My "Minor League" Ballpark Tour Part 1

My father and I used to take baseball road trips every summer, sometimes traveling as far as Texas and sometimes we would just stay around New England. No matter where we went, we made a purpose to visit minor league ballparks as well as major league ones. As many of you know already my top 2 favorite major league ballparks are PNC Park in Pittsburgh and Camden Yards in Baltimore, but most of you haven’t experienced some of the country’s best minor league parks. Now I haven’t been to every park, in fact far from it but I will do my best to cover some of the parks I have been to and I would love other peoples experiences/input to put together a folder of them all, so please, comment away and write up something if you feel passionate about a ballpark you’ve visited. Since the list of ballparks is pretty long this will be a multiple day post that will be broken down into levels of competition. Single A, Double A, Triple A will all be discussed but I will also talk about a few leagues like the Independent League and the Cape Cod League that aren’t affiliated with Major League Baseball.

 

So to start us off we will focus on Independent League Ballparks and what better place to start than my father’s and my birthplace, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Bridgeport is home to the Bluefish who are part of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball Clubs. You may recall this league for it’s unfortunate media coverage following Jose Offerman’s assault of a pitcher with a bat a few years back when it was called the Independent League. But the Ballpark at Harbor Yard is a fun, family oriented place to enjoy a game. The train  goes by, the ferry to Long Island launches around the corner, fun mascots like B.B. the Bluefish roam the park and the league even has a team that plays zero home games all season who are appropriately called the Road Warriors.

Affordable tickets: $8-20

Affordable and Tasty Food: Philly Cheesesteak, Italian Sausage, Chicken Fingers, Roast Beef Sandwiches all between $3-6

Capacity: 5300 seats- Ballpark located at 500 Main Street Bridgeport, CT 06604 and was built in 1998.

Ballpark at Harbor Yard (atlanticleagueindependent.com)



                To stay in the ALPBC we travel across the Long Island Sound and visit my Uncle’s favorite team that isn’t the New York Giants (Who are now the San Francisco Giants), the Long Island Ducks. The Ducks easily have the best named mascot I have seen to date, QuackerJack! I was at a game where the promotion was giving away duck call bills (Quackers) that were absolutely hilarious and yes, I still have mine. We all blared those things as loud as we could to cheer on the Ducks. The Ducks play at Bethpage Ballpark in Central Islip, NY. The atmosphere was excellent and the crowd really was excited to have baseball that is affordable for a family outting.

Afforable Tickets: $11 or $12

Affordable and Tasty Food: Normal ballpark fare such as hot dogs, hamburgers and chicken fingers but also mile high cotton candy and fried oreos can be devoured. $3-6.

Capacity: 6,002 seats- Located at 3 Court House Dr. Central Islip, NY 11722 and was built in 2000.

Bethpage Ballpark (newsday.com)

Quackerjack (newsday.com)

                                    

             Up next is a team that lasted only one season, the year my father and I visited the team that played at Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium, the Canton Coyotes in Canton, OH. We visited the Pro Football Hall of Fame and happened to be in town the same day the Coyotes, who replaced the Crocodiles in Canton, were in town. Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium is not a great place to be, as it is more like a high school stadium but baseball is baseball and it was a well played game. I was even asked to sing the national anthem and perform in some of the between inning games since there were about 50 people in attendance. So while you can’t visit the Coyotes anymore since they became extinct in 2002 when they were sold off to a group in Missouri, it was a fun experience and shows how baseball can creep up anywhere in America! The ballpark was built in 1989 and held around 4000 people for the Coyotes who played in the Frontier League.

Logo (munsonstadium.com)

Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium (mysite.verizon.net)

                                          

                Another team that no longer exists that I’ve visted was from the Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball (Can-Am League). The New Haven County Cutters were an independent league team that had limited success in 4 seasons (2004-2007) before folding for good with the North Shore Spirit in October, 2007. Yale Field was a fun place to see a game though and was very fan friendly as I attended the game with my parents and grandparents. The Cutters are in reference to the Coast Guard vessels as well as a cut-fastball. The Cutters shared the field with the Yale University baseball team and became part of the history of Yale Field which was built in 1927 but certainly does not show it’s age.

Yale Field (stadiumsusa.com)

   

Logo (indygraveyard.com)



          The last ballpark I'll discuss in Part 1 will be from a vacation on Cape Cod at the Orleans Firebirds game. The Cape Cod League features some of the top college players in the nation for the summer in a very relaxed and family oriented style of baseball. Orleans has very few seats and fans are encouraged to bring blankets or folding chairs hours before the first pitch to stake out good spots. Outside food is allowed and encouraged but they do sell usual ballpark food for very inexpensive prices. But the best part of all is that admission is free. Can't beat free baseball under the stars on Massachusetts' Cape Cod. The ballpark continually is being upgraded thanks to grants from the Yawkey Foundation and is just a great place to unwind and relax after a day on the beach. Eldredge Park was recently named the top summer collegiate ballpark in Baseball America.

