Baseball at the Boardwalk

The lights come on when night falls at Maimonides Park
and on rides beyond left field in Coney Island.

It’s my latest m.o. On a long drive from point A to point B, find a baseball game along the way to break up the trip. Just about exactly halfway home to Pennsylvania from Hampton Bays, N.Y., is Maimonides Park, home of the Brooklyn Cyclones. Lucky for me, the Cyclones were wrapping up their week-long series with the Aberdeen Ironbirds in a game at 4 p.m.

Also lucky for me, Sundays and Thursdays are senior days with $10 tickets anywhere in the stands. Parking is reasonable too in a lot right next to the ballpark. Most days it costs $20, but if you’re going to the baseball game it’s $8. They might ask to see your tickets before they give you the ballgame rate.

Colorful lights dance up and down the Parachute Jump tower just outside the stadium.

Maimonides Park is in one of the most dramatic locations of any ballpark I’ve seen. It’s built on the spot where Coney Island’s famous Steeplechase amusement was located. Towering over the right field corner is the historic frame of the Parachute Jump ride, which is brilliantly lit when night falls. From the stands you can see the tops of carousels, bungee jump rides and various rollercoasters, even the Cyclone, which gave its name to the baseball team. It’s like watching a baseball game at a carnival. You can even see the Atlantic Ocean.

The public address system was the loudest I’ve ever heard at a ballpark. More than once I saw fans with their fingers in their ears, even during the national anthem. One time when it went silent during an at-bat, I said out loud, “Wow. I can hear myself.” The people sitting in front of me laughed.

A few innings into the game it became clear why it was so loud as a hip hop concert cranked up a little ways down the boardwalk. The duel of decibels was on. Note to self, and others: take some earplugs next Cyclones game.

A free jersey. Happy Birthday Thor.

I got up to go to the restroom and I was walking along the concourse when a foul ball came straight back into the stands and took a bounce toward me. A guy with a broom and a dustpan one-handed it and held it out for me to take. That’s not the only souvenir from my day at the ballpark. I bought a pin, of course, celebrating a Seinfeld night promotion called The Sein-clones.

I knew we might get a pack of 30 Cyclones baseball cards if we got to the game early, and we did, but I didn't know we were getting a Noah Syndergaard Mets jersey for his 29th birthday. We missed Thor’s Thursday rehab appearance by a few days. He was expected to pitch an inning on his birthday, but was scratched after a positive Covid-19 test. He’s been vaccinated. Happy Birthday, Thor. Best of luck and thanks for the shirt.

Nathan's Famous french fries and hot dog.

Do I have to say anything about the food at Maimonides Park? You’re in Coney Island. You can see Nathan’s Famous on Surf Avenue from your seat behind the Cyclones dugout. Get a hot dog and some fries, sit down and enjoy the game.

I’m embarrassed to say it took me so long to catch a Brooklyn Cyclones game considering all the time I lived and worked in and around New York City. True, the Cyclones didn’t even exist for more than half the time I was there, but that’s no excuse. I’m the guy who also never visited Grant’s tomb until at least a decade after I’d left New York and retired to the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania.

I never went to a Staten Island Yankees game either. I thought I lost my chance forever when the team shut down following Major League Baseball’s shakeup of the minor leagues last year. It looks like a baseball will return to Staten Island next year, not with a minor league team, but as part of the expanding independent Atlantic League.

One of several 9/11 memorials outside the ballpark.

No need to wait until next year for baseball in Coney Island, but you’d better hurry. There are only two home stands left for the Cyclones and there won’t be a post-season for them this year. They’re in last place in the standings.

The Cyclones batters struggled at the plate and came away with only four hits. Their pitchers had trouble finding the strike zone, walking 9 Ironbirds batters. The score could have been more lopsided than it was. The Ironbirds left 12 runners, and walkers, on base. Final: Aberdeen Ironbirds 6, Brooklyn Cyclones 1

Welcome to the Minor Leagues

A big flag flies in center field at TD Bank Park, home of the Somerset Patriots

The Somerset Patriots are one of three independent teams brought into the minor leagues in last year’s reorganization by Major League Baseball. The other two were the St. Paul Saints, who became the AAA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, and the Sugar Land Skeeters, who became the Houston Astros’ AAA team.

