Charlie Crist and the Hot Stove League

At the 2010 Baseball Winter Meetings in Lake Buena Vista on Monday, Gov. Charlie Crist, who was an attorney for Minor League Baseball, praised the sports role in Florida life.

I thank Minor League Baseball and Major League Baseball for choosing our state as the location for the annual tradition of the winter meetings, said Crist. Professional baseball means nearly $1 billion annually to Floridas economy, and this event puts a nice ending to a year that saw the economic outlook brighten.

Besides the Tampa Bay Rays and the Florida Marlins, there are 28 minor league teams in the state. Besides the Rays and Marlins, 13 other major league teams hold spring training in Florida. Spring training brings more than $750 million into the Sunshine State and employs 9.200 Floridians on a full- or part-time basis.