Sixteen years ago when Anthony Moquin first started attending spring training games in the Valley, the Cactus League was just a shadow of the economic powerhouse it has become.

The stadiums were smaller, the crowds were scant and the league had shrunk to just six teams.

“You used to be able to walk in the parking lot with the players. From the time they got to the stadium in the morning you got to walk with them all the way into the clubhouse,” says Moquin, a Mesa resident who attends the exhibition games every year. “Now it’s really changed. It’s really like big league ballparks now.”

Today, Arizona’s once dwindling Cactus League has doubled in size to twelve teams, including the Angels, A’s, Cubs and Giants, and is close to eclipsing Florida’s Grapefruit League as the major spring training hub.

And next year, when the Cleveland Indians return to train in Goodyear and the Los Angles Dodgers relocate to their newly constructed stadium in Glendale, the Cactus League will have surged to 14 teams—only two fewer than the Grapefruit League, previously by far the largest of spring training destinations.

It’s a huge turnaround for the Cactus League, which in 1992 many predicted was enjoying its final days.

“That was a very major concern at the time,” says J.P. de la Montaigne, president of the Cactus League. “The Cleveland Indians left Tucson and went to Florida, and most of the remaining teams had a clause in their contract that if the league ever got below six teams, they could get out of their contract and go elsewhere. During that time, both the San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners were looking for new homes. And, of course, Florida was courting them quite heavily.”

To encourage teams to stay in Arizona, the league was charged with luring others. Arizona refurbished the ballparks and built new ones, using the funds generated from a $2.50 surcharge on car rentals in Maricopa and Pima Counties.

Soon, the refurbished stadiums, the close proximity of the ballparks and Arizona’s consistently great weather began attracting new teams.

As the teams have flocked to the Valley, so have the fans.

Attendance has exceeded one million every year since 2002 (the record was set in 2005, with 1.27 million).

This year, de la Montaigne expects attendance to be just as high at this season’s 150 scheduled games to be played through the end of March at nine Arizona stadiums.

“There is a lot of excitement,” de la Montaigne says. “When the weather starts warming up a bit and you see the green grass, you know spring’s here. And when spring starts to blossom, you know it’s baseball time.”

Along with fan enjoyment comes the huge economic boost spring training brings to Valley businesses. The financial impact of the league’s growth has had a substantial impact on the entire state’s economy.

Last year, spring training fans spent nearly $311 million at Arizona’s hotels, restaurants, shops and related businesses, according to a study commissioned by the Cactus League and the Arizona Office of Tourism.

About 61 percent of fans who attended exhibition games in Arizona traveled from outside the state, according the survey.

“Spring training is major for Scottsdale,” says Tom Silverman, general manager of the Chaparral Suites Resort. “If you asked me what event is absolutely vital for the Valley, it would be spring training, because it lasts the whole month of March and it is a tremendous draw.”

Although the Cactus League may be all grown up, the appeal for the fans, like Moquin, is that it still provides one of the rare opportunities to get up close to the players.

Over the years, Moquin, an avid San Francisco Giants fan, has collected more than 1,000 autographed photos, most of which were obtained during spring training games.

“The best part is you’re as close as you can get to the actual ballplayers, much closer than at the Major League games. Sometimes you get close enough to have an actual conversation,” he says. “It’s pretty cool. Even if you’re not a baseball fan, it’s just great.”