Florida's Baseball spring season kicks off each year when Florida's Governor hosts a dinner that is attended by many Hall of Fame players and representatives from different teams that spring train in Florida.

This year (2009) Representatives of all 16 Major League teams training in Florida were at the event including Joe Maddon, Stu Sternberg, Matt Silverman, and Andrew Friedman of the Rays.

The Master of Ceremonies for the event was Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton of the Houston Astros. Guests of honor were Hall of Fame players Wade Boggs, Mike Schmidt, Al Kaline, Tony Perez, Bill Mazeroski, and Robin Roberts.

Commissioner Bud Selig was also on hand to give a speech about the economic state of the game. It was a night to just celebrate the fact that games would be played in Florida on Wednesday and to appreciate baseball for the great game it is.

The final speech of the night was a quick one from the host Governor Crist. He reiterated how much baseball means to the state of Florida and how excited he was for the upcoming season.