double-a baseball

Summer of Baseball: Portland a good place to catch a game

November 21, 2016

Hadlock Field is one I’ve wanted to get to for a few years now. It’s also one of those fields kind of all by itself (Maine has one affiliated professional team), so going just for a game isn’t necessarily the easiest thing to do, despite Maine being an amazing state.

So, let’s break it down.

Hadlock Field, built in 1993, is a solid minor league park. Though I’m not a fan of aluminum bleacher flooring, it’s a pretty comfortable all-around park. The ambiance is solid, which seems to be a pretty good trend when it comes to Boston Red Sox affiliates. The site lines in the park are good and the seats are decently comfortable.

The night we were there was cool, too, as it was a Seinfeld-themed night. Though not the biggest Seinfeld fan, John O’Hurley (who played J. Peterman) threw out the first pitch. It’s always neat to see things like that.

Anyway…

The park has an older flavor to it as the concourse is under the seating bowl. The concourse is decently wide but was definitely crowded. The team store is small, which shocked me, if not just because it’s a Boston affiliate. I think I hold the idea that Double-A and above would have better team stores, and despite seeing many smaller ones, it still shocks me.

The food selection was solid and the hot dogs were really good. I will say I didn’t have the food selection on the minor league food fight as it was this amazingly huge ice cream sundae sort of thing … and well, my blood sugar went up just looking at what it included, let along eating it. So I just went with a regular old ice cream and it was solid. Beer selection was pretty strong, too.

The stadium itself is pretty nice. A “monster” in left field is a nice tough, and I like the scoreboard. The elevated bullpen in right field was a very cool setup, too. I think overall, it’s hard to not go here and have a good time. That being said, I have to pull off some points for the aluminum flooring because it’s really tough, at times, to pay attention to the game when there’s so much stomping on that flooring.

Parking is decent and not far from the stadium. The area felt safe and after, it was easy enough to get out, which is always a positive.

I’d definitely visit again, as long as it was encompassed with other aspects. For me, it’s a hard trip to pull off just for a game, but it’s definitely not a bad place to take in a game.

Park Notes:

Hadlock Field
Portland, Maine
Home of the Portland Seadogs (Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox)
Visited on: July 15, 2016
Opponent: New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays)

Ratings (out of 10)

Stadium: 7.5/10
Concessions: 7/10
Parking: 7.5/10
Ambiance: 8/10
Friendliness: 8/10

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Summer of Baseball: Erie gives an intimate experience

August 16, 2016

This summer has been full of baseball, that’s for sure.

As of me writing this review, I’ve been to 50-plus games, and I’ve loved every inning of it. I don’t even want to think about how many miles I’ve been to watch these games. But it’s totally worth it.

With all the new stadiums I’ve been to, I’ve gotten behind on the reviews. On a hot summer day, finishing up the trip to Cleveland, we hit up Erie on the way home.

Jerry Uht Park is the home of the Double-A SeaWolves, an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. In the past, I used to keep a lot of tabs on this team because of when I covered the short-season Single-A affiliate of the Tigers. In the past few years, it’s because they are in the Eastern League and I’ve attended many EL games.

Erie can now be crossed off.

This was an interesting park, that’s for sure. The park opened in 1995 is located in Erie. Originally home to a New-York Penn League (short-season A) team, the SeaWolves moved to Double A in 1999. According to the team’s website, more than 3.5 million fans have been to games since the team started in 1995.

Stamped in at Erie.

This park is definitely right in the city. It’s tucked in nicely and we came on a Sunday afternoon game, so the attendance was sparse at best. We had called ahead and found out where there might be some shade and we ended up in the second level on the first-base line, which was named one of MiLB’s top 10 “seats” in 2008.

The park has some quirks, which makes it cool. Remember those second-level seats? Well the ones on the first-base side and third-base side are nothing alike. As I noted above, the stadium is built within a pre-existing city block, so it’s a little tight. The third-base side is more traditional with the seats leading up. Those first-base side ones, though, are stacked on top of the concourse and the back row of the lower seats. It’s a pretty cool place to watch a game from as you overlook the infield and don’t feel distant, despite being in the second level.

In left field, there’s an arena and it’s basically part of the wall for the baseball field.

Not many people were in attendance the day we were there, so we had the chance to sit back and watch. The sight lines are solid and you can walk around the field some and still see what is going on. There isn’t a full wrap-around concourse, but there’s plenty of space on the other concourses.

