachers, go left to the picnic area, or go right to the box seats. Or stop in the middle of the walkway first and get a Dairy Queen ice cream cone before heading to your seat. This option, of course, creates a major bottleneck. So give yourself plenty of time to get seated. Didn't find what you were looking for? Try a Google search.
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