Travelerocity

Coming home: An on-deck guide and open thread for the second home stand on April 25-May 2

(Dickey-Stephens Park painting by Steve Spencer. Find his work at Spinadelic.com, buy on Etsy, or visit the Facebook page.)

Tulsa Drillers (Colorado Rockies)

Schedule:

Monday, April 25, 7:10 p.m. -- Rained out

Tueday, April 26, 7:10 p.m. -- Rained out

Wednesday, April 27, 5:10 p.m. -- Reddy Ice/AT&T night

Thursday, April 28, 7:10 p.m. -- Bark in the Park night, radio broadcast of game from Hookslide Corner

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Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Kansas City Royals)

Friday, April 29, 7:10 p.m. -- The Amazing Christopher

Saturday, April 30, 7:10 p.m. -- Hank Conger replica jersey, Riverside Acura postgame ball toss

Sunday, May 1, 2 p.m. -- Travs kids clinic before game

Monday, May 2, 11 a.m. -- Screaming kids day

 

Best wishes to Brandon Wood as he finally escapes Los Angeles

The above photo is Brandon Wood's first at-bat with the Arkansas Travelers, which took place on April 16, 2006. Other than the news-making shot of the "NLR" on the jerseys as revealed in the preseason workout at Ray Winder Field, this was the first original photo that ran on Travelerocity.

So Wood, who was one of the biggest prospects in Minor League Baseball that year and had the highest ceiling of any player to come through Little Rock since probably J.D. Drew, will always have a special place in the annals of this website.

However... I'm not a scout, but I play one on the Internet, and it was proposed on this website by myself and others that the Angels should trade Wood while his stock was rising to get more value because there were some red flags while he was here that suggested he might not be the next Cal Ripken (as one professional scout dubbed him).

With that said, Travelerocity wishes Wood nothing but the best as he restarts his career in Pittsburgh after having been dumped by Angels manager Mike Sciosia. Looking forward to seeing him play more now that he is in a nearer time zone playing in a division much of Arkansas devotedly follows.

Pittsburgh is going to let Wood roam the infield until they find the spot that fits him best, and they are going to give him time to develop at the plate. Here's hoping this works out big time for Wood and the Pirates' No. 1 fan, Travs radio voice Phil Elson.

We've got your back, B Wood.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Greenberg turns in a preseason gem in annual baseball column

Since opening day at Dickey-Stephens Park, I have been looking for the annual baseball column by Paul Greenberg, the editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Can the season really begin until Greenberg says, "Play ball?"

Turns out I missed it because Greenberg wrote the annual piece at the end of March after attending the Arkansas Razorbacks' appearance at Dickey-Stephens -- and it's a gem, maybe his best in years. My favorite parts deal with the difference between college baseball and the minor league as excerpted below:

College baseball is to the pros as a senior prom is to Baryshnikov, yet it’s still the same game. There are still glimpses of the same balletic moves when a shortstop makes an impossible catch, or almost does. And one quality colors every play, whether or not anything happens: expectation.

And yet something is missing. The stands are full, a sea of red-and-white, the Razorback colors, but it all seems a tamer version of the real game, as college baseball will. It is all — how should I put it? — too wholesome.

The clean-cut young players are still at the outset of their careers and life. There is none of that Texas League mix of weathered old-timers on the way down and promising young rookies on their way up, mixed with players who will always be minor-league.

It is in the minor leagues where the spirit of baseball still lives, not fresh but gritty. But tonight all is washed clean as the fresh uniforms. The creases are yet unformed on the young faces, the malice of time still to come.

The white-bread families in the stands are an advertisement for the good life. The grandma a seat over reaches across the squirming little boy between us and brushes the popcorn crumbs off his seat, keeping things as neat as in her living room. At some point Edward Hopper has given way to Norman Rockwell.

The well-behaved crowd erupts in cheers in the eighth, Arkansas’s big inning, but it’s the kind of cheering you might hear at a college graduation. Loud but appropriate. All is niceness, and I’m not sure I can stand it.

The little stadium is a well-designed, G-rated, deliberate re-creation of an early 20th Century ballpark. In tonight’s crowd, there is a paucity of the hard-faced women and beefy men in unfortunate shorts you might see at a poorly attended minor-league game in the middle of a lackluster season.

It’s enough to make you wonder what’s happened to the American character, and whether it’s still capable of a little saving decadence. All I ask is just a touch of the sordid. But the Arkansas Travelers of the Texas League play their first home game here Thursday, April 14th, starting at 7:10, and we live in hope.

