Clearwater Tutors Come To You

The city of Clearwater is home to Spectrum Field, which is where the Philadelphia Phillies and the Clearwater Threshers complete their annual spring training program. Originally the Phillies began training in Clearwater in 1947 at the Clearwater Athletic Field. They then made use of the newly constructed Jack Russell ballpark built by the City of Clearwater in 1955 and would stay there training for many years. Eventually the ballpark became tired and the plan was hatched to build a brand new state of the art stadium almost fifty years later.

It was opened relatively recently in 2004, when it opened it was known by a different name “Bright House Field.” Bright House Networks was the name of the cable company that sponsored the Phillies at this time. Their 1.7million dollar deal was for a decade, with the option to renew for two successive five-year periods. “Bright House” was bought out by “Charter Communications” and the field was re-named after their residential service “Spectrum” in 2017.

The first game held at the park was on March 4th 2004 when the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Yankees. The 44th Florida State League All-Star Game was held at the Spectrum Field in 2005, a big win for Clearwater economically as holding this important game drew in tourists into the area. The field has been the venue for numerous other big games and events including College baseball which draws in large amounts of spectators. Record attendance for a Threshers game at Spectrum Field was set in 2015 when over 9,000 supporters came in force to watch Clearwater defeat Tampa. This was surpassed by a record number of over 11,000 strong packing the stadium for a Phillies spring-training game in 2016.

Artist Kevin Brady was responsible for the sculpture that greets guests before ascending the steps on the west entrance of the ballpark. He entitled the work “The Ace”, and the piece has been the subject of much positive feedback since its original unveiling. According to the artist, the uniform worn by the ball player in the sculpture is an amalgamation of how the uniform has evolved in the past 100 years and has elements taken from different versions of the uniform. “The Ace” was awarded a high honor, “Best Public Art” by Tampa Bay Magazine. Brady has been commissioned to create many other sculptures, and installations, and more recently benches. His work is on display across the U.S and overseas, and provide compelling talking points and appreciation from visitors worldwide.