Category Archives: Uncategorized

Ok, granted that was staged for a commercial.. it still is pretty cool.

I wonder if this kid kept his job…

Another one..

Maybe Coca Cola Park should stick to the idea of Ball Girls….

OinK!

Opening up the blog to a Question Answer session today.. what about the Ironpigs, transactions, history, food are you looking for an answer to?

Leave your question in the comments area and our research machine will get to work on it!

OinK!

From the Ironpig’s website we learned that Matt Rizzotti will be in attendance at the Winter Banquet in January.

Apparently it is no longer called, “The Phillies Caravan”

Enjoy!

OinK!

Most professional ball parks have them. Coca Cola Park does not. I wondered why, maybe you all could help me understand.

A ball person sits down the foul lines and scoops up foul balls down the line. Their basic purpose is to run after the errant balls, not in play, and allow the game to proceed faster as the outfielders won’t have to chase down those foul balls. Did I hit a topic there? Speed of play? Faster games?

The Phillies actually have a ball girl team. The organization takes time to select local athletes, yes athletes, where they work every Phillies games and also work hard on charity projects throughout the season. Charity, faster games AND pretty girls. Well, being the equal opportunists we are.. I would suppose both women and men could perform this task.

Let’s hear from you Ironpig fans!

OinK!

Just a couple notes not really concerning anything special.

If you noticed at the top of the blog I posted a note about re-use and redistribution of anything on the Horn & Bell blog. Not looking to be a jerk, but want to make sure those who are using our blog as a reference are also spreading the word about our blog and citing and linking to us as we would do for them.

Also, thanks go out to the Morning Call. They recently updated the Hog Blog on their website with links to both the Horn & Bell and our friends over at the Bacon and Biscuits blog. Earlier this season the Express Times Website also added our link to their Ironpig’s site.

All quiet so far this week.

OinK!

When I set out last fall to get this blog rolling, I was curious to see how many people would actually pay attention. I set myself what I thought was a modest goal, never thinking it would be achieved but thank to you all.. I made my goal for this year!

I have to say, when the blog officially debuted in January, it was dismal.

Total blog hits in January 2010 – 70

February was a little better – 591

The the taste of spring training hit everyone and the blog took off.

A couple days ago I met my goal. I was thinking if I could get 100 hits per day, I would see the first year of the Horn & Bell and worthwhile.

Total blog views as of this morning – 36,776

Yes, 36,776 times this year.. someone looked to see what I was thinking. I had no idea I was that interesting. At this pace my annual per day average is set to finish around 113 hits per day.

Not mind blowing, but to me.. incredible. I know these big professional bloggers pull in tens of thousands of hits per day.. but for me, some fan who just made this blog to have fun and stay involved in the game that I love with the fans and friends that I love.. I think it is awesome.

So today.. today is your day! THANK YOU!

OinK!

A few weeks back I was invited to a stadium tour of the Reading Phillies home ballpark while under contruction. When this project was announced I have to admit I was very upset to hear of the changes and worried that the ballpark fun of my childhood would be washed under by a fancy new stadium and erase the place of so many good times.

I was wrong. The stadium will retain much of what I liked about it and add more concessions, restrooms and a spacious entry gate. Also, not usually noticed by the average fan, new stadium lights will be installed as well as padded outfield walls and the original concrete surface of the stands is being recoated.

Gone will be the original main gate that will be encroached upon by the new self enclosed clubhouse store and will still find use as an exit tunnel.

What is left of the original main gate.

With an RSVP time set at 9:40 am this morning, we arrived to a friendly welcome by R-Phil’s front office staff and offered free hot dogs and coffee or hot chocolate.

We were then gathered by our tour guide, community relations director Matt Hoffmaster, who led us into the temporary office trailer where we found General Manager Scott Hunsicker who welcomed us and explained the process and necessity of the renovation. He spoke of the last major changes made in 1993 and that a total of $9 million was spent over the past 17 years in upgrades to the park. Also mentioned that there was research put into finding a new stadium spot closer to the riverfront in Reading that most fans opposed and it was decided that the stadium would stay at the same spot it has been for decades. The current renovations cost $10 million.

