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.