Minor League Ballpark Guides are back

Plus, the final chapter of reader recommendations [Ben's Biz Beat]( [By Benjamin Hill]( November 17, 2022 Imagine, if you will, that each edition of this newsletter represents one side of a polygon. That shape you’re imagining, then, is a triacontagon. Welcome to the 30th edition of the Ben’s Biz Beat, your best source for information on, and ruminations related to, Minor League Baseball business and culture.       [Explore ONEOK Field]( MINOR LEAGUE BALLPARK GUIDES: THE RETURN  The 2022 baseball season may be larger than it appears, but that’s only because it’s in the rearview mirror. With this being the case, I have had much more time to write Minor League Ballpark Guides. For those who may not be familiar with this undertaking, a brief overview:  The [Minor League Ballpark Guide]( project provides in-depth explorations of active Minor League facilities. Learn about unique features, standout concession items, team history, things to do (and eat) in the surrounding area and much, much more. Use them as a resource to plan your own ballpark road trip, or simply to learn more about each team in your favorite MLB organization’s farm system. [Explore CHS Field]( The Minor League Ballpark Guide project is now more than 2/3rds complete, with new editions now appearing regularly throughout the offseason. I’m currently focusing on locations I visited in 2022, including these recent installments:  [Tulsa's ONEOK Field]( located in the city's historic Greenwood District. Hobnob with a blue bull and grab a gargantuan order of Street Fries before settling in to watch the hometown Drillers.  [St. Paul's CHS Field]( home to Minor League Baseball's weirdest and wildest gameday experience. After many years as an independent team, the hometown Saints are now affiliated with the nearby Minnesota Twins.  At some point on or near Opening Day 2023, the entirety of the Minor League Ballpark Guide will be made available as part of a searchable interactive map. As such, it will be an unprecedented resource for ballpark road trip planning. Stay tuned, and in the meantime please take some time to explore the 80+ guides that are currently available.  [SEE ALL MINOR LEAGUE BALLPARK GUIDES HERE](   [Bacon USA hits the road](   AWAY MEAT: LEHIGH VALLEY BRINGS THE ROAD BACON Does your favorite Minor League team have a food-based alternate identity? If so, you have the Lehigh Valley IronPigs to thank (or blame). In 2014, the Triple-A Philadelphia affiliate unveiled bacon-centric alternate uniforms, thereby laying the groundwork for the feast of gastronomically oriented hats and jerseys that soon followed.  The IronPigs have once again entered uncharted food-centric territory, as last week they announced that, come 2023, they will wear “Bacon USA” uniforms during all away games. The gray jerseys read just that across the front, with the “B” and “U” containing smoke lines emanating from the bacon strips positioned just underneath. Mascot Chris P. Bacon, one of the IronPigs on-field meat racers, is depicted on the sleeve.  Check out the team’s new road look [HERE](. (Unfortunately they didn’t put together a sizzle reel.)   HOPELESSLY OBSCURE MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL TRIVIA QUESTION In addition to their longstanding bacon-centric branding, the IronPigs unveiled a new meat-based alternate identity this season: The Lehigh Valley Scrapple  They weren’t the first Minor League team to play as the Scrapple, however. Who was the first club to suit up in honor of this pork-based pan-fried mush?   JOSH JACKSON INTERRUPTS This is Josh Jackson in the reading room, shushing all of you out there in newsletter land, but only to get your attention. I host The Show Before the Show podcast’s Ghosts of the Minors segment, in which I ask you to identify a legitimate historical Minor League team hiding among two pretenders.  In the last episode, we elected to learn about the Bentonville Officeholders. This week, I ask you which of these landlocked clubs was out to sea in the Minors of yesteryear:  A) The Dodge City Sailors B) The Dallas Submarines C) The Las Cruces Clippers  For the answer, [tune in next time]( won’t you?     