cronkitenews@asu.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\nTUCSON \u2013 When Bill Veeck was planning to sign Larry Doby, the American League’s first Black player, to integrate his Cleveland baseball team in 1947, the club was still training in Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To escape the harsh racism of the South, Veeck moved his team\u2019s spring training operation to Tucson. And with that move, Veeck helped launch what is now the Cactus League.<\/p>\n
While all of MLB\u2019s teams that call Arizona their spring training home have since migrated north to the Valley, Veeck is credited as the founding father of the Cactus League. He convinced the New York Giants to move to Phoenix the same year, beginning a spring training tradition in Arizona that continues today.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarch is historically a busy time in Tucson,\u201d said Anthony Gimino, Pima County\u2019s communications coordinator and a longtime Arizona sportswriter. \u201cSpring training was part of the fabric of Tucson for so many years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cleveland and the New York Giants made history by playing the first official Cactus League game on March 8, 1947, when the Giants beat Cleveland 3-1 at Tucson\u2019s Randolph Park.<\/p>\n
The Cubs became the third Cactus League team in 1952, playing at Rendezvous Park in Mesa.<\/p>\n
In 1951, the Yankees and the Giants swapped spring training facilities for one year, bringing legends Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle to Arizona. The Giants played their games at the original Phoenix Municipal Stadium located near what is now downtown from 1947 to 1963, then moved to the new Phoenix Municipal Stadium when it opened 62 years ago in 1964 and continued playing there until 1981.<\/p>\n
In the early days, spring training operations were far simpler.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the concourse behind the press box, there is a little stone building,\u201d James Vujs, director of Phoenix Municipal Stadium said. \u201cThis was the original building. It was ticketing, it was operations, it was maintenance. And that’s all you needed 62 years ago to run spring training. If you look at the building, you can see the original ticket windows are still there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following Veeck\u2019s move to Tucson, a steady stream of major league teams established spring training homes in Arizona, marking the rapid expansion of the Cactus League.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cleveland Indians \u2014 1947
New York Giants \u2014 1947
Chicago Cubs \u2014 1952\u00a0
Oakland Athletics \u2014 1969
Milwaukee Brewers \u2014 1971
Seattle Mariners \u2014 1977
San Diego Padres \u2014 1969
Los Angeles Angels \u2014 1993
Colorado Rockies \u2014 1993
Arizona Diamondbacks \u2014 1998
Chicago White Sox \u2014 1998 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0
Kansas City Royals \u2014 2003
Texas Rangers \u2014 2003
Los Angeles Dodgers \u2014 2009<\/p>\n
In February of 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks moved into the newly opened Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium which at the time was called Tucson Electric Park.<\/p>\n
Over time, as new teams joined the Cactus League, not only the way that the facilities operated changed, but where teams played became a big factor as teams began to centralize in the Phoenix area, leaving Tucson.<\/p>\n
However, the Baltimore Orioles once trained and played games in Yuma, and the San Diego Padres headquartered there from 1969-93. The Giants played in Phoenix, but their headquarters was at Francisco Grande in Casa Grande for 20 springs. Inevitably, players grew tired of traveling so far, and the camps became more centralized.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can tell over the years as major league players grew bigger salaries and grew more important and had more say, you knew those superstars hated that bus ride down to Tucson,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cIt doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, but they just didn’t like hopping on that bus two hours each way.\u201d<\/p>\n
On March 31, 1992, the team that paved the way for the Cactus League played its final game, defeating the Chicago Cubs 8-2. Cleveland returned to Florida for 1993 spring training, playing at Chains of Lakes Park in Winter Haven.<\/p>\n
By 2007, the Rockies, Diamondbacks and White Sox were the only teams to train in Tucson as an inevitable exit to the Valley loomed over their heads.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was just so much history that I guess maybe you have to be of a certain age,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cBut to think that one time Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Satchel Paige, Bob Feller, all the parade of Hall of Famers that came through here in the 50s, 60s and even through the 90s.\u201d<\/p>\n
On March 27, 2008, the White Sox played their final game in Tucson, losing to the Diamondbacks 8-4 in front of more than 7,000 fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe agreement had been settled, in 2008 I think we knew the White Sox wanted to leave, and then the Diamondbacks and Rockies. The writing was on the wall,\u201d Gimino said.<\/p>\n
The Diamondbacks and the Rockies played the final spring training game on March 31, 2010, at Hi Corbett Field, ending a run that spanned more than six decades.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s something Tucson residents seem to miss,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cSome of the older timers in town seem to miss that spring training atmosphere.\u201d<\/p>\n
By 2012, all 15 Cactus League teams had centralized to the Valley, leaving behind the place where the Cactus League was born.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the memories remain.\u201cI don’t think spring training is what it is today, without Tucson at the table very early on, being a welcoming party, and being open-minded to how that’s going to transition to the greater good,\u201d Blake Eager, executive director of Southern Arizona Sports, Tourism, & Film Authority said. \u201cI don’t think the Cactus League and the Grapefruit League exist without Tucson.\u201d<\/p>\n
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org\/2026\/03\/31\/arizona-spring-training-roots-tucson\/”>article<\/a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org”>Cronkite News<\/a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<img src=”https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/favicon1.png?resize=85%2C85&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”><\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tArizona\u2019s spring training roots began in Tucson, shifted to Valley<\/p>\n
