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.. is the answer I received when inquiring if Opening Day at the Coke (Coca Cola Park for the newer readers) was sold out.

I also haven’t seen any mention of ticket sales in local media as I remember in the past. With just three weeks to go until the gates at The Coke open for the exhibition game with the Reading Phillies, it seems that the initial onrush of ticket seekers has not yet depleted the 10,000 ticket maximum for attendance.

The Ironpig’s have been pulling in some serious attendance figures since 2008. Last year the organization led the entire minor leagues in average per game attendance. In 2009 we came in second. What will attendance look like in 2011?

Several factors could lead to the not-yet-sellout of the first game of our beloved Ironpigs. First, the team’s newness has clearly worn off. This is season number 4 and I rarely speak to anyone in the Valley who has not been to at least one game. Next you have the pre-All Star break schedule stocked full of home games in the less than weather friendly months of April, May and early June. From someone like myself who sits in the wind facing the sun, I can say it gets cold out there. Really cold. Of course the team could have something to do with it too. Spending only 1 game with a winning percentage at .500 and never over .500 it could be the lack of competativeness by the team affecting the sales.

So we ask ourselves:

Is it worth sitting in the cold to see the team lose anyway?

Should I spend the cash to go out and freeze?

It’s the first game, there are 71 more games this season that could be warmer.. why bother?

Well, I think it’s worth it. You see football fans out there every winter freezing away in snow, rain and sleet. Why not baseball too? It’s not about the team, it’s not about the free plastic stuff handed out.. it’s about the people. The friends that you have gotten to know over the last 4 years. It’s about the atmosphere of baseball here in our back yards. It’s about that first undercooked hotdog and a flat warm beer. It’s about America’s pasttime.

Get out there and get your tickets… tomorrow I may post that Opening Day has sold out and then you will be.. well not out in the cold, but you will probably be at home wishing you had tickets.

OinK!

From Eric Pettis’ blog, “just a MINOR perspective”

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Routine
A lot about being an athlete revolves around the word routine. Outside of the actual performance on the field, most of an athlete’s life deals with a routine. Whether it’s sticking to a routine, or practicing to make difficult things seem routine, or tweaking a routine to improve it, the word routine keeps popping up. The better an athlete can stay within the confines of a routine the better they can deal with unexpected things that might be thrown at them. Look at it this way, if you are trying to remember a phone number and then someone tells you four more numbers to remember then that task becomes more difficult. But, if that original phone number is already memorized (in other words, part of a routine), remembering those extra four numbers will now be pretty easy. Well, it’s the same thing in sports. The harder you work to make things second nature, the better you will be able to cope when those “extra” things that will inevitably happen in every game.

The idea for this post came to me because of two things at practice today. As I woke up this morning I looked outside and saw that it was pouring rain. Now, as a native southern Californian, the mere sight of rain usually disrupts my normal routine. Most SoCal people shut down their lives on the few days a year that we see a sprinkle. But today it didn’t affect me. I got to the field, though soaking wet, and went through my normal routine. I lifted a few weights, did a few arm exercises, ate some breakfast, and was ready to go. And as I stood under one of the covered areas of the facility doing my arm bands it really hit me, “hey this is pretty cool”. Personally, I am huge into routines and like get myself into good habits. So, as I watched the rain hit the asphalt I thought to myself that my day was surprisingly unaffected by it. At that moment I was just really appreciative that the Phillies provide us with the facilities necessary to get into a good routine and stick to it. It might seem trivial, but to an athlete who is trying to get better every day it’s huge.