Severe weather once again an issue for fans at Dickey-Stephens

The above was posted on Twitter by Travelers radio sidekick R.J. Hawk after severe weather once again hit Dickey-Stephens Park on Tuesday night.

For the safety of everyone at the stadium -- especially the fans who have to walk to their cars because there is nowhere to hide in an open concourse as well as the guys in the broadcast booth -- it is completely ridiculous that the game would continue up to the point that tornado sirens are going off.

Thanks to Arkansas' Weatherman Ed Buckner and the army of weather guys on the local stations, we know well in advance when a storm is on the way and can predict with a fair amount of certainty down to the minute at what point it will hit a certain part of town.

I guess tornado warnings are like steroids used to be to baseball -- the warnings don't apply until the damage is already done and something is then officially written into the rulebook.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Actual attendance figures reveal big difference in reported attendance numbers from Travs

A story in Monday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette by Jake Sandlin examines attendance trends in the first four years of Dickey-Stephens Park and development that was expected to occur around the ballpark.

While the Arkansas Travelers don't report actual attendance to the public, the franchise is apparently required to report it to North Little Rock government officials.

Perhaps the greatest revelation in the story is that we actually get to see the difference in the announced crowd, which is the figure the Travs push off as attendance and is reported in the box score, versus the real number of people in the stadium, which the Travs know every night thanks to the ticket scanners everyone must pass through on their way in the gates.

Here's a breakdown of announced attendance versus actual attendance the last two years:

Average 2009 announced attendance -- 5,416
Average 2009 actual attendance -- 3,087

Average 2010 announced attendance -- 4,940
Average 2010 actual attendance -- 2,662

There is a big difference in the numbers when you take away all the season ticket holders and advertisers that get seats who aren't there on a nightly bases.

Sure, everyone does it, will be the front office's excuse, and was from Bill Valentine when the issue was raised on this website a couple of years ago. If the University of Arkansas can drastically exaggerate attendance at a spring football game, why can't everyone else?

Still, it's not an honest figure, and as long as they are keeping track, why not report both? Some people are actually interested in seeing the real attendance.

Another issue Sandlin's article touches on is the development around the ballpark that was apparently expected back when Dickey-Stephens was under construction.

Can you believe someone actually thought it would be a good idea to build some kind of high-rise building in the open space beyond center field and a shopping development along the left-field side?

Man, why bother even putting it next to the river if you are going to turn around and let someone block the view with a multi-story building? Wait, I guess that's what North Little Rock allowed with Verizon Arena so don't be surprised if this eventually happens.

Farewell, Peabody ducks.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Coming home: An on-deck guide and open thread for the first home stand on April 14-19

(Dickey-Stephens Park painting by Steve Spencer. Find his work at Spinadelic.com, buy on Etsy, or visit the Facebook page.)

Finally, the Travelers come home to the place beautifully depicted in the above painting. It will be the Central Arkansas introduction to the No. 2 prospect in Minor League Baseball, Mike Trout, who has already hit three home runs that included one grand slam. Including Arkansas' Trout, this home stand features three of the top prospects in Minor League Baseball with Midland multimillionaire shortstop Grant Green and Frisco's future MLB ace Martin Perez. What follows below is a  brief guide to the promotions and top players to watch in this first home stand of the season.

Midland RockHounds (Oakland A's)

Schedule:

Thursday, April 14, 7:10 p.m. -- Opening night featuring Leonard Hamilton and D.J. Williams

Friday, April 15, 7:10 p.m. -- Magnet schedules to first 5,000

Saturday, April 16, 6 p.m. -- Magnet schedules to next 5,000

Players to watch:

9 Grant Green, shortstop -- No. 63 prospect in Minor League Baseball, A's No. 1 prospect, $2.75-million signing bonus, A's top draft pick in '09 out of USC, '10 Topps all star, '10 Futures Game, '10 California League all star

43 Fautino De Los Santos, relief pitcher -- A's No. 13 prospect, part of trade to White Sox for Nick Swisher

19 Steve Parker, third base -- A's No. 24 prospect, Mountain West co-freshman of the year with Stephen Strasburg in '07, '10 Topps all star, '10 California League all star