The Patriots took the place of the Trenton Thunder as the AA team of the New York Yankees and Trenton got left behind in the shuffle. I wondered why the major league teams were bringing in clubs from outside in the new alignment, while at the same time reducing the number of affiliated teams from 160 to 120. That was when I knew almost nothing about the independent professional leagues.

A big version of Sparkee, the Patriots' mascot, welcomes fans to the ballpark.

It turns out there’s been a lot going on outside of Major League Baseball and their minor league teams. I’d heard about the success of the St. Paul Saints, who were part of the American Association of Professional Baseball. We’ll talk about them whenever I get to see a game there.

The Patriots and the Skeeters were part of Atlantic League Professional Baseball, which was created in 1998 when the New York Mets objected to an affiliated minor league team moving into their market area. The league works with a higher salary cap than other minor leagues, tries to sign players with major league experience, and requires that stadiums be maintained at or above the standards set for AAA ballparks.

Every ballpark should do this. Pay for parking, get a store discount

Two teams that lost their affiliation with major league teams, the West Virginia Power and the Lexington Legends, have joined the Atlantic League to replace the Patriots and the Skeeters, and there are plans to expand from eight teams to as many as 12 in the coming years. A team in Staten Island is expected to start play in 2022.

The Atlantic League has recently agreed to test a wide range of experimental rules that are being considered by Major League Baseball, like radar tracking for balls and strikes and moving the pitcher’s rubber back a foot. It’s an interesting partnership that makes me want to add the Atlantic League teams to my list of ballparks to visit. I’ve already seen a game in Charleston, W. Va., when the Power were a Class A team of the Seattle Mariners.

The Patriots have retired 28, my number and the number of Sparky Lyle,
who managed the team for many years.

The Patriots and their fans have embraced their new association with the Yankees, which strengthened ties that were already part of the team’s history. The Yankee pitcher Sparky Lyle was involved with the team from the start and he served as manager for many years. They’ve retired his number (and mine), 28, which hangs on the stadium wall behind the home plate seats. The furry mascot Sparkee has a very distinctive and familiar looking moustache.

Honoring the contributions of the Negro Leagues to professional baseball. 

The special event for the night was a celebration of the Negro Leagues and the decision by Major League Baseball to include statistics from Negro League players. Exhibits were on display from the Yogi Berra Museum in Little Falls, and from the Hinchliffe Stadium Project to restore the historic ballpark in Paterson that was home to the New York Black Yankees.

A small bobble head honoring Elston Howard, with fun facts and stats on the box. 

Early arriving fans received a bobble head figurine of Elston Howard, the catcher who became the first black player with the New York Yankees. Howard is known for his stellar career, and also for inventing the batting doughnut, the circular weight that slips over a bat to help an on-deck player warm up for his plate appearance.

Loaded barbecue potato chips with pulled pork, bbq sauce and cole slaw.

The Patriots fell behind the Akron Rubber Ducks early, but tied the score twice, the second time in the bottom of the ninth when Josh Breaux hit a solo home run. The Rubber Ducks scored two runs in the top of the 10th, and the Patriots went down in order for the loss. Final: Akron Rubber Ducks 5, Somerset Patriots 3, 10 innings.

A 'Holy Toledo' Finish

A full-size bobble head Muddonna greets fans at one gate
while her friend Muddy stands guard at another.

After reaching the furthest point of my Midwest baseball tour in Beloit, Wis., it was time to turn back east to spend a couple of days in Cleveland before heading home to Pennsylvania. Can anyone think of a better way to break up a long drive on endless toll roads across three states than to take in a baseball game? Lucky for me the Toledo Mud Hens, AAA team for the Detroit Tigers, were at home for an afternoon match with the Indianapolis Indians, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ affiliate.

Getting to Fifth Third Field in downtown Toledo was easy, but I was surprised to see $20 signs at a couple of parking lots next to the ballpark. I decided to drive around the block to see what else might be available, and I was surprised again to see a tiny lot with less than 20 spaces and a sign that said $10.

On most days I would say that $10 is too much to pay for parking at a minor league baseball game, but this was a welcome sign considering the competition, and so I pulled in. I still can’t figure out why it cost so much less than the other lots, and why there were so many open spaces less than 15 minutes before the stadium gates would open.

My excellent parking spot. That building in the background
is part of the Fifth Third Field complex.

