Potomac Nationals (High Class A; Carolina League) General Manager Josh Olerud has been promoted: he’s now vice preident/general manager of the team, as announced by President Lani Silber Weiss. “Josh has just been wonderful in trying to find ways to amplify the in game experience for our fans,” says Silber Weiss. “His management and leadership skills […]
Archive | The Front Office
Hudson Valley PA announcer calls it in via Skype
Talk about phoning it in: Rick Zolzer of the Hudson Valley Renegades (short season A; NY-Penn League) became the first P.A. announcer to perform his duties from home via Skype. Zolzer delivered every player introduction, announcement and between-inning contest while sitting poolside at the comfort of his own home. “We are always looking to use technology in […]
Wilmington ballpark opponents won’t challenge petition rejection; site negotiations begin
Opponents of public spending on a new Wilmington (N.C.) ballpark won’t challenge a rejection of their petition drive, while city officials have begun negotiations for a waterfront site. The city rejected a petition from a group led by Josh Fulton and Ben McCoy, which would have changed city rules to prevent any public money spend […]
Silver Hawks, Pioneers set attendance marks
The South Bend Silver Hawks (Low Class A; Midwest League) and Elmira Pioneers (summer collegiate; Perfect Game League) hit important attendance milestones this week. In South Bend, the Silver Hawks have already attracted more fans this season to Covaleski Stadium than in all of 2011. After Monday night, the Silver Hawks have drawn 115,137 fans […]
PETA cites Citizens Bank Park, Hammond Stadium for veggie offerings
The best vegetarian ballpark food can be found at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies, and Hammond Stadium, home of the Fort Myers Miracle, according to PETA’s annual rankings. The advocacy group has released rankings of veggie offerings at ballparks for 11 years now. “Tasty vegetarian food is sweeping the nation, and that […]
Aces to play what-if, taking field as Ghost Riders
The Reno Aces (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) will take the field as the Reno Ghost Riders as the franchise promotes a past finalist for the team name. It’s an interesting trend in Minor League Baseball: teams revisiting their branding exercises and summoning a contender for a promotion. Earlier this season the Northwest Arkansas Naturals […]
Blue Wahoos hit 200,000 fans, 28 sellouts
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) hit two milestones Thursday night, welcoming the 200,000th fan during this season’s 28th sellout at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium. The Wahoos are the first Southern League team to hit the 200,000 milestone this season. “It is a great tribute to our dedicated community that we were the first team […]
Looking back at 10 years of baseball
Ballpark Digest turned 10 years old this week. To see how much things have changed — or not — we went back to the first set of stories published on the site. The headlines may surprise you. This question pops up a lot, so here’s the short version as to the origins of Ballpark Digest. […]
Abandoned synagogue becomes Silver Hawks team store
Well, this is certainly creative reuse: One of South Bend’s first synagogues is now the team store for the South Bend Silver Hawks (Low Class A; Midwest League). The 111-year-old building was empty until Silver Hawks owner Andrew Berlin was struck with the notion to take over the space. “Being adjacent to the ballpark and having […]
The Week That Was: July 1
Fauxback and sponsored uniforms, new ballparks in El Paso and Hillsboro, and Mother Nature impacting ballparks across the country. The most popular stories on Ballpark Digest, measured by page views. Rays to go retro — before team existed The first pro baseball team to sport uniform sponsor logos? Rockford Municipal Stadium / San Jose Giants […]
One last chance: celebrate with us!
Our 10th anniversary is just around the corner, and we want you to be part of the celebration. We’ve posted this before, but we wanted to give you one last shot to take in our anniversary party. Ballpark Digest launched on July 2, 2002, under the ballparkwatch.com name. Since then we’ve had a great time covering the fascinating world […]
Sky Sox scrap game because of fire conditions
Minor League Baseball is affected by wildfires raging through Colorado, as tonight’s game between the Colorado Springs Sky Sox and the Tacoma Rainiers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) has been postponed. The specific cause, as stated by the Sky Sox: the game has been indefinitely postponed because of smoke and poor air quality caused by the […]
Generals attendance up: Jackson loves a winner
One of the biggest surprises in Minor League Baseball this year, the Jackson Generals (Class AA; Southern League) are experiencing a spike in attendance and success on the field. Turnstile attendance at Pringles Park is up by 18 percent over this point last season, according to a press release sent out by the team. “To […]