Connecticut Defenders make a lasting impression
If the Connecticut franchise moves to Richmond next year -- and that seems the most likely scenario -- San Francisco's Class AA club and its current fan base will likely part on a good note.
The Connecticut franchise hasn't made the Eastern League playoffs since 2002, the last season it was affiliated with the New York Yankees.
But heading into last night's activity, the Defenders were 49-34 and leading the Eastern League North Division. Connecticut has several well-regarded young prospects, especially on its pitching staff, and is led for the first season by Steve Decker, a former big-league catcher.
"We play very traditional National League baseball," said Charlie Dowd, the franchise's general manager. "Steve Decker bunts, hits and runs, moves runners along."
Connecticut is a remarkable 31-12 on the road, but a not-so-hot 18-22 at home.
"We're not sure if it's the air, the water, or if [Connecticut's Dodd Stadium is] built on an empty graveyard," Dowd said. "It's bizarre."
Dowd said he didn't believe the speculation since February that Connecticut would relocate to Richmond in 2010 has affected the players' performance at home.
"In terms of support, our [attendance is] up slightly," Dowd said.
The Defenders still rank 11th among 12 Eastern League clubs in average home attendance (2,708). Only Erie (2,673) trails Connecticut.
By Aug. 1, Minor League Baseball and the Eastern League are expected to assign one of the 12 Eastern League franchises to Richmond. A Richmond-based ownership group, Richmond Baseball Club LC, failed to buy the Defenders earlier this year. If Connecticut does come to Richmond, the franchise's president/managing partner, Lou DiBella, would likely remain in that capacity.
DiBella earlier this week chose not to comment on the potential relocation.
The Eastern League all-star game is Wednesday in Trenton, N.J., home of the New York Yankees' Class AA affiliate.
Contact John O'Connor at (804) 649-6233 or
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Reader Reactions
Attendance numbers in all the major sports are always based on tickets SOLD not tickets USED. So ddub is correct in saying those numbers are inflated. Now 2000-3000 a night inflated I would disagree with, but certainly they probably had 5000-6000 in the stands a night.
We have a new team and new owners? Must have missed MiLB and the powers that be’s approval of the relocation application for CT or any other team.
I’ll agree with the past management/owner structure did not work—- that’s why most teams have LOCAL ownership now in their minor league feeder systems. The corporately owned Braves minor league teams are one of a few that still exist today.
With all the money in personal wealth and corporations that are remaining in Richmond, you would think that the deal Mr. Bostic would have come to fruition. However, at the end of the day, failed to pay the purchase price for the team, which is why we are back to discussing locations.
Whoever is granted permission to relocate their team here will have to deal with the stadium issue. Be curious to see how many of you (HONDO included) support and write checks to help get this stadium built with private/corporate money wherever it is built. Will Bostic and his mysterious investors surface and throw their money behind the stadium if the new owners are paying the team’s bills (frees up their original $$$)? Will Diradour still have his uniting passion if the BLVD location isn’t tapped to be it?
Will the Mayor stand on his high rail defense, and forget his original endorsement (not to mention the additional study he required before making the endorsement) of the Bottom location?
Perhaps the better way to have handled this was to keep the gag order in place until all details were discussed. All money paid, and contracts signed….ie, when the deal was DONE and CLOSED, not ALMOST so. Too many last minute things happen in business and politics to have not learned the lesson and damage done when speculation occurs.
Emotions would have been saved, speculations would be few and at the very least saved embarrassment of how the Richmond Region is not a region at all but as someone said a collection of neighborhoods, and at the end of a year and a half we still are at Square 1…no team, no stadium, no new jobs, no new development, no eyesores demolished…
Please people wakeup!! The AA team will be a breath of fresh air to the area. Good quality baseball and not the Baldwin braves of old ( he was a JERK!!) Now with new ownership and a new team people will support it.We just need everyone to warm up to the rebuild plan that was in the paper a week or so back. That was a very sound plan, well thought out and the most workable of all the plans yet.No bottom park , no 288 park just right where it’s at.If you don’t like baseball go play Communist kickball at your local park and leave baseball to the real fans. Maybe the city will grow some brains and look at the new plan with open arms. Hey folks we have some really good plans on the table let’s get busy and help these people out. Hey MR. Bostic if you really want baseball here then step up to the plate
and put your effort forward and join this group and make it happen. I dare you ,to do the right thing, if you got some ( B—-s) have a nice day!!!!
