The Ultimate Guide to Spring Training

Plus, a beginner's tour of the Everglades and the best walkable neighborhoods. Plus, a beginner's tour of the Everglades and the best walkable neighborhoods.

In this issue:

Arts & Entertainment

Play Ball!

For Baseball Fans, Spring Training is the Happiest Time of the Year

Take us out to the ball game.

03/04/2020 By Ilene Denton

Inside Story

Inside the Mind of Neurologist and Author Oliver Sacks

A new documentary gets up close and personal.

03/02/2020 By Kay Kipling

Fins and Fun

Writer and Nature Enthusiast Randy Wayne White Targets a Young Audience With His New Adventure Book

White, a longtime fishing guide-turned-writer, debuts his first-ever book aimed at middle-schoolers this month.

03/02/2020 By Kay Kipling

Scouting Report

Eight Players to Watch This Spring Training Season

These players are going places.

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

Play Ball!

CoolToday Park, Florida's Newest Spring Training Facility, Is Generating Plenty of Buzz

The only MLB spring training park in the nation to be open year-round, CoolToday is already hosting public events throughout the year.

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

Play Ball!

Ed Smith Stadium Is the Friendliest Park in Florida's Grapefruit League

It’s a banner year for the Baltimore Orioles as they celebrate 10 years of spring training at the stadium.

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

Play Ball!

LECOM Park Has Plenty of Old-School Charm

“LECOM Park is unique in terms of the history,” says Bradenton Marauders general manager Craig Warzecha. “It really has the perfect blend of old-school baseball charm with modern amenities.”

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

Best of Sarasota

Walk This Way

Sarasota's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

These neighborhoods have charms of their own and amenities that downtown can only dream of.

03/05/2020 By Robert Plunket

Eat & Drink

The Ballpark Food Hall of Fame

What to Eat at Ed Smith Stadium, LECOM Park and CoolToday Park

These days, going to a spring training game means indulging in gourmet cuisine.

03/04/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Hot Buzz

Drink of the Month: El Melvin's Spicy Sweet Mezcal Cocktail

This spicy-sweet cocktail sets the bar at the new El Melvin Cocina Mexicana.

02/28/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Restaurant Review

Avlí Mess Hall Takes a Mix-and-Match Approach to Mediterranean Cuisine

The menu is rooted in Greek cuisine but also takes in influences from Turkey, Syria, Portugal and Italy.

02/28/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Fashion & Shopping

Zoom, Zoom

Amp Up Your Cool Factor With These Hot Car Accessories

From a genius portable coffeemaker to the coolest high-end brake upgrades, these four finds will take your mobile experience to the next level.

03/02/2020 By Megan McDonald

Home & Real Estate

Walk This Way

Southside Village Is the Perfect Sarasota Neighborhood

Homes from various decades exist side by side, and practically all have been spruced up and beautifully landscaped.

03/05/2020 By Robert Plunket

Walk This Way

St. Armands Key Is a Glamorous Place to Live a Resort Lifestyle—With a Showman's Spirit

The restaurants are among the best in town, and the shops specialize in high-end casual clothing, art, home accessories and jewelry.

03/05/2020 By Robert Plunket

Walk This Way

Gillespie Park Is Proof That Walkability Can Turn a Neighborhood Around

Check out the block of brightly colored cottages on Seventh Street between Goodrich and Orange avenues and you’ll see a neighborhood literally coming back to life.

03/05/2020 By Robert Plunket

Walk This Way

Siesta Village Is One of Sarasota's Best-Kept Secrets

The best journey, though, remains the classic stroll down to the beach to watch the sunset. It never fails to stir the soul.

03/05/2020 By Robert Plunket

Only in Sarasota

Only in Sarasota: The Zigzag House

The Sarasota School of Architecture is unofficially nicknamed the “Zigzag House” for its unusual roofline.

02/28/2020 By John Pirman

News & City Life

Sail Away

Charting the Small Sea Adventures of the Sarasota Model Yacht Club

The club has 110 members from their early 30s up to 95, and they practice three days a week at NBP.

03/02/2020 By Sarafina Murphy-Gibson

Growing Up

A Glimpse Into Sarasota's Rich Agricultural History

How our region's soil has shaped our history and present day.

03/02/2020 By Sarafina Murphy-Gibson

Flashback

Flashback: Joseph Janney Steinmetz, the Man Behind the Camera

Few chroniclers of middle-class life in the mid-20th century are as acclaimed as Steinmetz.

03/02/2020 By Ilene Denton

Fielder's Choice

It’s All About the Green for Matt Taylor, CoolToday Park’s Head Groundskeeper

Taylor has been named the best groundskeeper in the Southern League five times.

03/01/2020 By David Hackett

Fan-Tastic

For the Feduccia Family, There’s No Team Like the Orioles

"It’s peace and harmony; the ball park is the one place where everybody gets along."

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

The Booster

Baseball Is a Religion for Pirates Bradenton Booster Club Prez Mike Roteman

The Pirates Bradenton Booster Club is the only one in Major League Baseball that uses an all-volunteer group to serve as ushers, greeters and program hawkers.

03/01/2020 By Ilene Denton

Face Off

Meet the Miccosukee Tribe’s First Female Alligator Wrestler

Looking back on those who doubted that women could wrestle gators, Jessie Cottone just laughs. “We sure as hell can do it,” she says.

02/27/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Travel & Outdoors

Battle for Bromeliads

Weevils Are Destroying Florida's Bromeliads. What Can We Do?

In some places, bromeliad populations are down as much as 90 percent.

03/02/2020 By Dyllan Furness

Fighting Fire With Fire

Florida Is Burning, and That's a Good Thing

Throughout Florida’s history, its ecology has been entangled with fire.

02/28/2020 By Isaac Eger

Wildlife Scavenger Hunt

12 Wild Animals You Might See in the Everglades

Keep your eyes peeled for alligators, crocodiles, otters, deer, birds and more.

02/27/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker

Rising Tide

How Climate Change Threatens the Everglades

According to experts, improving the flow of freshwater through the Everglades presents the best chance of staving off dramatic effects from climate change.

02/27/2020 By Cooper Levey-Baker