The Wandering Disciple

Port Charlotte, Florida: With the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the Minnesota Twins in Charlotte Sports Park, the minor league affiliates of the Rays and the Boston Red Sox were battling it out on the back fields of the complex. The Charlotte Stone Crabs and Salem Red Sox were facing each other in an exhibition contest. As with other minor league training games, no official stats were recorded and below is a collections of images from the game. For photos from the game, visit my Stone Crabs/Red Sox photo gallery.

Salem, Virginia: The Salem Red Sox are the Class-A Advanced affiliates of the Boston Red Sox. The Salem Sox play in the South Division of the Carolina League. Minor league baseball has been a part of Salem history since 1957. Salem Red Sox franchise did not develop until the 2009 season when the player development contract with the Houston Astros expired following the 2008 season. Fenway Sports Group took over the club and a Boston Red Sox player development contract was quick to follow. The Red Sox play their home games in Lewis-Gale Field at Salem Memorial Ballpark. They play a 140 game schedule with 70 games played at home. The Salem Red Sox won the division title in their first season in 2009 but fell short in the league finals. For photos of the club during spring training in Florida, visit my Salem Red Sox photo gallery.