A pro baseball team, whether AA or A or less, and fancy new park seem to be a polarizing issue in this area primarily because it seems obvious it can’t be done based on the merits of private money which then begs government to fund it as they have in many other cities. With respect to why the counties seem to favor a park that exists on the Blvd if that’s true, it’s probably simple: they are already hooked into the legal obligation to pay for something there predecessors regionally did years ago and prefer not adding more county costs. If something were built elsewhere the regional people would fall apart because there is virtually no support outside Richmond for a new park that I read about. In fact, the Chesterfield Supervisors if there were a way out of the existing obligation for the Diamond would I would venture to say be happy in these times to ditch it if they could. The only study I saw about who attended regionally was done some years ago and the percentage of expense the county paid versus the number of its residents as a percentage of attendees who attended at the Diamond were wildly out of whack as in next to nothing versus the share of cost us taxpayers were picking up. Think about adding more money to that current expense stream and the current supervisors though I can’t speak for them would almost certainly say “No.“
Lance
Anyone that went to Braves games over the years knows that they were not accurate fugues, even with the ones that don’t show. They were inflated. Promoters approach their counting in several different ways. The Kind you want is someone that counts only what comes through the turnstile.
And regardless of them being on top, CT in still a bottom feeder in attendance and has been.
Holidays and weekends always tend to do better, with the obvious 4th of July being a sell out. If it’s not, something is really wrong with your marketing and promotions departments. You should be standing room only.
Some markets/teams are blessed with people(FANS) just want to be a part of the festivities on big days (4th, playoff’s, when their team is 1st in standings), and being at the ballpark is enough. Even if it means standing and walking around.
As far as your precious tax dollars… Get a list of all the projects your money goes to and write a letter to your representative and tell him/her where you want your money to be spent. I am single and with no kids…think I should have to pay for public schools? I know most people don’t go to the museums around here, should we continue to support those? If I don’t drive on certain roads that need fixing, can I pick where the money goes and divert to only the ones I use? Nice in theory, unfortunately, we have to pull together collectively or things don’t work.
Ever think that the stadium will create jobs, which means more income tax, which also means more sales tax is collected. HMMMM that means we as a region will benefit—people with income spend money outside their monthly bills, that means businesses grow and hire people. More money in the system means you’ll have money for your schools and other projects.
What I don’t understand, is that the counties are OK with the BLVD location, but not with the Bottom Development Plan. BOTH ARE LOCATED IN THE CITY. SO why oppose one and not the other? Is it because the Bottom Plan includes retail and restaurants that may pull people away from their precious “urban-like” developments called Short Pump Towne Center on ball nights. Instead of giving people a choice of where they want to spend their time before and after a game.
And don’t bring up the parking issue. Study the plan first. Parking at Stony Point and Short Pump is abhorrent. Just because you can see the place you’re wanting to go to, doesn’t mean you don’t walk a block through the parking lot to get there.
If you’re not a city person, and don’t like places like Carytown to patron local shops/restaurants and business owners, then stay in the county. You have Maggiano’s, Bar Louies and Friday’s, and I’ll have my Havana, Julep’s and Old City Bar.
To my point there are a lot of unused tickets… Season ticket holders, companies, etc don’t always use them. 2-3k unused? Yea, that’s a stretch for minor league ball. But, you also throw in the occasional sellouts for things like 4th of July or other events it will also provide an uptick in the averages. Also, note in the numbers you provided that a decrease in attendance was apparent in every season after 1999 with exception to one.
ddub, I highly doubt that someone purchased over 2000-3000 tickets PER GAME to give away for free. I think you may have just been at games that were on the lower attendance days, like you suggested.
By the way the Super Bowl sells out every year, but even to a game as big as that, some people don’t show up! The attendance still shows it as a sell out.
Chez - that’s paid attendance. That doesn’t include actuals at the games. There were times where people were just handing out free tickets outside the stadium. Of course, I wasn’t at every game either so ones that I attended may of also been on the lower end.
ddub…
2005 - 6,014
2004 - 6,250
2003 - 7,093
2002 - 6,565
2001 - 6,574
2000 - 6,946
1999 - 7,481
1998 - 7,440
These figures taken from RTD.
I remember going to games prior to 2006 and I NEVER saw 6-8k people there. It was 3-4k max.
uncheel - I don’t think most Richmonders do not want baseball back, they just don’t want to foot the bill for a new stadium. If it’s done privately, you’ll have far less people complaining (myself included).
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