The second instance at practice where the idea of routine hit me might be a little bit of a stretch, but try to stay with me. Like I said it had rained earlier in the day, and after practice we had to condition. Today was a semi-light day of 8 poles followed by pick-ups. So, as I was running my poles on the warning track I noticed that the inside path on the track was muddy while the outside path was much dryer. Now, having the weird psychological/philosophical brain that I do, this got me thinking about routine. I likened the condition of the warning track to people’s path in life. While the shorter path on the track might look as if it will get you to where you want to go with less work, you’ll get “muddy” in the process. If you take the longer path, it might be a bit more difficult but you will come out the other side “cleaner”. Trading less running for getting “muddy” is like trading doing less work for better chance of failure. While, trading more running for being “clean” is like doing more work for better chance at success. In other words, in life and especially in sports, there are no shortcuts. You have to put in the work to get the results. The harder you work within the confines of your routine, the “cleaner” and better prepared you will be for what life and sports has to throw at you.

Whether you buy in to my babble or not doesn’t really matter. Because I buy into it. And that’s what a routine is all about. It is something that YOU know YOU can do every day and believe will make YOU better for the ware. And as an athlete, routine really is the name of the game.

Phillies prospect Eric Pettis is detailing his minor league experience on his blog, “just a MINOR perspective.” Special to the Horn & Bell, we will be following Eric in his first season in the Phillies organization.

As reported by the Ironpig’s media office:

The Phillies’ Triple-A spring training squad (1-0) won its opener over the Triple-A Blue Jays, 6-5, at Carpenter Complex on Monday.

The bats provided the headlines, as the team belted out a 13-hit, six-run performance.

1B Tagg Bozied paced the attack, going 2-4 with a HR and 2 RBI. CF Rich Thompson (1-3) also contributed 2 RBI and a team-high 2 stolen bases. Former Colorado farmhand OFs Matt Miller (2-5) and Chris Frey (2-2, 2B) also collected multi-hit games.

RHP Drew Naylor (3 ip, 4 h, 2 r, 2 er, 2 bb, 3 k) got the start, but it was former IronPigs RHP Nate Bump and RHP Michael Schwimer that provided the pitching highlights. Bump — who entered in the fourth inning — went two scoreless frames, allowing just one hit and one walk. Schwimer dazzled with two perfect innings, fanning four of the six batters he faced to earn the save.

Bozied, 31, is likely to make the IronPigs Opening Day roster after being added to the Phillies’ 40-Man Roster this winter. The Sioux Falls, SD, spent last season at Double-A Reading – where he led Eastern League in AVG (.315) while setting a career best in HR (27) and tying a career high in RBI (92). Among his 2010 accolades, Bozied was selected as a midseason EL All-Star and a participant in HR Derby as well as being named Double-A Hitter of Year by MiLB.com. Signed by Philadelphia as a minor league free agent 1/16/10, Bozied was once a top prospect for the San Diego Padres – who drafted him in the 3rd round of 2001 and promoted him up to Triple-A in just his second affiliated pro season in 2003. But a freak injury derailed his progress in 2004. Bozied was hitting .315-16-58 in 56 G before a season-ending knee injury on 7/19 — which occurred in a team celebration when crossing home plate after hitting a walk-off grand slam. The career .283 hitter is still looking for his first taste of the Major Leagues with what would be his sixth Triple-A franchise, should he stick with Lehigh Valley.

With a camp day tomorrow, the Triple-A Phils will next play Wednesday at the Triple-A Pirates at the Pirate City Complex in Bradenton, Fla. First-pitch is scheduled for 1 PM.

TRIPLE-A PHILLIES, 6-5 (Unofficial Box):

PLAYER AB R H RBI

1 Thompson, Rich-CF 3 1 1 2

Frey, Chris-CF 2 0 2 0

2 Garcia, Harold-2B 4 1 1 1

3 Rizzotti, Matt-DH 3 0 1 0

Slayden, Jeremy-DH 2 0 0 0

4 Bozied, Tagg-1B 4 2 2 2

5 Miller, Matt-RF 5 0 2 0

6 Spidale, Mike-LF 2 0 1 1

Sullivan, Cory-LF 1 0 1 0

7 Rivero, Carlos-3B 3 0 0 0

Kennelly, Tim-3B 1 0 0 0

8 Valle, Sebastian-C 2 1 1 0

Suomi, John-C 2 0 0 0

9 Hanzawa, Troy-SS 4 1 1 0

E – Garcia (1), Bozied (1). 2B – Valle (1), Frey (1). Sullivan (1). 3B – Garcia (1). HR – Bozied (1). SB – Thompson 2 (2), Garcia (1), Rizzotti (1), Spidale (1), Hanzawa (1). HBP – Spidale (1).