18 Michael Spina, first base -- Leads team in batting average

22 Shawn Haviland, starting pitcher -- '10 California League all star

11 Carlos Hernandez, starting pitcher -- '10 Texas League all star

27 Ethan Hollingsworth, starting pitcher -- '10 California League all star

21 Jared Lansford, relief pitcher -- '10 Texas League all star

33 Paul Smyth, relief pitcher -- '10 MLB.com short-season relief pitcher of the year

31 Yusef Carter, catcher -- nephew of former MLB star Joe Carter

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Frisco RoughRiders (Texas Rangers)

Schedule:

Sunday, April 17, 4 p.m. -- Reusable grocery bag to first 2,000

Monday, April 18, 11 a.m. -- Screaming Kids Day

Tuesday, April 19, 7:10 p.m. -- Exxon family night

Players to watch:

45 Martin Perez, starting pitcher -- No. 24 prospect in Minor League Baseball, Rangers' No. 1 prospect, 19 years old, signed for $580,000 out of Venezuela, potential MLB rotation ace

7 Engel Beltre, center field -- Rangers' No. 5 prospect, centerpiece of Eric Gagne trade with Red Sox

41 Miguel De Los Santos, starting pitcher -- Rangers' No. 10 prospect

47 Fabio Castillo, relief pitcher -- Rangers' No. 23 prospect, '10 AFL Rising Stars

18 Jose Felix, catcher -- Rangers' No. 26 prospect, '10 California League all star

49 Jacob Brigham, starting pitcher -- Rangers' No. 30 prospect

50 Jose Ruiz, first base -- Leads team in batting average and on-base percentage

33 Michael Bianuchi, left field -- Leads team in home runs

24 Tommy Mendonca, third base -- '08 College World Series MVP at Fresno State

13 Renny Osuna, shortstop -- '10 Texas League all star

Five demands for Travs fans as Dickey-Stephens opens season

What should Travelers fans expect in order to fully enjoy the next five months of baseball at Dickey-Stephens? Here are five demands suggestions for a successful season.

1) Play to win

If I wanted to watch extended spring training, I would find video on the Internet or go visit Aunt Grace in Arizona. The Travelers should be playing a hard nine every night, not a hard three followed by a soft six to evaluate some new relief pitchers. The manager should not be sending base runners to second and third when it is a certain out just because the guy in Los Angeles said to.

Sorry, but the fans are paying to watch a team try to win, not to have a glorified practice. If the Angels' version of Minor League Baseball wants to be something else, tell us now and we will go watch games at Junior Deputy or Burns Park instead where winning actually matters (sometimes too much thanks to overzealous adults) the entire season.

2) Compete the entire season

The Travelers don't have to finish first every half of the season, but the team should at least be competitive in both halves. And what they should not ever do is finish last in a four-team division. As a bonus, it would be nice if the Travelers could consistently finish ahead of the upstart Naturals so that the arrogant jokers in northwest Arkansas would not have one more thing to brag about. If you want to shut up the contingent that longs for the days of yore with the St. Louis Cardinals as the parent team, beating up on Springfield is also a good idea.

In order to compete, that means a commitment from the Angels to supply the team with enough talent to do the job and leave them there long enough to complete it. Although we'd love to have him stay, it's understandable when someone like Mike Trout gets moved up on the fast track. What is not appreciated is when the average player helping the team win is shifted just to fill a bench spot in Salt Lake City.

3) Green grass

Not knocking the grounds crew at Dickey-Stephens Park because it is a tough job to make the magic that grows grass, but why is it that all these other baseball stadiums can have great-looking green grass yet it is frequently a problem in North Little Rock? Did something leak out of the tugboat and poison the soil?

In the winter, we're told the brown patches are caused because the grass hasn't come in yet, and then later in the summer it's because the heat is stifling the growth. Why do I get the feeling the problem stems back from Bill Valentine doing something on the cheap when the grass was installed by the Major League guy?

4) Weather warnings

The night of the devastating tornado outbreak in Central Arkansas in 2008, there was absolutely no announcement from the Travelers public address system. Many fans were puzzled as they walked to their cars with the tornado sirens blaring and then proceeded to drive into the storm.

Since that day, the Travs front office has done better, sometimes flashing up the weather radar on the video screen (albeit briefly so as not to interrupt the ads), but this can never happen again. Sure, many people have iPhones and can watch the weather radar on their own. Those same people may be numskulls oblivious to the weather who are trying to hook up on Facebook instead.