One thing, though, is when we were there, not all of the concession stands were open. It makes sense with the crowd they had, but we’re taking June. I can understand not having everything open if attendance is not doing well, but it seemed almost like a ghost town in parts of the stadium – including the stands. Still, people were friendly and helpful when needed.

The heat didn’t help that weekend, that’s for sure. And it was also Father’s Day, so that could put a damper on the attendance.

The team store is definitely more like a short-season A one as it’s barely something to walk into, and it has some rolled out areas and then the check out. Still, there were some good selections of items and it was easy to find the Passport stamp, which is good.

Free programs were also a positive and it seems like many teams are catching on to this idea, which is good. People don’t want to have to pay $2-$5 each game they go to for a program. Many teams sell the same program each game. In fact, one other Eastern League team sells the same program each game (no updates) and doesn’t insert stats/standings – you only get those if you are a season-ticket holder. Many teams who do the free programs make them smaller, and some even update them every home series or month, depending on the team.

The food selections seemed decent. We had already eaten that day, so I got the normal hot dog (above average) and souvenir cup soda. I didn’t try the MiLB food fight item because, honestly, I was way too full to try it. They had real ice cream that you could easily find (not just dippin’ dots), which is always good.

In the end, Jerry Uht Park was a positive experience and a stadium worth checking out. The ambiance wasn’t great, but there weren’t many people there. So I rate it a little lower in that category, but have a feeling it’s better when there are people in the stands. We parked across the street in a parking garage, but there didn’t seem to be an overabundance of parking. I wonder how this place would be on a night when they drew a good crowd. I imagine it could be tough.

It’s a good stadium worth checking out if you are close. Plus, Double-A ball is usually pretty solid to watch.

Park Notes:

Jerry Uht Park
Erie, Pennsylvania
Home of the Erie SeaWolves (Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers)
Visited on: June 19, 2016
Opponent: Bowie Baysox (Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles)

Ratings (out of 10)

Stadium: 8/10
Concessions: 7/10
Parking: 8/10
Ambiance: 7/10
Friendliness: 8/10

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Summer of Baseball: Reading celebrating its 50th with the Phillies

July 11, 2016

Reading calls itself Baseballtown. With a stadium that was completed in 1951, and one that’s had some renovations over the years, the Reading Fightin Phils have a unique and interesting stadium.

FirstEnergy Stadium is different than when I last visited in, I believe, 2009. They’ve done many upgrades, to make the field a bit more fan friendly, yet have kept the quirky aspects of the park in place.

When you come into the park, you have an area where the food items are and it gives you the feel of a courtyard. It’s definitely busy there, so you might need to push your way around if you want to get somewhere. The concourse is under the main grandstand, so you are behind the action. There’s also not a full walk-around concourse, but that’s normal for older stadiums.

A place to lean and keep score, with a great view.

You can go out into parts of the outfield, though, to watch the game from different vantage points. Overall, sightlines were OK and it is a tad picturesque of a place to watch a game. Seats are a tad old-school, but it kind of goes with the stadium. They aren’t bad, but I also will say we didn’t sit in ours for awful long.

Concession wise, there is the regular fare from ballparks. Being it was a dollar-dog day, I chose that as my choice for the night. It looked like they had a lot of the regular choices, which is good. I didn’t get too deep into the area with everything going on as it was crowded and after a long weekend of baseball and other items, I just wanted to watch a game.

The field is nice and it has some cool areas. Like many parks today, there were spots people could rent out etc., for large groups.

The on-field things were fine and didn’t detract from the game too much, which was good.

The team store is not huge, but it is very well stocked with different items. Because of that, it’s not easy to get around, but if you want something – odds are they likely have it. That’s always a bonus, of course, as it makes no sense not to stock up, especially with the rebranding the team did a year or two ago.

This was the 50th anniversary of the team being associated with the Phillies, so it was nice to get there during this season. The action on the field was solid, and it’s an easy place to watch a game. The atmosphere is pretty good as people seem to enjoy watching baseball.

I will note this, though – it seems like some of the people (the fans) weren’t the friendliest in the world. I’m not saying this is all of them, and I’m not even saying the people we encountered were regulars. But it was … odd.

Let me give an example.

Throwing hot dogs in Reading.

The tickets I purchased were underneath the overhang, as there had originally been a threat of rain. We got to our seats and made sure we had the right spot. No sooner than we sat down, the lady (an older lady) made sure she told us “If they aren’t your seats, you’ll have to move.”

