SPORTS
“Their time at Tradition Field has been
a catalyst for development in St. Lucie
West and helped keep a light shined not
only on Port St. Lucie as Florida’s ninth
largest city, but also the Treasure Coast.
” —Howard Tipton, St. Lucie County Administrator
these March numbers,” Bireley says. “And the amount of
exposure that Port St. Lucie and the county receive is immeasurable.
The largest market for Florida tourism is New York
so hosting the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie is a win-win
for us.”
Price increases this year didn’t keep people away from the
ticket box, which opened Jan. 16. One week before opening
day, the lower seats were selling out with tickets to home
games against the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox and
New York Yankees all but gone. “Ticket sales are going
extremely well,” Paul Taglieri, director of Florida operations
for the Mets, says. “Above average crowds of 7-800 people, a
combination of people from New York and New Jersey and
locals, having been coming out for practices.”
“At the end of the day our community — which thanks
to the marketing General Development Corporation did in
selling Port St. Lucie to the New York/New Jersey marketplace
— has a natural tie to the Mets,” Tipton says. “It’s not a
forced marriage or one of convenience. It actually works for
everyone and that’s one for the win column.” E
Matt den Dekker, a Florida native, is another Met who won’t be playing
with the team this spring. The center fielder was traded to the Washington
Nationals shortly before the season began last year.
Port St. Lucie Magazine 25
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