PITCHER IP H R ER BB K

Naylor, Drew 3.0 4 2 2 2 3

Bump, Nate 2.0 1 0 0 1 0

Cisco, Michael 2.0 2 3 0 1 1

Schwimer, Michael (SV, 1) 2.0 0 0 0 0 4

For the Latest Scores and Highlights from Phillies’ Triple-A Spring Training, follow @ PigsRadio on Twitter.

The Ironpigs are playing their first minor league game against the Blue Jay’s organization.

Only 24 Days until Opening Day at The Coke.

Only 22 Days until the exhibition game with the R-Phils

While we’re waiting for those days.. we have some stuff to keep us occupied.

Only 5 days until the Home Opener for the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks Indoor Football League at Stabler Arena! Tickets as low as $10! Come out on and help cheer on the team!

The football game on Saturday starts at 7:00pm, but another great activity starts at 7:00am in Coplay! The 2nd annual 8K run / 5K walk to benefit the Pediatric Cancer Foundation of the Lehigh Valley will be held.

Schedule of Events
7:00 – 8:30 am Registration/Packet Pick-Up
8:30 – 8:40 am Welcome
8:40 – 8:50 am Group Warm-Up
9:00 8K Begins
9:15 1/2 Mile Fun Run Begins
9:40 5K Walk Begins
11:00 Awards Ceremony/Raffles raffles drawn during race
11:30 Post-Race Refreshments
More info at http://www.PCFLV.org

Hope to see you this weekend!

OinK!

The Morning Call is holding a Best Blog contest and the Noise Nation’s Horn & Bell blog has been nominated in 3 categories!

You can vote for the Noise Nation is all three categories once a day for the next two weeks.
– Sports
– Phillies
– Misfits defying categorization

Help us out and send a vote!

Also, Noise Nation member Matt Metal’s blog has been nominated as well! Feel free to vote daily for him!

http://www.mcallcommunity.com/best-of-blogs/2011/voting/index.php

As the Noise Nation loves all sports, we have found another wonderful night of entertainment and competition in the Lehigh Valley!

The last time I even thought of a roller derby was years ago watching Laverne & Shirley compete. Little did I know that since 2006 there has been a women’s team in the area. What could be more fun?!

From the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls Website:

The Lehigh Valley Rollergirls!

Created for the skaters by the skaters, the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls are dedicated to providing an opportunity for women athletes to achieve their maximum potential, both athletically and intellectually through the sport of roller derby. Through intensive training, competitive activities and community involvement, the Lehigh Valley Rollergirls strive to embody specific core values including hard work, motivation, perseverance, respect for cultural diversity and continuous personal development. Our members are proud to be positive role models for young people by displaying a sense of good sportsmanship, personal integrity and ethical conduct and look forward to continued growth regionally and nationally.

This looks like a really good time! Our good friend Deb will be covering the Rollergirls for the Noise Nation so stay tuned for updates!

Per Todd Zolecki on Twitter @ToddZolecki,

The Phillies have optioned De Fratus, Naylor, Ramirez, Garcia, Hernandez, Rivero and Rizzotti to minor league camp.

Re-assigned to minor league camp are Bass, Bonine, Carpenter, Feierabend, Schwimer, Naughton, Bozied, Quinlan and Miller.

Also of note, Rob Quinlin asked for and received a release after being cut.

Ironpig Spring Training games start on March 14th!

OinK!