My parking lot was across the street from the stadium, just like the $20 lots that I could see just a half a block away, and it was close to the ticket windows where a small crowd had begun to gather. It was hot, so I requested a seat that might have some shade, then had just a few minutes to wait before they let us in.

There were a lot of people at the ballpark on a Sunday afternoon, but with plenty of food and beverage concession stands, there were no long lines. It was mostly the usual ballpark fare and I wound up with a delicious chili dog loaded with onions. First I had plenty of time to check out the team store to get my ballpark passport book stamped before the cashiers’ counter got busy.

Then I went to the guest services table to get a copy of the team rosters and the starting lineups. I was surprised to see that they had a tentative Toledo Mud Hens schedule for 2022. I hadn’t seen any schedule information for any minor league teams so I asked if this was something new. “We just released it to the public a few days ago,” the guy said.

Many familiar names on the Toledo Mud Hens roster.

For me this was big news. The minor leagues will continue the six-game series format put in place for this year, but there will be expanded competition across divisions within the various leagues. For example, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders, who only played the other teams in New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts in 2021, will be playing the Toledo Mud Hens and a couple of other different teams next year.

I could hardly wait to get to my seat and search for more information on other teams, especially the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, the new AAA team for the Miami Marlins. The Jumbo Shrimp play a little over 100 miles from my home in Florida, so I’ve been to see them several times on my extended visits south. Selfish me, I want to see them on the road when they come to play my two AAA teams in Pennsylvania, the Railriders to the north, and the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs to the south. Both teams are about 35-40 miles from my home in Henryville, an easy drive either way.

Not a bad seat in the house at Fifth Third Field in downtown Toledo.

Not all the minor league teams have released their preliminary schedules, so I was only able to find out that the Jumbo Shrimp won’t be playing the Iron Pigs, but they will be at the Railriders for a week in May. They’ll also come up to play the Syracuse Mets, which is a little more than a day trip’s distance, but close enough for me to see a few of the games at least.

Yes, I’ve already started to fill in my baseball calendar for 2022, and there’s still about six weeks to go in this season, counting the extra two weeks of postseason play for all the AAA teams. The Mud Hens are in a battle for first place in the Midwest division of the AAA East, but the standings won’t really matter for the postseason tournament. Each team will play an opponent five games at home and another opponent five games on the road. At the end of the 10 games, the team with the best record will be declared the AAA East champion.

A delicious chili dog. I was so hungry, I almost forgot to take a picture.

It looked like Toledo might slip in the standings when the Indians took an 8-5 lead after batting around in the fifth and sending eight to the plate in the sixth. The Mud Hens tightened the score to 8-7 in the bottom of the sixth, setting up a wild finish that was an awful lot like the end of the game I saw in Dayton just four days before when an unlikely hero won the game for the Dragons.

A leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth from Aderlin Rodriguez, a wild pitch and a walk to Kody Clemens put runners on first and third with no outs. A strikeout followed, then another walk loaded the bases. The Indians pitcher mishandled a ground ball chopped down the third base line, allowing Rodriguez to score the tying run and leave the bases loaded.

The Mud Hens celebrate their dramatic victory.

Another ground ball fielded by the catcher forced the out at home, but the bases were still loaded, now with two outs, as Akil Baddoo came up for his sixth plate appearance. He was 0-3 on the day with 2 walks, but on a 2-2 count, he drove one to the center field wall to bring home the winning run. Final: Toledo Mud Hens 9, Indianapolis Indians 8. 

Within minutes I was back on the road to Cleveland. I scooted out of my $10 parking spot, flew across a bridge away from downtown traffic, and got back to the long, lonely toll road.

Hello and Farewell to the Snappers

Clouds didn't keep the Beloit Snappers' grounds crew from their appointed rounds.

I can’t tell you how good it felt to be sitting in ABC Supply Stadium watching the Beloit Snappers playing the Peoria Chiefs. First of all, it’s a brand new stadium, with its first game played earlier in the month. Everything is unblemished and the place even smells like a new car. Maybe I was the first person to sit in Section 108, Row D, Seat 24, who knows? 

Secondly, this is one of my teams, the new High-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. It would have been nice to have them closer to home, like the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp who were promoted to AAA from AA this season. The Jumbo Shrimp are closer to my home in Florida than the big team in Miami. It’s any easy day trip to Jacksonville instead of an overnighter to Miami.