When bad weather approaches, the public must be alerted sooner than when the umpire twirls his finger in the air.

5) Fun

This is the most important and easiest to fill. All you need: baseball, field, summer nights, lemonade, hot dogs, scorecards, organ music, peanuts, popcorn, and Cracker Jacks, Damgoode Pies, Hookslide's Corner, home runs landing on the berm, kids playing catch in the suite-level concourse, promotions, downtown skyline with Peabody ducks, wild kids in playground, fireworks, "Feelin' Good Again," scoreboard show crackling on KARN on the drive home, Shelly, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" with the finish only Phil Elson can put on it, kids teams in uniform, unusual items on the way out (a loaf of bread?), bobbleheads, Travs stuff in the souvenir shop (the only place to buy the Cardinals team set), the Star Wars Cantina AKA Ump's, Cold Beer Johnny, familiar faces of ushers (although a travesty one in particular was slandered and not hired) and autograph hounds, those early moments when no one has shown up yet, screams of SpongeBob SquarePants on "businessman's special" games, and, of course, Bill Valentine complaining about the relievers.

Do your thing, Travs. Play ball.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Trout hits grand slam in Frisco

First grand slam of his professional career. Second home run of the season. Let the Trout show begin at Dickey-Stephens Park.

UPDATE:

Make it two home runs for Tuesday. Three for the season.

ESPN ruined Sunday night baseball by ousting Miller and Morgan from broadcast booth

Nothing against Dan Shulman because he is a fine announcer, but Jon Miller and Joe Morgan were beautiful together on Sunday night baseball for the last 20 years. Why ESPN would ruin what was perhaps the best pairing in the booth for a national broadcast in the history of baseball is beyond me.

The absence of these two Baseball Hall of Fame voices leaves me changing the channel on Sunday nights, which is an important night for the sport because it basically serves as Major League Baseball's grand stage each week.

Shulman, though talented, is just another broadcasting voice who can do any sport. In addition to doing baseball for ESPN, he also calls the NBA and college basketball for the network. He could just as easily be the voice of Mountain West basketball late Monday nights on ESPN2.

And he is a Canadian calling America's game!

Miller and Morgan were part of the poetry of baseball. For 20 years, their voices read the central narrative of the game.

They weren't just announcers. They were baseball.

What a downgrade. It's going to be hard to watch this season. Good to know I can still hear Miller doing San Francisco Giants games through the magic of XM Radio. But his weekly pairing with Morgan will be sorely missed.

Also, WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THE SCREEN SIZE THAT IS DIFFERENT THAN EVERY OTHER CHANNEL, ESPN AND ESPN2?

-- Travelerocity reporter

Media Watch: None of TV sportscasts mention Travs score on Saturday night

I'm glad I restarted the TV News Scoreboard because there is work to do.

On the Saturday-night sportscasts during the 10 p.m. news, not one of the four local stations showed the score of the Travelers game or mentioned anything about the team.

This is a particular disgrace on a Saturday night when each sportscast is benefitting from more alloted time than is typical on a weekday and don't have to worry about a buzzer going off after only two minutes.

A three-second flash of the score after the Major League Baseball highlights would have been at least something.

But nothing. A disgrace from the local media.

In other news, the Travs are now 0-3 as of Saturday night and are on pace to finish like a typical Los Angeles Angels Double-A team.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Finally, the TV News Scoreboard HAS COME BACK to Travelerocity

Sports departments at Central Arkansas television stations, you are officially on notice -- a popular feature on Travelerocity from the days of yore is returning for the 2011 season.

The television news scoreboard, a season-long competition among the four local newscasts, begins Thursday night as the Arkansas Travelers open the season on the road in Midland.

The scoring is derived primarily from a sampling of the 10 p.m. sportscasts each week. For those still wondering how the mysterious scoring works, here is a breakdown:

Show the score with no video - 1 point

Show video highlights from the game - 3 points

Say "former Traveler" during an MLB highlight - 1 point each

Feature on Travs not about game - point total depends on length and quality of package

Show NWA Naturals video highlight - minus 1 point

Win the best coverage of the night - 1 additional point

So there you have it, KARK, KATV, KTHV, and KLRT, once again it's on.

KTHV is the defending champion, and I fully expect them to repeat.

-- Travelerocity reporter

Some kind of holiday: The sanctity of opening day for Travs at Dickey-Stephens Park

The Arkansas Travelers offer an abundance of great promotions for the fans throughout the summer -- there is certainly no lack in the amount of cool schwag to take home and special guests to see at every home stand.