Just noticed via @eddymk on Twitter, that the Mets have signed former Ironpig Les Walrond. Walrond had an impact in the creation of Noise Nation with his 17 strikeout performance in 2008. Maybe we will see him back at the Coke in 2011.

The bigger news in town is that Charlie Manuel has signed a 2 year extension to manage the Phillies. Rightfully so. He has done a great job leading the Phillies in no doubt one of the greatest eras in team history.

On another note, I’m going to flash back a few months to recall many many conversations on why Ryne Sandberg took over the Ironpigs helm. Everyone seemed to have a thought and opinion.

“He’s here to replace Charlie, no doubt about it”

“He’s upset because the Cubs didn’t give him the big league job”

“He’s going to bail on the Ironpigs as soon as someone offers him a chance to manage in the bigs”

“The Phillies are going to groom him to be Charlie’s replacement”

Which of those do you believe? Let’s make this a poll…. see what you all think.

Full credit for this list goes to our friends over at the Phuture Phillies blog.

Below is the division of workout groups for the Phillies minor leaguers in spring training. I saw a few familiar names. Most of the Ironpigs 2011 lineup is still with the Phillies camp at the moment. I find myself looking at these names like the beginning of the Major League movie:

“Who are these #%$@ guys?”

Enjoy!

Group 1
Catchers
Francisco Diaz
Torre Langley
John Suomi
Sebastian Valle

Infielders
Albert Cartwright
Troy Hanzawa
Fidel Hernandez
Tim Kennelly
Cody Overbeck
Darin Ruf
Joe Savery

Outfielders
Chris Frey
Tyson Gillies
Jeremy Slayden
Mike Spidale
Cory Sullivan
Steve Susdorf
Rich Thompson

Pitchers
Matt Anderson
Phillippe Aumont
Tyson Brummett
Nate Bump
Chance Chapman
Michael Cisco
Tyler Cloyd
Jacob Diekman
Ryan Edell
Joe Esposito
Justin Friend
Edgar Garcia
Brian Gordon
Jason Grilli
Austin Hyatt
Chris Kissock
Derrick Loop
Brian Rosenberg
Joshua Zied

Group 2
Catchers
Stephen Batts
Michael Dabbs
Jeffery Lanning
Robert Stumpo

Infielders
Edgar Duran
Travis Mattair
Korby Mintkin
James Murphy
Carlos Perdomo
Alan Schoenberger

Outfielders
Sabastian Boucher
Leandro Castro
Jiwan James
Derrick Mitchell
D’arby Myers

Pitchers
Justin Beal
Mike Bolsenbroek
Jacob Boruk
Garrett Claypool
Brody Colvin
Heitor Correa
Jarrad Cosart
Nick Hernandez
Chase Johnson
Ebelin Lugo
Eric Massingham
Trevor May
Jonathan Pettibone
Eric Pettis
Julio Rodriguez
Julian Sampson
Colby Shreve
Jon Velasquez
Matt Way
Jordan Whatcott

Group 3
Catchers
Carlos Alonso
James Klocke
Kyle Lafrenz
Cameron Rupp

Infielders
Jermey Barnes
Adam Buschini
Chris Duffy
Stephen Malcolm
Matthew McConnell
Geancarlo Mendez
Matt Payton

Outfielders
Aaron Alltherr
Miguel Alvarez
Zach Collier
Kelly Dugan
Brian Gump
Anthony Hewitt
Andrew Rundle
Domingo Santana
Jonathan Singleton

Pitchers
Jesse Biddle
Bradley Blanks
Lisalverto Bonilla
David Buchanan
Lendy Castillo
Craig Fritsch
Percival Garner
Juary Gomez
Mario Hollands
Matt Hutchinson
Tyler Knigge
Siulman Lebron
Ervis Manzanillo
Bryan Morgado
Michael Nesseth
Jesus Perela
Marshall Schuler
Andrew Snowdon
Juan Sosa
Andy Wells

