West Michigan has another unusual promotion in the works: After the Whitecaps complete an important play a sponsored plunger will move up and down and shoot water in the air. Yes, we even have video.
Fresh off the heels of national attention for plans to sell a monster burger at the ballpark, West Michigan has another unusual promotion in the works: After the Whitecaps complete an important play a sponsored plunger will move up and down and shoot water in the air.
The plunger is sponsored by Penning Plumbing, a local firm. After looking at attaching the plunger to the foul poles at Fifth Third Ballpark, the team decided to construct a standalone plunger in center field.
“The concept was born from the challenge of coming up with creative ideas for Penning Plumbing,” said Whitecaps Vice President of Sales Steve McCarthy. “We had our hearts set on a giant plunger and even experimented with attaching one to the foul poles but the wind created stability issues. This is a much better solution.”
McCarthy said Facility Maintenance Manger John Passerelli was instrumental in the design and construction of the plunger.
“The project was a challenge because there aren’t any blueprints out there for a 40-foot plunger, said Passerelli, “But the project moved along smoothly and it only took two weeks build the frame, add the graphics and hang it.”
The post that the plunger is attached to was relocated from behind home plate. Two of the four posts behind home plate were removed when new backstop netting was installed. The plunger is remote-controlled and made of material called Alumalite, an aluminum paneling with a plastic core.
To be honest, we were a little suspicious when we saw the news release coming out April 1. So take this with a grain of salt.
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