Promotions are great to attract casual fans and even non-fans at one of the 69 games during the next five months, but there is one game that should be treated with a certain reverence and be the lone night that is tailored specifically to the baseball fan -- opening day.

Opening day is not just another game. It is on the level of being some kind of holiday that needs as much pomp and pageantry as can be fit in one stadium.

It needs VIPs throwing out the first pitch and celebrities singing the national anthem. It needs a nod to history. It needs flyovers. It needs bunting. It needs a contribution from the parent club. Whatever it needs, it needs to be special.

That said, I was disappointed with opening day at Dickey-Stephens Park last season. It felt like just another game.

What the Travs need on April 14 is a megastar singing the national anthem, and the highest-profile person they can come up with to throw out the opening pitch.

All over the country, "American Idol" performers are showing up at baseball games singing the national anthem. Central Arkansas is lucky to have an actual winner in Kris Allen, a natural to draw enough attention to put this game on the pedestal it deserves.

Or what about Amy Lee from Evanescence, R&B superstar Ne-Yo, country music's Tracy Lawrence, soul legend Al Green, Hall of Famer Glen Campbell? Maybe these names sound out of reach, but that is what opening day is about -- dreaming big.

And to throw out the first pitch? If you can't get a legendary former player such as Lou Brock or Brooks Robinson, go for the biggest name available: Mike Anderson, Billy Bob Thornton (he would do it), Mary Steenburgen (also would do it), John Daly, Darren McFadden, the list goes on.

I know, easier said than done. Who or what do you want out of opening day?

-- Travelerocity reporter

Mike Trout era begins for Travs

The Los Angeles Angels have assigned players to its Double-A stepchild, and as predicted, center fielder Mike Trout -- ranked by many as the best player in Minor League Baseball and called by one scout the next Mickey Mantle -- will start the season as a member of the Arkansas Travelers.

So as the Trout era begins, the question is, how long will it last?

Some say this 19-year-old will make the Angels roster this year. Is he on the fast track to Salt Lake City, or will he spend most of the season developing at Dickey-Stephens Park? That's the key question for Travs fans in the 2011 season.

In addition to Trout, looks like the Angels are providing the Travs with a handful of top pitching prospects and a decent third baseman, but beyond that, it's time to find out!

Some select excerpts from the Travs' press release:

The spotlight is unquestionably shining on Trout as MLB.com, MLB Network and ESPN.com all named the 19-year old from Millville, New Jersey native the Top Prospect in Baseball but he is certainly not the only prospect on the roster. The Travs feature three of the Angels top pitching prospects in their starting rotation including right-handers Garrett Richards and Orangel Arenas, and 2009 Texas League All-Star left-hander Trevor Reckling. 

 

Trout is joined in the outfield by Angel Castillo, who's 21 home runs were fourth amongst Angels minor league players. Clay Fuller, who tore up the California League after a mid-season demotion in 2010, returns to the Travelers' outfield while six-year free agent Marvin Lowrance joins the Travs after spending the previous seven seasons in the Washington Nationals organization.

 

The Travelers infield features a host of familiar names including first baseman Jay Brossman, who's 2010 season was cut short due to a back injury after opening the year as the Travs starting third baseman. After initially struggling at Double-A, returning utility infielder Roberto Lopez was the Travs hottest hitting in the last month of the 2010 season. Luis Jimenez, rated 22nd amongst Angels prospects by Baseball America, takes over at third base. Shortstop Darwin Perez is one of the most highly touted fielders in the Angels organization and is joined by second baseman Ryan Mount who attempts to come back from an injury-filled 2010.

 

Richards (7th), Reckling (11th) and Arenas (20th) are all ranked by Baseball America amongst the Angels top prospects. Richards led all Angels farm hands with 149 strikeouts between the Angels' Cedar Rapids and Rancho Cucamonga affiliates last year. His 3.52 ERA was second-lowest while Orenas was third in the organization at 3.64. Reckling finished 2010 in the Travs rotation after suffering through a rough few months at Triple-A last year. Right hander Kyle Hurst also joins the starting rotation while the final spot will be filled by a piggyback combo of right hander Eddie McKiernan and lefty Andrew Taylor. McKiernan was the top closer in the Angels organization with 28 saves, while Taylor ranks 28th amongst Angels prospects according to Baseball America.