Professional Sports Catering adds Laredo to portfolio
Professional Sports Catering is adding a new team to the company’s lineup of customers, as the firm will manage the food and beverage operation at the new home of the Laredo Lemurs (independent; American Association). “We are pleased to partner with the Lemurs,” said Tom Dickson, CEO of PSC. “The new Laredo ballpark is going […]
Zephyrs’ Miller named PCL Trainer of the Year
Steven Miller of the New Orleans Zephyrs was named by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society (PBATS) as the 2011 Pacific Coast League Athletic Trainer of the Year. The Athletic Trainer of the Year award was earned by Miller after being selected by his peers. Miller is now among the 17 league winners across Minor […]
Blanton snares PCL turf award
Eric Blanton, the Manager of Grounds for the Reno Aces, has been named the Pacific Coast League’s 2011 Sports Turf Manager of the Year. The award was voted on by the 16 field managers in the PCL and is judged by the voters on criteria such as pregame setup for batting practice and infield practice, […]
LaVallee new Seacoast Mavericks GM
The Seacoast Mavericks (summer collegiate; Futures Collegiate Baseball League) didn’t waste any time setting up their 2012 season, naming Joel LaVallee as the team’s new general manager. He replaces Sean Evans, who will stay with the team and focus on player personnel. “A major responsibility of our GM has to be on the fund raising […]
Portnoy to call Triple-A Championship Game
Robert Portnoy, the Voice of the Albuquerque Isotopes (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League), will call the play-by-play action for the Triple-A Baseball National Championship Game on Versus, September 20 at 6:05 p.m. Portnoy will be joined in the booth by former Major League and Triple-A player and manager Bucky Dent, while Pawtucket Red Sox broadcaster […]
RockHounds hit attendance mark
The Midland RockHounds (Class AA; Texas League) hit a pretty cool milestone over the weekend, surging past 300,000 this season to set a franchise attendance record. The record was actually set on Saturday night, when a big crowd of 7,363 was on hand for a fireworks night. That pushed the season attendance to 301,530, a […]
Tulsa Drillers land 2012 Texas League All-Star Game
The Tulsa Drillers will host the 2012 Texas League All-Star Game at ONEOK Field, the team announced today. “We are excited to have the opportunity to host the Texas League’s marquee event next summer,” said General Manager Mike Melega. “We think downtown Tulsa and ONEOK Field will provide the perfect settings for this great game.” […]
Candlesticks always make a nice gift
It was a wedding scene right out of Bull Durham when Ricky VanAsselberg, manager of the Grand Prairie AirHogs (independent; American Association), married Annie Malott on the field at QuikTrip Park at Grand Prairie. We see weddings at the ballpark all the time. But we don’t often see team managers getting married on the field. […]
RailCats set attendance record — twice
It was a good weekend for the Gary SouthShore RailCats (independent; American Association): not only did the team set a U.S. Steel Yard attendance record on Saturday, they promptly broke it on Sunday. The records were broken with the assistance of two union groups. Today the RailCats drew 8,208, thanks to UAW Local 551 and […]
2011 Organization of the Year: Dayton Dragons
When a team sets a national record for most consecutive sellouts, year-end recognitions are to be expected. So it’s no surprise that the winner of the 2011 Organization of the Year from Ballpark Digest is the Dayton Dragons (Low Class A; Midwest League), the most successful team in Minor League Baseball. The Dragons set a […]
2011 Executives of the Year: Martie Cordaro and Alan Stein
Building a new ballpark and successfully rebranding a franchise are always huge accomplishments; the fact that Martie Cordaro and Alan Stein managed to do both despite some pretty steep odds wins them recognition as Baseball’s Executives of the Year from Ballpark Digest. In some ways professional baseball was an afterthought when the city of Omaha […]
SWB Yanks potentially on road for 2012
It appears the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League) will play their home schedule away from Moosic next season, as the league has tentatively approved an alternative site while upgrades to PNC Field are performed. UPDATED! The original plan was to work around the upgrades to the ballpark and do the majority of the work […]
The Akron Gum Dippers or Tire Jacks? Could happen
The Akron Aeros (Class AA; Eastern League) are holding a team rebranding contest, and some of the finalists — Gum Dippers, Tire Jacks — are certainly noteworthy. You don’t see too many rebranding contests in the minors, and the premise of this one is pretty simple: either the Aeros name will be retained or a […]