I’ve never had that happen to me before, especially by somebody not working for the team. I will say as we came up the stands, one of the people there had their feet up on our seats, and a jacket over top the back. So I guess we were infringing on their “territory.” Still, it was a little off-setting.

We decided, instead, to stand for the game at the top of the bleachers where there’s a place to lean etc. Two more people were encountered – and they were the same. I asked one person if people could stand here and he looked at me like I was green and had three heads.

As I walked the concourse a little later, three – yes three – people bumped into me as they weren’t watching where they were going. I tried to avoid the collisions but they weren’t paying attention. None of them said excuse me (despite them being at fault and watching their phones and not where they were going), rather gave me a dirty look.

Honestly, these aren’t things I want to share because it’s hopefully not the norm. But this was part of my experience and, honestly, it took away from my experience.

I didn’t really interact with many people who work for the team or stadium, but it seemed like there were a lot of people around.

Park Notes:

FirstEnergy Stadium
Reading, Pennsylvania
Home of the Reading Fightin Phils (Double-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies)
Visited on: June 12, 2016
Opponent: Altoona Curve (Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates)

Ratings (out of 10)

Stadium: 7.5/10
Concessions: 7/10
Parking: 8/10
Ambiance: 7.5/10
Friendliness: 6.5/10

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Summer of Baseball: The game is the main event in New Britain

July 23, 2014

If you’ve ever read books about baseball players and their growth through a system, you probably realize what the minor leagues are all about.

It’s not glamorous, that’s for sure.

Often enough, stadiums aren’t that great, travel is tough and the living conditions differ from place to place.

New Britain is a pretty solid place to watch a game.

In recent years, it’s becoming more of a money-driven setup. Top-of-the-line stadiums are being built. Former major leagues coach and manage young prospects in their ascent to the big leagues. Travel conditions have improved and, in some spots, the living setup has changed.

But with big-money comes bigger places looking to take these minor league teams to a new spot. I watched it happen when the new owners of the then Oneonta Tigers packed up and moved to Connecticut a year after buying (despite agreeing to keep the team in Oneonta through its lease). Other small towns have watched it happen (to be fair, Norwich watched it happen, too, before snaking the Tigers).

Of course, when that happens, it also means these smaller areas lose a part of their community and identity.

New Britain, Connecticut appears to be next on that list.

The city is trying to keep the team from moving to nearby Hartford.

It was announced in June that the New Britain Rock Cats would be moving to nearby Hartford in two years, once a $60 million stadium is built. I didn’t know that until actually heading to New Britain for a game and to take in New Britain Stadium, built in 1996, which makes it far from a relic.

The Rock Cats are the Double-A affiliate for the Minnesota Twins. New Britain has hosted a Double-A team since 1983, but a move to Hartford could signal the end of minor league baseball in New Britain. Often, when a team leaves an area, another will move it. That might mean a lower level (such as a Single-A team), but with Hartford being so close to New Britain, territorial rights will likely come into play. That being said, it appears there are some issues with the whole Hartford thing, so we’ll see how it all plays out and if the owner has to eat crow and stick it out in New Britain.

I didn’t know about all this until the day of a visit to New Britain Stadium. Waiting in line to get in (it was Ted Williams bobblehead night, so worth getting there early), a few fans chatted with us about the impending doom of their team and how it seemed like attendance had started to go down since the announcement, which is fully understandable. Signs were handed out as we parked, asking people to support and save the Rock Cats.

Free programs are always appreciated!

And from reading reports, it doesn’t sound like Hartford – at least those who pay – are too thrilled with paying for a new baseball stadium when other things (such as a good supermarket) are needed.

New Britain Stadium doesn’t have a lot of bells and whistles. It’s a baseball stadium. The seats are decent (though the ones we had were permanent bucket seats, almost like enlarged child seats) and the sight lines were pretty strong. But, much like stadiums built in the past 20 or so years, there’s not a lot of cover, which is good and bad. It’s bad because there isn’t a good way to get out of the sun, but good because there aren’t any beams and such blocking views.

There is a walkway between the box seats and upper seats that goes from the third-base line to the first-base line, giving you open looks at the park. The concourse is covered and behind the baselines — and below the main seating area. The club store is a tad small and the prices are average. I did walk out with a past-season sweatshirt for a good price, which was nice. They have the normal offerings, however.

Rocky was easy to find.

One bonus — and I’ve seen this at more stadiums than not this year — free programs. That’s truly a bonus. The programs were given as we came in the stadium and you could get statistics and a lineup at the customer service booth, which was directly in front of the main entrance.