The Snappers moved into their new ballpark in early August.

The Jupiter Hammerheads stayed right where they are, about an hour north of Miami. The only difference is that they were demoted to Low-A from Advanced A. The Pensacola Blue Wahoos, the Marlins’ new AA team, are not really close to home, about 700 miles from Miami, but at least they’re in the same state. 

I wondered if the Marlins would keep the Clinton Lumber Kings or the Batavia Muck Dogs as their fourth minor league team or maybe invite a team closer to either of my homes in Florida. I have to say I was a little bit disappointed to find out they had chosen the Beloit Snappers. Would I ever get to Wisconsin to see them play? 

It's a Snapper's tradition. A veteran raises the flay during the national anthem.

Still, I started making plans for a visit, and I got more and more excited when I found out they’d be moving into a new stadium. They’ll be adopting a new name next season, but I’d be happy if they didn’t change. Snappy is a fun mascot and I don’t think there are any other teams named for a turtle.

What made me happiest, though, is that I made it to Beloit this year to complete a cycle of all the Marlins’ teams in one season, the first time I've done this for any team, let alone my favorite fishes. I’ve been to all of the affiliates of several teams by now, but only over multiple seasons.

The old ballpark, Pohlman Field, is now vacant on game days.

To top things off, it was a fun experience. It’s a great place to watch a game, even though it’s kind of difficult to find. My GPS search wanted to send me to the old stadium in a city park north of downtown. Parking is tricky at the new stadium, but the good news is that it’s free in various nearby municipal lots. You just have to take a short walk to get to the ballpark.

The Snappers have pulled out all the stops when it comes to food. The first thing you see when you enter through the center field gate is Food Truck Alley, where local vendors offer a variety of options. The stadium’s concession stands feature things like chicken nuggets served in a waffle cone as well as with other ballpark standards. It’s Wisconsin, so fried cheese curds are on the menu too.

Brat-chos for the main course, a double-scoop waffle cone for dessert.

I had brat-chos, sliced bratwurst over tortilla chips with red cabbage, pickled onions and brown mustard. For dessert, I went to the Madison Chocolate Shoppe booth, where they make hand-dipped ice cream cones and sundaes with flavors like Espresso Oreo and Yippee Skippy.

I went a little crazy in the team store for Snappy’s farewell season. I had to get a Snappy baseball cap, and a farewell season pin. It looked like the fishing Snappy bobble heads were sold out, but the staff found me one. I also pulled an Isan Diaz bat with a split handle out of bucket of broken bats.

Souvenir stash from the team store.

It was a lot of fun watching the future Marlins at work even though it didn't end well for the Snappers. They managed to keep it close with the Cardinal’s team from Peoria, and they tied the game at 4 apiece in the bottom of the 8th inning. The Chiefs scored a run on a couple of hits in the 9th to regain the lead and struck out the side in the bottom half for the win. Final: Peoria Chiefs 5, Beloit Snappers 4.

Full of Surprises

A tribute to Stanley Coveleski, the Hall of Fame pitcher who retired in South Bend.

Where to begin with this one? I try to do a little background research before going to a stadium. Other blogs, the team websites and maps give me an idea of what to expect, but I’m often pleasantly surprised. Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium, home of the High-A South Bend Cubs, knocked my socks off. 

It’s not a new stadium, by average standards, but it looks like it could have been built yesterday instead of almost 35 years ago. It’s not quite as wide open as the stadiums that are being built today, but it has wide concourses that open out with views of the field once you get past about first and third base. The 5,000 seats are spread out around home base and along the baselines in a way that puts everyone close to the action on the field.

Splash pad in the outfield. Great for the kids on a hot day.

Apparently it was one of the first stadiums to “open up” the walkways behind the seating arena and served as a model for other ballparks that followed. There’s a walkway completely around the field that provides good views except for a small area behind the batter’s eye and some structures in center field. There are play areas for kids, a lively and popular splash fountain that even has changing rooms for the youngsters that get soaked.

A few years ago, there was a major renovation effort around the stadium and now the outfield is surrounded by apartment buildings that provide views for residents and rooftop seats for others, just like at the big ballpark in Chicago’s north side. Of course, the name and the team logos are a dead giveaway that South Bend is an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

Seating on the rooftop, party decks down below.