Austin Gibbs, Cronkite News
\nMarch 31, 2026<\/p>\n
Cronkite News offers an audio version of this story using an automated voice created by AI. Errors in pronunciation, pacing and intonation may occur. If you notice an error please contact cronkitenews@asu.edu.TUCSON \u2013 When Bill Veeck was planning to sign Larry Doby, the American League’s first Black player, to integrate his Cleveland baseball team in 1947, the club was still training in Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To escape the harsh racism of the South, Veeck moved his team\u2019s spring training operation to Tucson. And with that move, Veeck helped launch what is now the Cactus League.<\/p>\n
While all of MLB\u2019s teams that call Arizona their spring training home have since migrated north to the Valley, Veeck is credited as the founding father of the Cactus League. He convinced the New York Giants to move to Phoenix the same year, beginning a spring training tradition in Arizona that continues today.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarch is historically a busy time in Tucson,\u201d said Anthony Gimino, Pima County\u2019s communications coordinator and a longtime Arizona sportswriter. \u201cSpring training was part of the fabric of Tucson for so many years.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cleveland and the New York Giants made history by playing the first official Cactus League game on March 8, 1947, when the Giants beat Cleveland 3-1 at Tucson\u2019s Randolph Park.<\/p>\n
The Cubs became the third Cactus League team in 1952, playing at Rendezvous Park in Mesa.<\/p>\n
In 1951, the Yankees and the Giants swapped spring training facilities for one year, bringing legends Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle to Arizona. The Giants played their games at the original Phoenix Municipal Stadium located near what is now downtown from 1947 to 1963, then moved to the new Phoenix Municipal Stadium when it opened 62 years ago in 1964 and continued playing there until 1981.<\/p>\n
In the early days, spring training operations were far simpler.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the concourse behind the press box, there is a little stone building,\u201d James Vujs, director of Phoenix Municipal Stadium said. \u201cThis was the original building. It was ticketing, it was operations, it was maintenance. And that’s all you needed 62 years ago to run spring training. If you look at the building, you can see the original ticket windows are still there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following Veeck\u2019s move to Tucson, a steady stream of major league teams established spring training homes in Arizona, marking the rapid expansion of the Cactus League.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cleveland Indians \u2014 1947
\nNew York Giants \u2014 1947
\nChicago Cubs \u2014 1952\u00a0
\nOakland Athletics \u2014 1969
\nMilwaukee Brewers \u2014 1971
\nSeattle Mariners \u2014 1977
\nSan Diego Padres \u2014 1969
\nLos Angeles Angels \u2014 1993
\nColorado Rockies \u2014 1993
\nArizona Diamondbacks \u2014 1998
\nChicago White Sox \u2014 1998 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0
\nKansas City Royals \u2014 2003
\nTexas Rangers \u2014 2003
\nLos Angeles Dodgers \u2014 2009<\/p>\n
In February of 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks moved into the newly opened Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium which at the time was called Tucson Electric Park.<\/p>\n
Over time, as new teams joined the Cactus League, not only the way that the facilities operated changed, but where teams played became a big factor as teams began to centralize in the Phoenix area, leaving Tucson.<\/p>\n
However, the Baltimore Orioles once trained and played games in Yuma, and the San Diego Padres headquartered there from 1969-93. The Giants played in Phoenix, but their headquarters was at Francisco Grande in Casa Grande for 20 springs. Inevitably, players grew tired of traveling so far, and the camps became more centralized.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can tell over the years as major league players grew bigger salaries and grew more important and had more say, you knew those superstars hated that bus ride down to Tucson,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cIt doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, but they just didn’t like hopping on that bus two hours each way.\u201d<\/p>\n
On March 31, 1992, the team that paved the way for the Cactus League played its final game, defeating the Chicago Cubs 8-2. Cleveland returned to Florida for 1993 spring training, playing at Chains of Lakes Park in Winter Haven.<\/p>\n
By 2007, the Rockies, Diamondbacks and White Sox were the only teams to train in Tucson as an inevitable exit to the Valley loomed over their heads.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was just so much history that I guess maybe you have to be of a certain age,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cBut to think that one time Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Satchel Paige, Bob Feller, all the parade of Hall of Famers that came through here in the 50s, 60s and even through the 90s.\u201d<\/p>\n
On March 27, 2008, the White Sox played their final game in Tucson, losing to the Diamondbacks 8-4 in front of more than 7,000 fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe agreement had been settled, in 2008 I think we knew the White Sox wanted to leave, and then the Diamondbacks and Rockies. The writing was on the wall,\u201d Gimino said.<\/p>\n
The Diamondbacks and the Rockies played the final spring training game on March 31, 2010, at Hi Corbett Field, ending a run that spanned more than six decades.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s something Tucson residents seem to miss,\u201d Gimino said. \u201cSome of the older timers in town seem to miss that spring training atmosphere.\u201d<\/p>\n
By 2012, all 15 Cactus League teams had centralized to the Valley, leaving behind the place where the Cactus League was born.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the memories remain.\u201cI don’t think spring training is what it is today, without Tucson at the table very early on, being a welcoming party, and being open-minded to how that’s going to transition to the greater good,\u201d Blake Eager, executive director of Southern Arizona Sports, Tourism, & Film Authority said. \u201cI don’t think the Cactus League and the Grapefruit League exist without Tucson.\u201d<\/p>\n
This article first appeared on Cronkite News and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.<\/p>\n
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