Big as a grapefruit is an idiom used in Baseball to describe one of the biggest spring training in preparation for the major leagues called Grapefruit League. The spring training has two parts: the Grapefruit and the Cactus League. The only difference between these leagues is the place where the players are coming from. The Cactus League are teams from Arizona while the Grapefruit Leagues are from Florida. The spring training starts in February until the opening of the major league.
How was the Grapefruit League Started?
In 1889, it was the Philadelphia Phillies who thought of joining the major league teams in Florida. While the spring training originally began in 2913, and the first teams to coordinate with each were the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians. After a year, these teams hold the first Grapefruit League. On the other hand, because of the ongoing World War II, many travel restrictions were imposed, making it impossible to meet. Over the years, Florida has been the training ground for the Florida-based teams through 2009, which consisted of almost 15 teams.
Other Training Grounds for Spring Training
Since Arizona and Florida are the hosts of the Major League Baseball events, they built a lot of facilities to prepare for the big event. During World War II, spring teams became limited in facilities and the only thing that can be done for the players is to hold the spring training within their reach. The spring training was held in French Lick, Indiana to be sponsored by the Chicago White Sox and College Park, Maryland by the Washington Senators. After the war, some teams decided to pursue spring training in other countries, such as Cuba, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.
The Advantages of Joining the Grapefruit Training
Spring training is used as a training ground and preparation for the teams to get into Major League Baseball. When they join in, their physical and mental preparation for the game will be ready. Without any preparation, the team is bound to lose the game and it would be difficult to recover by the following year.