There are other references to the big home team. There are signs above the various concession stands that say things like “Clark Street” and “Waveland Avenue” to help you remember where you saw the ice cream cones or the chicken fingers for sale.

One of the best nods to Chicago is the alternate identify the South Bend Cubs have adopted for the Copa de la Diversíon series: Los Cabritos Maldichos, or the little cursed goats. I found out about them in the team store, which I had a little difficulty finding, because it was in an unusual place beyond the outfield. The store is inside what might be the only synagogue building attached to a ballpark.

The South Bend Cubs team store is located in the historic Sons of Israel synagogue. 

The Sons of Israel synagogue was built in 1901, but had outlived its usefulness as a house of worship. It was sold several times over the years as people tried to figure out what to do with the historic landmark until it was taken over by the Cubs. The building has been restored inside and out, except that now it’s full of South Bend Cubs merchandise.

Double header fare. Fried curds for starters, Philly steak nachos in the nightcapper.

The food at Four Winds is top notch. I started with an order of fried cheese curds, a treat that I am happy to say has migrated from its homeland in Wisconsin, and I was going to have something small later in the game. Then people started showing up with a dish that looked and smelled delicious. It turned out to be a Philly cheese steak, not in a roll, but piled over a basket of tortilla chips. There were many other tempting options, too many for even a double header, and too many to list them all. But you can look at the menus here.

I had another surprise when I arrived in South Bend early and went straight to my hotel west of town to check in rather than exploring downtown. It’s a good thing, because when I double-checked the game time, I found out there was a double header of sorts, a continuation of the game that had been suspended the night before. The game would resume at 5:05 with the regular game starting about a half hour after the end of the first game.

Early arrivals for the double header at Four Winds Field.

I didn’t even unload the car because it was almost 4 o’clock and I figured the gates would be open by the time I got there. It would give me time to settle in, visit the shop, grab a bite to eat, etc. There were a few people waiting outside when I got to the stadium but the gates weren’t open. I bought my ticket and asked when the ballpark would open.

“5 o’clock.”

I don’t know. I guess it was going to take time to get the stadium staff organized and the concession stands up and running, but five minutes didn’t seem like a lot of time to get us through the gates and into our seats. Well, I thought, they finished two innings the night before and there was no score, so it would be kind of like watching a 7-inning game from the start.

To my surprise, I looked out on to the field and saw the bases were loaded with two outs in the top of the third inning. That was the situation at the time the game was suspended when a big storm rolled through town. It didn’t take long for the game to get exciting. On a 1-2 count, Michael Massey hit one over the right center field fence, and just like that, the Quad Cities River Bandits were up 4-0 over the Cubs.

South Bend got back into the game with the score 5-3 at the end of the 6th, but the River Bandits batted around in the 7th and added two more runs in the 9th for a 12-4 lead. The Cubs fought back in the bottom half scoring 4 runs and loading the bases with two out for Bryce Windham, who represented the tying run. It was his second at bat of the inning, and for the second time he flied out to end the game. Final, game 1: Quad Cities River Bandits 12, South Cubs 8.

The moon came up for a view over the first base stands.

In the second game, the Cubs came back to tie things up 4-4 in the sixth, but the River Bandits scored two in the extra 8th inning and the Cubs could manage just one more run. Final, game 2: Quad Cities 6, South Bend Cubs 5.

One more thing: I believe this is my first baseball game where one of the umpires was a woman. Jen Pawol, one of two women currently working in the minor leagues and the seventh woman to umpire in men’s professional baseball, was behind the plate for the first game and in the field for the second game. You can read more about her here. She has an interesting story.

Jen Pawol makes the call at third base.

The Winning Number

Day Air Ballpark completes my tour of all the Cincinnati Reds teams.

Day Air Ballpark, home of the Dayton Dragons, opened in 2000 as Fifth Third Field. It’s a big, spacious ballpark, like so many that were built around the same time. It has a large capacity for an A league team, more than 7,000 stadium seats and room for another thousand fans in general admission areas. The year the stadium opened, the full season was sold out before a single game was played. The team went on to set a number of attendance records, not just for baseball, but all professional sports.

Heater the Dragon greets fans at the gate. His friend Gem is in the background.

