Twelve teams set their all-time single season attendance record in 2008, including the Angels at Tempe Diablo Stadium.

The 2008 spring training season was a record-setting one for a dozen teams and both leagues.

Florida's Grapefruit League set a new record with an average attendance of 6,478 fans per game. The league's 259 games attracted a total of 1,677,858 fans. Only eight games were rained out. The Astros, Blue Jays, Indians, Marlins, Mets, Reds and Tigers all set their single season home attendance records.

Arizona's Cactus League established its all-time attendance record, as 1,313,827 fans paid to watch the league's 177 games. That's an average of 7,423 per game. Only one game was rained out. The Angels, Brewers, Rangers, Rockies and Royals all had record-breaking single season home attendance totals.

Combined, the Cactus and Grapefruit Leagues drew 2,991,685 to 436 spring training games, an average of 6,862 per exhibition.

2008 Attendance Rankings

(home games only, ranked by per game average)

Grapefruit League City Average Total 1.  Yankees 2.  Braves 3.  Phillies 4.  Twins 5.  Red Sox 6.  Tigers 7.  Dodgers 8.  Cardinals 9.  Mets 10. Indians 11. Reds 12. Orioles 13. Pirates 14. Rays 15. Blue Jays 16. Astros 17. Marlins 18. Nationals Tampa Orlando Clearwater Fort Myers Fort Myers Lakeland Vero Beach Jupiter Port St. Lucie Winter Haven Sarasota Ft. Lauderdale Bradenton St. Petersburg Dunedin Kissimmee Jupiter Viera 10,713 8,676 8,194 7,808 7,723 7,419 6,604 6,015 5,882 5,826 5,326 5,312 5,198 4,996 4,603 4,068 3,918 3,860 149,978 138,811 114,715 124,934 100,398 126,124  72,642  90,231  99,988  87,383  90,549  74,373  83,169  54,960  64,444  61,027  66,598  54,040

Cactus League City Average Total 1.  Cubs 2.  Giants 3.  Mariners 4.  Diamondbacks 5.  Angels 6.  Rangers 7.  Padres 8.  Royals 9.  A's 10. Brewers 11. White Sox 12. Rockies Mesa Scottsdale Peoria Tucson Tempe Surprise Peoria Surprise Phoenix Phoenix Tucson Tucson 12,075 9,929 8,809 7,391 7,387 6,874 6,791 6,394 6,217 5,818 5,814 4,684 181,119 148,935 132,130 110,858 118,191 103,110  95,070  83,118  74,606  87,271  87,214  74,936 * The Dodgers played two home games at Phoenix Muni, drawing 17,269 fans (8,635 average).

2008 Grapefruit League Standings   W L GB Rays 18  8 - Mets 20 11 ½ Marlins 19 11 1 Cardinals 17 10 1½ Yankees 14 12 4 Reds 17 15 4 Indians 15 14 4½ Tigers 15 14 4½ Twins 15 15 5 Braves 15 15 5 Blue Jays 13 16 6½ Pirates 13 17 7 Astros 13 18 7½ Red Sox  8 13 7½ Nationals 12 18 8 Phillies 12 18 8 Dodgers 11 18 8½ Orioles 10 17 8½

2008 Cactus League Standings   W L GB A's 18  8 - Angels 19 10 ½ Brewers 18 11 1½ Rangers 17 11 2 Rockies 14 12 4 Royals 16 14 4 Cubs 15 15 5 Padres 12 14 6 Mariners 13 16 6½ D-backs 12 18 8 White Sox 11 19 9 Giants  9 23 12

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Graham Knight spent most of spring training in 2009 at a ballpark, compiling the guides written for this Web site. He visited all 26 ballparks, starting in Goodyear on February 25 and finishing in Fort Myers on April 4. If that doesn't make him an expert, then maybe his eight previous trips to either the Cactus or Grapefruit League do.

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