Ben shares your first Minor League moments

Plus, what the heck is the sapphire jubilee edition? [Ben's Biz Beat]( [By Benjamin Hill]( July 27, 2023 When Queen Elizabeth reached the 65th anniversary of her reign, in 2017, it was dubbed her sapphire jubilee. That’s an impressive term and shouldn’t be used strictly in a monarchical context. I’m reclaiming it for the common man. Therefore: Welcome to the 65th -- and therefore sapphire jubilee edition -- of the Ben’s Biz Beat Newsletter. It shall be a crowning achievement. Let’s talk about Minor League Baseball.   YOU NEVER FORGET YOUR FIRST: READERS SHARE MINOR LEAGUE MEMORIES In each of the past three newsletters, I asked you, the presumably loyal reader, to share memories of your first Minor League Baseball game. The responses trickled in at first, then the pace gradually quickened until I belatedly realized that the trickle had turned into a deluge. By that point I was soaking wet and, per usual, I couldn’t find my galoshes.  What follows are three of the many replies (I’ll share additional replies over the coming weeks and months as well). Thanks to all respondents, whoever you are and wherever you may be.  We begin with an in-depth and touching multi-generational missive from Karen Meyer, who also sent along photos. Her first game was at Frisco’s Dr Pepper Ballpark on August 20, 2006, in which the hometown RoughRiders took on the Springfield Cardinals. [At a Frisco RoughRiders game] A neighbor from my hometown was the high school coach for Eric Hurley, a pitcher who was drafted by the Texas Rangers. We went to the game hoping to see him pitch and say hello. My dad had been following Eric's progress through the Minor Leagues, so we took him and my mom to the game. My dad was a big baseball fan and was involved in Little League baseball for as long as I can remember. He coached my brothers' teams, volunteered as treasurer of the organization for about 30 years, mowed the lawns at the fields and used his carpentry skills to build whatever was needed at the ballparks until Parkinson's Disease slowly robbed him of these abilities. [Karen's husband and son] My husband and young son also attended the RoughRiders game that night. It was a risky outing because our 4-year-old-son had been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and was sometimes difficult to manage in loud public settings. He had sensory processing issues that affected his ability to cope with loud sounds and he also had a severe language and communication impairment.  The game we attended started out with "The Colonel," who rode his horse named Thunder around the warning track of the outfield. He came by to talk to my dad sitting in his wheelchair and tried to interact with our very distracted son. [The Colonel with fans] Years later, in 2014, my nephew was drafted by the Seattle Mariners, but sadly my dad passed away in 2009 and was unable to see his grandson pitch his way up to the Double-A level with the Arkansas Travelers. Our son is now 21 years old and carrying on my dad's love for baseball. He is an avid fan of the Texas Rangers and Frisco RoughRiders and he plays baseball for the local Frisco Miracle League. We took him to so many Frisco RoughRiders games that I decided I might as well just get a job there and I have been an usher since 2018.  This year the Frisco RoughRiders players wear their red throwback jerseys on Sundays and they have a horse named Diva who runs along the warning track with her rider. It definitely sends me back to memories of that summer evening in 2006 at our first Minor League Baseball game. ­-- Karen Meyer [READ THE FRISCO ROUGHRIDERS MINOR LEAGUE BALLPARK GUIDE HERE]( Scott Hanz went to his first game on June 19, 1981, seeing the San Antonio Dodgers play the Amarillo Gold Sox at San Antonio’s V.J. Keefe Memorial Stadium. He notes that his great-uncle, who accompanied him, attended Minor League games at five different San Antonio ballparks over the course of his lifetime (League Park, Tech Field, Mission Stadium, V.J. Keefe Stadium and Nelson Wolff Stadium). San Antonio won 1-0. It was a quick, well-played game. Rich Rodas pitched for San Antonio and Andy Hawkins for Amarillo.  The plate umpire was Pam Postema. My uncle alerted me to that on our way to the game, saying that she could be a big league ump. Based on the game I saw, I agreed. I remember the P.A. announcer opened a beer can over the mic just before first pitch. He apparently did that for each game. He would announce each Dodger player emphatically, including their nickname, if they had one. They even had an organist squeezed into the small perch area between the upper and lower levels of the park.  V.J. Keefe was small and upgraded to Minor League standards of the time. It was originally a park for a local NAIA school, St. Mary's University. Since [Roy Hofheinz]( wouldn't allow old Mission Stadium to be used, Keefe had to be upgraded to get pro ball back in 1968. It was fun and I still have the program, but it's very brittle. -- Scott Hanz  Finally (for now), Joe Van Gallen recounts his 1994 visit to see the only Garden State entity to ever play in the New York-Penn League.  My first Minor League game was a visit to Skylands Park in 1994 to see the Class A Short-Season New Jersey Cardinals take on the Hudson Valley Renegades. I remember the team was new; so new, in fact, that much of their merchandise still had ‘Glen Falls’ written on it. At the time I had no idea they were not actually 'new' but rather a relocated Glen Falls, N.Y., team. It was very confusing to my 13-year-old brain.  Anyway, I never saw a game. We sat through a two-hour rain delay complete with no actual rain, a very angry crowd, and a very drunk man who ran around the stadium leading the frustrated crowd through the national anthem in hopes they'd start the game. I remember the tarp was off, the field looked fine to me, but I guess there were still some issues somewhere, because I went home without a game. Who knew a kid with access to both Mets and Yankees games would still be disappointed for not seeing a 'lowly' Class A Short-Season team?  I did eventually get to see the Cardinals play in Skylands Park the next season. After that, I saw probably a half dozen games of theirs, and a few of the New Jersey Jackals before Florida called to me. Anyway, I love Minor League Baseball. -- Joe Van Gallen  Stay tuned for more first-game memories in future newsletters, and stay tuned next week for a practically overwhelming cavalcade of newsworthy MiLB items. Also, please note once again that I will be on the road at the start of August: [Ben's next road trip] Get in touch anytime for any reason at all: benjamin.hill@mlb.com. Wish I could write more, but someone nearby is disturbing me with their increasingly disgruntled throat clearings. This impatient and impertinent person is, of course…   JOSH JACKSON INTERRUPTS [Josh Jackson Interrupts]( This is Josh Jackson, flagging you down before you take off. I host Ghosts of the Minors, the segment on [The Show Before The Show podcast]( that dares all of you out there in radio land (or newsletter land) to identify the real historical Minor League team hidden amidst two phonies. In the last episode, we suited up with the Bremerton Bluejackets. This week, we ask which of these teams refused to act its age in the Minors of yesteryear: - The Ocala Oldtimers - The Lake Erie Seniors - The Dayton Veterans For the answer, tune in to the next Ghosts of the Minors!   [IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE INTERESTED IN RECEIVING THIS NEWSLETTER, TELL THEM TO SUBSCRIBE HERE](   Contact [Benjamin Hill](mailto:benjamin.hill@mlb.com) [Twitter]( Online]( © 2023 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. Subscription required. Blackout and other restrictions may apply. Please review our [Privacy Policy](. You ({EMAIL}) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from [MiLB.com](. Please add info@mail.milblists.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from [MiLB.com]( please [unsubscribe]( or log in and [manage your email subscriptions](. Postal Address: [MiLB.com]( c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.