Eldredge Park (orleanscardinals.com)

 

Logo (codball.com)



The Best Entrance Songs and Rituals for Closers in MLB History

So this has been a discussion between my father and myself many times over the years arguing who has the better entrance song and ritual out of the bullpen. I was thinking back to the All-Star Game when Heath Bell did his patented "slide" (I'll get to that more later) and decided to make a post about. So here is my list of my Top Ten Entrance Songs and Rituals for Closers in MLB History. 

 1. Trevor Hoffman- Hells Bells (AC/DC): The All-Time Saves Leader (for now) had by far the best entrance song of anyone to play the game. The beginning of that song with the loud DONGGGGGGG just sounds so perfect in a ballpark and you KNOW who is coming out of that bullpen when you hear that bell toll. 

Hoffman Celebrates Yet Another Save (netbrawl.com)

2. Mariano Rivera- Enter Sandman (Metallica): Maybe the best closer of all time picked one of the best closing songs of all time in Enter Sandman. Forget about his devastating cutter that reinvented pitching at one point, the sight of him walking onto the mound with this song blaring through Yankee Stadium is about enough to win the game all by itself. Plus Enter Sandman and closing games have the same goal... to put you down to sleep.

Rivera Throwing His Cutter (graphicshunt.com)

3. Armando Benitez - Big Pimpin' (Jay Z): Great song... GREAT song. Armando was the man for the Mets for many years and I remember him coming out to Big Pimpin' more than once. Benitez certainly wasn't the most successful closer but this song tells you exactly the kind of guy he is. Plus I mean, how can you not love the random squeals in the chorus?!

How Does Benitez Not Look Like He is Big Pimpin'? (centerfieldmaz.com)

4. Eric Gagne- Welcome to the Jungle (Guns N' Roses): One of the best songs to play at a sporting event, especially the Boston Garden (well now the TD Banknorth Garden). Certainly a song that excites the fans and really gets everyone pumped, including Gagne who does have the record for the most consecutive saves, 84. But like many people before him, being welcomed to the jungle may not mean an easy exit as only 4 years after the amazing streak, he was no longer in baseball.

Gagne Celebrates One Of His 84 Consecutive Saves (buzzaboutsports.com)

5. J.J. Putz- Thunderstruck (AC/DC): Despite his name, Putz is anything but dorky when he trots into a game. How could anyone be with that cool guitar riff and pounding drum sequence of yet another of AC/DC’s riot-inducing  anthems blaring in the background?

Putz Is Anything But A Putz (mets.lohudblogs.com)

6. Heath Bell- Blow Me Away (Breaking Benjamin): A very under-rated song, one I had to look up to even remember it, but the song is only a small part of Bell's entrance. Bell exits the bullpen in a dead sprint and slides right before the mound before starting his relief appearance. The slide at the All-Star Game got a ton of attention, almost as much as the divot he left got after the game.

Bell Sliding At The All-Star Game (sports.yahoo.com)

7. Robb Nen - Smoke on the Water (Deep Purple): Robb Nen... oh how I almost forgot about you. Smoke on the Water is a very good entrance song... not quite top 5 good enough but it certainly deserves a mention as Nen was very good at what he did for a living for the Giants for years and years.

Nen Celebrating A Save (bleacherreport.com)

8. Mitch Williams- Wild Thing (The Troggs): Sure, sure Mitch Williams isn't known for much outside of his World Series losing pitch in 1993, but his theme song of Wild Thing can’t help but make you smile and laugh... unless you’re a Phillies’ fan.

Looks Wild To Me (insidesocal.com)

9. Kerry Wood- Hurt (Nine Inch Nails): Good song, and I mean it has to be if Johnny Cash covered it but the build-up is just a tad long for an entrance song. Yet on the other hand the name single-handedly describes Kerry Wood's career... hurt. 

Wood Before One Of His 1000 Injuries (chrisoleary.com)

10. Chad Cordero - Hail to the Chief  (?): I just love the fact that Cordero, the Washington Nationals closer, thought so highly of himself to use Hail to the Chief which is usually reserved for the President of the United States. Cordero was saves king in Washington for a while before he was impeached for good, never to be heard of again in the big leagues.

Not Much Of A President (wsjclassroom.com)

Once again these are MY top ten but I would love to hear if you have anyone else you would like to put up for nomination!

Why are Fantasy Sports so Appealing to the Masses?

