Nothing Night

Trips back home to Oregon are always fantastic. Sure, I had to give up baseball for that one weekend, but it was glad to do it and would definitely do it again. It was 4th of July weekend, so the small-town parade, barbecues, friends, and family were aplenty. I took advantage of every minute, and it seems to have recharged my senses and soul. I'm excited for the stretch run of this season and to make a life again.

I got back into town yesterday, and after taking a robust nap, I made my way down to San Manuel Stadium for an out-of-the-ordinary Monday night game. Why go on a Monday? Well, the 66ers had an interesting promotion going on, "Nothing Night", that I wanted to experience. Free admission and parking, no music, no on-field promotions, no gimmicks...nothing. You could sit wherever you wanted and the team allowed you to bring in your own food. The jumbotron was turned off, sans the line score and ball/strike/out counter.

The silence at the was almost eerie. I'm so used to going to Minor League games and being bombarded with all of the gimmicky stuff. To have none of that was weird. The 66ers didn't even have music or announcing, so you really had to get information about the game from other places. All you could hear was the sound of the crowd and the game itself.

I've been to almost 300 professional baseball games, and I can say that this promotion was one of my all-time favorites. There are a number of reasons for my statement on this, but for a baseball purist, like myself, when the game isn't cluttered with mascots and promotions, it is allowed to rise up to be what we all desire, a study in what is so great about the American Pastime. You are forced to live in the strategy and excitement of what is so great about baseball. It is becoming too often that we, as a society, need those gimmicks to hold our attention, but baseball is slow because it is a chess game of athleticism and timing. When you are really paying attention to the game and not distracted, the flow of baseball is a beautiful thing.

With no gimmicks, socialization became the outlet for entertainment for so many. I got to know my seat neighbors and they got to know me. Yes, the focus was on the game, but add in the community feel of a ballpark, and you have the sense of Americana that people associate with baseball. The ballpark almost had a "picnic" feel to it as it felt more like an evening at the local playground or park. It was fantastic.

I can understand that letting 2,700 people in for free has a financial impact to the organization, but I noticed that more people bought concessions and beer, even though you could bring in your own food. Heck, I brought in a Subway sandwich, but I still went and bought a beer and a hot dog. Just by watching people in my vicinity, it seemed that others did the same thing. I hope that the increase in those sales balanced out the financial loss of having all those people coming for free incurred.

Highlighted by a Wade Hinkle 3-run homer, the 66ers scored 6 runs in the sixth and 4 runs in the eighth to beat up on the Visalia Rawhide 12-5.

I'm a season ticket holder, so I will be back to the ballpark again this season. However, as a marketing tool, if I weren't a season ticket holder, I'd definitely go to more games. I can only hope that other people who went to the game saw this promotion as I did and go back.

Leading up to this weekend, I'm taking a break from the professional games and going amateur. I'm driving to Palm Springs for the day and seeing the collegiate summer league team down there. I'll go more in-depth to the Road Trip on Friday.

Always take on a 3-0 pitch ;)