LISTEN UP: THE YOUNG PROFESSOR JOINS THE SHOW BEFORE THE SHOW PODCAST [The Show Before the Show podcast]( New episodes of “The Show Before the Show” podcast are released every Friday. In last week’s episode -- #382 for those keeping score at home -- myself, Tyler Maun and Sam Dykstra were joined by Daytona Tortugas emcee Matt “The Young Professor” Graifer. Among other things, Graifer talks about his career evolution, approach to the craft and his status as (possibly) the best dressed emcee in all of baseball.  [LISTEN TO EPISODE #382 OF ‘THE SHOW BEFORE THE SHOW’ PODCAST HERE](   QUESTIONS OF MINOR CONCERN Last week’s question: What is your favorite baseball card featuring a Minor League player or personality?  This question received a fairly light response, to the extent that no one got in touch to suggest this (my feelings are hurt): [Ben's Biz tossing TP] But I must roll on from this toilet paper oversight, transitioning from two ply to two replies:  “This one is easy,” wrote George Cusack, submitting a card featuring Sacramento River Cats broadcaster ([and poet]( Johnny Doskow. [Johnny Doskow card] “My favorite is my Don Mattingly Nashville Sounds card,” wrote Johnny Bowlin. “What I like about it besides the player is that on the back of the card is all of the Arby’s locations and their phone numbers in metro Nashville.” [Don Mattingly card ] [Don Mattingly card back] This week’s question: If you could choose one Minor League concession item to include as part of your Thanksgiving meal, what would it be? Email your answer to [benjamin.hill@mlb.com.](mailto:Benjamin.hill@mlb.com)   MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS: THE FINAL CHAPTER Prior to asking about Minor League Baseball cards, I asked you, for two straight weeks, about Minor League Baseball books. Before closing the, uh, book on this topic, I’d like to share the following recommendation list from a loyal reader who requested anonymity. [Recommended reading] Six non-fiction books on life in the Minor Leagues:  "The Boys Who Would be Cubs," by Joseph Bosco "Class A: Baseball in the Middle of Everywhere," by Lucas Mann "What's a Nice Harvard Boy Like You Doing in the Bushes?" by Rick Wolff "Harvard Boys," by Rick Wolff and John Wolff "The Heart of the Game," by Paul Hemphill "Brave Dreams," by Bill Ballew [More recommended reading] A couple more non-fiction but about the Independent Leagues: "Can't Find a Dry Ball," by Garret Mathews "Minor Players, Major Dreams," by Brett H. Mandel [Even more recommended reading] A couple fiction books: "Aeonia Dreams," by Pat Owens "Dreamfield," by Ethan D. Bryan  Happy reading!   DON'T LEAVE HUNGRY Apropos of looking at an alphabetic list of Minor League teams, I find myself thinking of the Aberdeen IronBirds. I visited the team in 2018 for their [Steamed Crabs Night]( during which fans could purchase a “Crab Feast” ticket special that included a team logo crab mallet. (Aberdeen, for the record, is in Maryland.) [Steamed crabs from Aberdeen](   HOPELESSLY OBSCURE MINOR LEAGUE TRIVIA ANSWER! The first Minor League team to adopt a “Scrapple” alternate identity was the Delmarva Shorebirds, who first suited up as such in 2018. The Shorebirds, currently located one rung below Aberdeen in the Baltimore Orioles system, are based in Salisbury, Maryland. “Whether you enjoy your scrapple thin and crispy or thick and mushy, on an egg and cheese sandwich, with ketchup, grape jelly, or with maple syrup, this celebration is for you,” the team wrote in [a press release](. [Delmarva Scrapple](   [IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE INTERESTED IN RECEIVING THIS NEWSLETTER, TELL THEM TO SUBSCRIBE HERE](   Contact [Benjamin Hill](mailto:benjamin.hill@mlb.com) [Twitter]( Online]( © 2022 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. [Visit MLB.com](. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners. 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