Group 4
Catchers
Angel Chavarin
Marco Davalillo
Marlon Mitchell
Chase Numata

Infielders
Jorge Castillo
Jeffrey Cusick
Maikel Franco
Gutavo Gonzalez
Yeisson Morales
Patrick Murray
Cale Owen
Nerio Rios
Carlos Valenzuela

Outfielders
Luis Amaro
Luis Beltre
Gauntlett Eldemire
Kyrell Hudson
Witer Jimenez
Jorge Miranda
Brian Pointer
Bill Rice
Bernardo Solarte
Luis Unda

Pitchers
Gabreil Arias
Leonel Bastidas
Carlos Best
Daniel Delacruz
Drew Erwin
Orlando Garces
Luis Gonzalez
Zael Honora
Steven Inch
Colin Kleven
Pedro Lora
Lino Martinez
Marek Minarik
Luis Morales
Jonathan Musser
Hector Neris
Miguel Nunez
Luis Paulino
Ryan Sasaki
Jacob Smith
Ethan Stewart
Franklin Vargas
Kevin Walter

We all wondered if he would be back. Slayden clarifies this in his recent blog post. See below from Jeremy Slayden’s blog. Great to hear he’s off to a good start and back to the organization!

OinK!

SO Its great to be back in spring training! I just want to give a few brief updates.

Off season training went well for some really cool reasons. Here are a few of them (no order):

#1 Michael Ware – My trainer at the Forum gym in Atlanta was not only a great motivator and a source of encouragement and wisdom three days a week..he also became a very dear friend. He took me on as his personal project and knowing I couldn’t afford that type of training – he did it for FREE.

#2 Ninth Inning – Ninth Inning Baseball provided a place for me to work every day to support myself monetarily while also providing the perfect spot to work on my baseball skills at any time. I was able to hit and throw with professional players every afternoon before work began and be surrounded by guys who were very encouraging to help me reach my goals. I want to give a special thank you to Seth LaFera for all the time spend throwing BP, giving me flips, and talking thru the mental game, Heath Honeycutt for putting together a first class place with great people and for helping out during tough times, and Jerome and Aubriana Lopez for hooking me up with some great gear for the season including bats! Also thanks to Mike Bohana who took time to hit me fly balls and work with me on throwing and running mechanics – I’m still heeding your advice brother! All you guys are great!

#3 The Rock – My Bible study group in Atlanta. What can I say – you guys are the best! Thanks for helping me see the “WAY” more clearly and standing by me no matter what. You guys are warriors and I feel your prayers. In the Spirit, physical distance can never separate us. Love you guys.

#4 Dr. Fred Achecar and Dr. John Forte – These two guys gave me medical care over the off-season for FREE!! Both of them have helped me immensely and I’m deeply grateful for their generosity and expertise.

Now I’m here in Clearwater, FL about to head into Day 5 of spring training. Its been slow so far with all the meetings, paperwork, etc… but I’m excited because we are close to getting the show on the road with Intersquad games and then official spring training games.

This is a special time. I believe God is going to use all of this and that I’m supposed to be here. Why? Because this is a risk…but with all the affirmation I have received to cause me to make the decision to make this comeback and
also the refreshed perspective I have on all of it, I now trust Him with the outcomes. My job is not to be successful…my job is to be faithful. Day by Day, Swing by swing, conversation by conversation. I may never see the big leagues – heck, a may never see another minor league game after spring training – but I believe. I believe that i am a part of a purpose and plan that is much larger, deeper and wider than the narrow bit of horizon than I can see.

Thoughts in moments of doubt:

I am too old to come back and be where I’m at.
My body has been through too much and hurts.
The top management has shut down my career two years ago…taking a year off only makes it worse.
You look foolish. It’s time to move on. Get a career.

My God uses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. I’m willing to look foolish. Not everyone will agree with what I’m saying here. Thats fine. Two years ago I wouldn’t have agreed with it either.

He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:28-31

I believe.

Ps: A special note for Gran – Stop worrying!! Love you

Jeremy