Why are fantasy sports so appealing? The simple answer is that every person (usually men) love fantasy sports because they can be their own general manger. Most people I meet still can't understand how I can obsess about fantasy sports as much as I do but my girlfriend is just starting to understand it in her 2nd year of playing fantasy baseball. She loves her players like she was coaching them herself and is equally attached to them if not more attached to them than she is to her real baseball team, the Boston Red Sox. Her one rule, which I usually follow as well is not to have any players from your team's arch-rival on your team. So in her case, no Yankees, in mine, no Phillies. 

So there's two reasons why, to be their own GM and to have players to root for and chastise when they do not perform up to standard. But what is the importance of all this? The importance is that fantasy sports are creating a new breed of sports fans in America. The common fans are becoming scarcer due to this "game" that started to really take off about 10 years ago but was somewhat popular even 20 years ago. The internet age has only helped fantasy sports more and more, the more people with smartphones and iPads the more crazed fans get created. Applications to follow your fantasy team get created everyday and are amongst the most popular downloads on iTunes. Every sport has fantasy leagues for it, even NASCAR, Golf and Soccer, but Football and Baseball are still the most popular to play. 

I have been an active fantasy player since 2004 and run all my own leagues in baseball, basketball and football through yahoo. I have also played in numerous leagues on espn as well and while those are two of the big sites, cbssports, foxsports also have massive followings. Millions of people play these sports and obsess like I do, so don't judge me, judge us as a society of fanatical sports fans. Heck, there has even been a television show about fantasy sports on FX called "The League" which is about a group of friends in a fantasy football league together. So whether you like it or not America... fantasy sports are here to stay and will continue to grow as long as the real sports we depend on do not disintegrate like they keep threatening to do.

Why My Beloved Dallas Cowboys Will Not Win the NFC East

             Yes, this is in part an enormous reverse-jinx but mostly just the plain truth that my favorite professional football team (American Football that is) has no shot at winning their division this year and probably will miss the playoffs once again. In this article I will breakdown a few key reasons why I believe this to be true.



1. Offensive Line- Big questions here like usual for the Cowboys... they cut Pro-Bowl Guard Leonard Davis recently but did re-sign left tackle Doug Free. The starting line looks like this: LT Doug Free, LG Kyle Kosier, C Andre Gurode, RG Montrae Holland (?), RT Tyron Smith. Holland may start at tackle but that would mean a different guard would have to step up out of rookie David Arkin, 2nd year player Pepa Letuli or a free-agent pick-up. Very tough right side but at least Romo's blind side will be well protected by Free.

Doug Free- bleacherreport.com

2. Defensive Secondary- I HATE Terrance Newman. Saying it once isn't enough, I HATE Terrance Newman. The first-round draft pick from 2003 has been a huge disappointment and last year's career high 5 interceptions is nothing special to gawk at. He may have had a career high in INTs but he had a career low in PD (Passes Defensed), which is the real stat that matters in a game. Michael Jenkins is no better, I thought like many other people that the kid out of South Florida would be a star but he just cannot seem to figure it out and threw up an awful 1 INT and 9 PD season last year. Alan Ball stepped up nicely in a safety role but will need to continue to improve to help out the ghastly corners in the pass game more. Orlando Scandrick is almost the same player as Alan Ball and still needs to step up big. Big questions and the big weakness of the defense. Gerald Sensabaugh may return but it is unclear at this moment to help the safety depth.

Terrance Newman- bestsportsphotos.com

3. Running Backs- So the biggest move in the off-season was cutting Marion Barber III. FINALLY!! The man runs like a galloping horse and gets stuffed at the 1 yard line more than I did when I was a fullback on my freshman football team! Felix Jones gets the full confidence of Jason Garrett and will hopefully be a great fit. Tashard Choice and rookie DeMarco Murray will be his backups if he wavers at all.

Felix Jones- graphichunts.com

4. Coaching Staff- Jason Garrett did not prove much to me in his short tenure last year but Jerry Jones believes in him and somehow that has rubbed off a bit on me. I give you 1 year Garrett... don't screw it up and for the love of god please be creative with play calls. Rob Ryan coming in to be the defensive coordinator adds a swagger and toughness to the squad but I worry that the players we have aren't built for the "Ryan System" like other clubs (Jets, Ravens).

Jason Garrett- dallascowboys.com

           So in a nutshell I am seriously worried about the Offensive Line, the Defensive Secondary, the Running Back situation and the Coaching Staff of the Dallas Cowboys. I won't even go into the worries of Tony Romo or Dez Bryant's injury recoveries. Let's hope this post brings some good ju-ju to America's Team and will be a productive season in the always tough NFC East.