Food offerings were normal ballpark fare. The hot dogs weren’t bad, but there were no cups for drinks, rather just a bottle. That’s a little on the odd size as it’s nice to have a cup with ice to keep your drink cold. It’s also another stadium without a souvenir cup, which was disappointing. I’ve been trying to collect them at most stops this year, at least when they are available.

In the end, I enjoyed the park. It’s in an easy-to-reach area, the parking is right at the park (if I remember right, I think it was $3 or $5) and it’s easy to get in and out. The old ballpark is next door, though we didn’t check it out. It’s a shame if the Rock Cats do leave. as it’s a nice setting for a minor league baseball game.

Park Notes:

New Britain Stadium
New Britain, Connecticut
Home of the New Britain Rock Cats (AA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins)
Visited on: June 14, 2014
Opponent: Trenton Thunder (AA affiliate of the New York Yankees)

Ratings (out of 10):

Stadium: 7.5
Concessions: 7
Parking: 8
Ambiance: 8
Friendliness: 10

I am embarking on a summer of baseball with the plan to hit a minimum of 10 stadiums this summer. Hopefully, there will be more than that. I will report on each park that I hit on the blog.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Summer of Baseball: A game in Binghamton is a nice night

June 23, 2014

It’s almost crazy to think of a minor league baseball stadium built in 1992 as being old, but as the years go by – it becomes older.

To think that 1992 was more than 20 years ago will age a park, especially at the Double-A level. When NYSEG Stadium, in Binghamton, was built in 1992, it was quite the stadium. And over the years, it’s been used for other things, including high school football.

Home of the B-Mets.

But, in the landscape of baseball, it’s an older stadium. Though one thing is certain – it’s still a pretty nice stadium.

I usually make a few trips to Binghamton per season as it’s an easy trip, never a problem to park and there are no issues getting tickets. There isn’t a bad seat in the house and, unless you go on a few uber-popular days, you can usually lounge a little more when there. I’ve sat on both sides of this field, as well as in the “upper deck,” which came on this trip. The third-base line is better if you want to avoid the sun.

You really are pretty close to the action, which is always a bonus. There’s a train yard out over the left-field wall, so sometimes you may get a train going through. That’s kind of a cool thing, though. The fences are average or so in length, which gives you the opportunity to see some homers.

The day’s lineup.

There aren’t a ton of bells and whistles with this stadium. They do quite a few games and such and there’s a kids area down the first-base line. The food selection is decent and the prices are OK, but not stellar. Case in point – I purchase two hot dogs and a soda. The soda cost about as much as the two dogs and if I had wanted French fries, they would have cost more than $4. A little steep when consider the hot dogs were $1.75 each, if I remember right.

As a hot dog nut, I wouldn’t classify those served in Binghamton as the best I’ve ever had a game and it’s not even close. But, I did enjoy them as they were cooked right and tasted just fine. I’d go above average on the hot dogs, say a 3.5 out of 5 or a 7 out of 10.

Keeping book, as always, on my Eephus League Halfliner.

If you are looking to watch a baseball game, this is a good spot. The seats are pretty decent and you have a good amount of room. But if you are looking for a lot of extras, this might not be a place for you.

In recent years, there have been rumors about the Double-A team leaving Binghamton, which possibly could open the stadium up to be a Single-A team. This stadium, actually, would be really top-notch for that level (especially in the short-season Single-A New York-Penn League), though drawing fans might take a hit in that regard. Still, even with the rumors, Double-A ball remains in Binghamton and, hopefully, it will stay that way.

Park Notes:

NYSEG Stadium
Binghamton, New York
Home of the Binghamton Mets (AA affiliate of the New York Mets)
Visited on: Monday, May 26
Opponent: New Britain Rock Cats (AA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins)

Ratings (out of 10):

Stadium: 7
Concessions: 6
Parking: 8
Ambiance: 7
Friendliness: 9

I am embarking on a summer of baseball with the plan to hit a minimum of 10 stadiums this summer. Hopefully, there will be more than that. I will report on each park that I hit on the blog.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Summer of Baseball: Portland a good place to catch a game

Summer of Baseball: Erie gives an intimate experience

Summer of Baseball: Reading celebrating its 50th with the Phillies

Summer of Baseball: The game is the main event in New Britain

Summer of Baseball: A game in Binghamton is a nice night

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P.J. Harmer