Beginning the tour

We started off the tour by looking at what used to be the main gate. The ticket office has been expanded as well as office space for the team staff. There will be 4 total ticket windows, increased from 2 and it was also mentioned that the staff had increased by almost 15 full time employees since the last renovations in 1993.

We then moved into the food court area where permanant buildings are being erected to house many concessions. I asked about the tunnel underneath the grandstand and if concessions would remain and all would remain except for one ice cream stand and the large booth near the visitor’s locker room.

We finished the tour in about 15-20 minutes and were offered a lot of information in that short time. It was a brisk sunny morning and smiles were seen on all.. especially myself. The R-Phils have really gone out of their way to keep the history and traditions of the Reading baseball town intact. Many photos of each Reading Phillies team of the past and beyond will be posted for all to see and the grandstand and field will look almost identical to how it was before. Makes you thankful that baseball fans thrive on history and tradition.

Also of note, we were provided with complimentary Reading Phillies construction hard hats. Very nice addition to my collection. Even got to check in with our old friend Tommy Viola, formerly of the Ironpig’s Radio network and currently the media director of the R-Phils.

Thanks go out to Scott Hunsicker, Matt Hoffmaster and all of the Reading Phillies organization for the opportunity to check out the work in progress. I am definately going to catch some games in Reading in 2011!

OinK!

In the first season the Ironpig’s slogan was, “Go Hog Wild!”

The next year we got my personal favorite, “Laugh, Cheer, Oink!”

Last year was pretty generic with, “All Star Valley.”

So the Ironpig’s think tank is always working full time to amuse and entertain us and I’ve noticed something popping up more and more often.

“Pig Out!”

In a copy of the Pork Barrell blog each segment is separated with a -pig out-. In an email correspondence shared with me earlier today, the salutation of the email is noted as “Pig Out”

Could the phrase, “Pig Out” be the new tagline for the 2011 season? I hope not. I would rather see, “Pig Safe!” 🙂

For me, I’ll stick my original closing and stay with that one for a while…

OinK!

Thanks to Dean for sending me this link:

http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/NickPiecoro/108212

Towards the bottom you will see that Cody Ransom has also signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Maybe they needed someone to watch ground balls roll into left field too.

OinK!

Just checking in at the Ironpig’s website I was a little shocked to see.. well, what I saw.

I first thought I had missed the link on my favorites and ended up on the Minor league baseball homepage and I went back, clicked again.. and found myself at this page. I noticed a few familiar names and photos and then reality set in.

I had heard rumors of this happening and it finally came to be. Minor League baseball has assimilated the Ironpig’s website. The new look is as generic as any other minor league team site now and has a few differences… some good and some I could do without.

Added are news links, Phillies updates and a nice new format. The page is also heavy in Phillies red, which moves away significantly from the standard Ironpig blue that has been used for the past 3 years. The page appears more organized and has a better “official” feel to it.

The parts I could do without are the generic, national ads. The first ads I saw were for an auto insurance company and the ever so present, “Check your credit score for a fee.. I mean for free” links. The longstanding and stalwart local supporters of the team have been relegated to a small, merged, icon in the lower right corner of the page. Doesn’t seem right for the sponsors who have continued to provide the cash for us to enjoy ourselves so greatly here in the Lehigh Valley.

The page does not skimp on references to the MiLB website and links though. Also, multiple notes to check out social media sites are found throughout. (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)

Altogether, it’s ok. I guess. I liked the feel good down home feel of the old page. Seems like the league has poked its collective finger into this pocket. Nothing the organization could have prevented but just another portion of individuality the team has, has found its way into the realm of “the greater good.”

View the Ironpig’s new website here.

I created a poll to hear what you have to say.. feel free to comment:

Also, check out the staff photographs. To get there choose Roster then Staff. Click on an employee name for an “image”

Now this is downright creepy.. LOL

OinK!