There was a big crowd on hand for the Dragons’ matchup with their cross-state rivals, the Lake County Captains, the High-A team of the Cleveland Indians. The two teams are neck-and-neck in the standings and trying to get a spot in the High-A Central post-season championship series. The loyal fans were rewarded with an exciting finish on Wednesday when James Free came to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning with the bases loaded in a game tied at 2-2.

A sundog peeks over the top of the crowded stadium. 

I usually root for the home team, but I try to get copies of the team rosters so I can stay more involved in the game. One thing I look for is a player who wears No. 28, which has somehow become my number whenever I buy a game-worn jersey. Half of the time, there is no 28 on the roster. The rest of the time, there’s a 50 percent chance that it’s a pitcher, and most of them spend the night in the bullpen. Some times a coach has the number, but a small fraction of the time I’ll find a position player wearing 28, and ever so rarely he’ll be in the starting lineup.

James Free comes to the plate.

At Day Air Park I circled the 28 next to James Free, who was batting third and playing first base. He went 0 for 4 in his first at bats, but his moment came after a single, a walk and a throwing error loaded the bases. The Captains outfield moved in, hoping to force an out at the plate. On the first pitch, Free swung, the ball took off, and it went over the head of right fielder for a base hit. Jonathan Willems scored easily from third and the celebration began.

Dragons in the outfield celebrating.

The win put the Dragons back in first place in the standings, at least for another day, and I got to cheer for another player wearing my number. Final: Dayton Dragons 3, Lake County 2.

Where there's dragons, there's fire.

Not So Nice Weather for Ducks

The soggy field at Canal Park. More photos will be added soon.

Storm clouds from the south brought a rain delay to Canal Park, home of the Double-A Akron Rubber Ducks, less than 10 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. The tarp came out. The clouds arrived. It rained for several minutes. The clouds left. The tarp came off.

Finally came the announcement that the first pitch would be at about 9 p.m., a delay of two and a half hours. The game would be shortened to seven innings though. The Ducks apologized for the long delay and said our tickets could be used for any remaining home game this season. 

Free t-shirt for Ghostbusters Night. Blazing duck head over Ohio pin.

Whether or not I get back to Akron in the next few weeks remains to be seen, but at least my friends Paul and Sally, who live less than an hour away, will be able to use them. And at least I got the free Ghostbusters Night t-shirt.

If you have to get stuck in a long rain delay, Canal Park is the place you want to be. You can kill the time looking at the multitude of menu options. Then you can take your time deciding which mouth-watering thing or things you want to try. Each of the concession stands goes over the top on at least one of the offerings on their menu.

Elote nachos and Pineapple TeriyAKRON bowl.

Elote nachos? An ear’s worth of elote-seasoned corn, shaved off the cob and served over a basket full of your choice of plain or flavored tortilla chips.

The Pineapple TeriyAKRON bowl? A half a carved out grilled pineapple filled with grilled rice, chicken and chunks of pineapple.

Those are just two examples found on the Extreme Foods page inside Duck Tales, the team's program. Maybe the most outrageous offering is the WKDD Screamer, a five-pound sundae made with 21 scoops of ice cream on a brownie, with banana, whipped cream, chocolate syrup, etc., and a cherry on top. It costs $25.

A baseball poster painted on the wall.

Everything else about Canal Park is good: Easy parking, no stairs (except for those leading down from the broad concourse to your seats), and a huge, easy-to-read video screen to keep you updated on the game’s action.

The player’s got a late start, but wasted no time bringing the action. The visiting Harrisburg Senators, AA affiliate of the Washington Nationals, got a hit right off the bat and had runners in scoring position in the first three innings. The Rubber Ducks, affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, were able to answer back with offense of their own, but took a few base-running risks that might have cost them some runs. In the bottom of the third, Brayan Rocchio knocked one over the right field wall with two runners on base to put the Rubber Ducks up 3-0.

As the sun set slowly in the west, the grounds crew put finishing touches on the field.

Paul and I left after three innings. It was getting late and we had at least seen every player come up to bat. We listened to the game on the radio until the signal faded away and made it home at about the time we would have anyway if the game had started on time. Here’s what we missed. In the top of the sixth inning, the Senators sent eight batters to the plate. With four singles, a walk and a double, they scored four runs to take the lead for good. Final: Harrisburg Senators 4, Akron Rubber Ducks 3.