Spring Training Is Just Around The Corner

Now that the pesky football season is over, we can focus on the important things in life: spring training. That article over at FanGraphs got me thinking. How many of you have gone to spring training before? Would you be more likely to go if it were held in Arizona?

The reason I ask is that going to spring training has been my white whale for about six or seven years now. Every year, I think I've worked out a way to get down there and every year, it falls through. I even tried to convince the wife we should go to central Florida for our honeymoon, but she caught on before we could get any further along on that thought.

It's not "real" baseball, but it does give you a chance to interact with players and is apparently a great opportunity for autographs. Since it's been a quest of mine to get down to spring training one day, can those of you who've gone before share a few things? One, what was your favorite part of the experience? Where did you go to hang out in the evenings (bars, restaurants, etc.)? How long did you go for? Is it worth going for just a couple of days or would you recommend going for more like a week?

Pitchers and catchers report in about a week. Let's get excited for some actual baseball, people!