Category Archives: Uncategorized

I just saw that the Washington Nationals have sent an offer to Cliff Lee. 7 years, who knows how many millions…

My thought, and I believe many are with me on this.. where is Washington getting the cash to pay these guys?

They signed Stephen Strasburg to a $15.1 Million contract last summer. Although they lost him to a Tommy John surgery.. he won’t be back in the bigs for a little while.

They just inked Jayson Werth to a massive $127 million deal.

Where is the money coming from? Does anyone out there know?

Will hot dogs now cost $15 and beer $25 a cup?

Really? I know they want to be competative and give something back to their fans but really… Has George Steinbrenner’s spirit taken over the ownership of the Nationals?

Looking at our, being the Lehigh Valley Ironpig’s, ticket prices… we have it good.

Yesterday I was parusing around the International League website and noticed that the AAA All Star game in 2011 will be held in Salt Lake City, home of the Bees. The Bees are the AAA affiliate of the Anaheim Angels.

Ticket costs for 2011, per the Bee’s website are as follows:
Diamond Seats – $24
Home Plate Seats – $16
Box Seats – $15
Terrace Seats – $14
Reserved Seats – $12

Now those don’t sound too bad… comparitive to the Ironpigs ticket range of $6 to $14 they look like a lot. But then… that terrible “But then”

Added below ticket prices is this statement:

Additional $1.00 per ticket on Fireworks Nights. Additional $2.00 per ticket for 4th of July and 24th of July games. Ticket prices include a facility fee. Group prices not available on July 4th, and 24th. Additional $1 per ticket for 10-Game Fireworks Game Mini Plan

Fireworks night costs an extra dollar. We get them for free! Thank you to the sponsors!

July 4th and 24th the games cost an extra $2 per ticket and ALL tickets include a $1 facility fee. Interesting. Wonder why they don’t include that in the advertised price. Perhaps facility fee is a fancy way to say Tax.

For those who may still be griping about the cost to an Ironpig’s game.. know that we are very lucky.

Who to thank for that? Well that’s a good thought, but mainly we need to thank the owners for keeping it reasonable and also those great sponsors who, by purchasing advertising, give away days and sponsoring events and activities that keep our costs the same over 4 years. (There has been only one cost increase in tickets in that time. Sections 101 and 102 had been $7.50 a seat in 2008 and were raised to $9 in 2009)

Not bad considering the rising cost of everything else.

Maybe the Nationals have found the secret to success that the Ironpigs organization has been thriving on.

Thoughts / Comments?

OinK!

Brandon Duckworth signed with the Red Sox. Looks like no more duck pond..

Gustavo Chacin elected to be a free agent from the Astros.

Fabio Castro signed with the Mariners

That’s all we got so far. No word on Andy Tracy yet.

Reminder – still collecting recipes for our charity cook book. Send them over 🙂

OinK

Some notes from yesterday…

Phillies retained Kyle Kendrick and Ben Fransisco.

Ryne Sandberg and Charlie Manuel confirmed to be attending the Phillies Caravan event on January 27th. It’s a fun time, it really is.

A lot of good comments on recent posts. Appreciate you all reading and sending in good thoughts.

OinK!

Yeah, it’s not looking good for Jayson Werth to return to the Phillies in 2011.

I try to look at stuff from a less emotional point of view when it comes to money. Really, that’s all this is about.

Money.

Jayson Werth wants it. If he wanted us, meaning Phillies fans, he would have accepted a contract already.

Putting into that line of sight.. if Werth doesn’t want us, cares more about money than us… should we really want him?

Sure he was on our team since 2007 and had a breakout year in 2008 when the Phillies took the World Series title. He helped the Phillies to 4 straight post season appearances. But do we really, and I mean Really, want him back if he’s going to snub us for the glittery gold and attention received of a media fueled free agency?

Looking at his stats:
Prior to 2007 he hit over .250 just once, .262 in 2004 with the Dodgers.

He has not hit over 100 RBI in any season, his high being 99 in 2009. He drives in runs, but not big time.

He has never hit over .300. He hits well, but not great.

He has only a handful of triples and hasn’t gone beyond 20 stolen bases in any season. He has speed but not great speed.

He struck out 119 times in 2008, 156 in 2009 and 147 in 2010.

The only aspect of Jayson Werth that could be deemed as great is his fielding. Strong arm and solid instincts in the outfield.

Looking at what I just typed.. you could say Werth is a one tool player.

A Kindergarten grade scale consists of 3 grades. (At least it did when I was there)
O for Outstanding
S for Satisfactory
N for Not Satisfactory

My grades for him would be:
Fielding – O
Hitting for average – S
Hitting for power – S
Driving in runs – S
Speed – S
Strikeout ratio – N

Seems pretty average when you look at it. Slightly above the average MLB player but well below the superstar status that the media has given him.

A lesson I learned early in my Marine Corps career was that rewards are not based upon what you have done, they are based upon what your potential for the future is.

What is Jayson Werth’s potential? Could he be the level of Babe Ruth being sold to the Yankees or could he be another Dontrell Willis who gets paid and cut soon after.
Werth is 31 now.. of average age in the Major Leagues nowadays. A youngster by Jamie Moyer standards. How many years does he have left?

What I believe will happen is that Werth will get paid. He will get a multiyear multi million dollar contract from someone. He will have to adjust to a new team, new coworkers, a new manager and possibly a new league.

So to answer my own question.. “Do I want Jayson Werth?” My answer is no. If money is all that matters to him.. he can have it. I will keep my Phillie hat and jersey and root for whoever stands tall in right field at Citizen’s Bank Park.

OinK!

Per the GameOps.com website, The Ironpig’s front office has received a Best Team Operations award. The criteria for this award is:

Which team is doing the best job in their game operations and game presentation. Consider creativity, value to fans, overcoming sport and budget limitations, quality of presentation, and attention to detail. We level the playing field by considering budget constraints to minor league teams.

The award citation reads:

Leigh Valley Iron Pigs are top notch staff dedicated to providing their rabid fans with fresh entertainment every single game. The Triple-A All Star Game in Allentown this season showcased the organization’s commitment to an all-encompassing entertainment experience. It’s no wonder this team leads all of MiLB in attendance…they keep giving fans more and more reasons to make the trip to Coca-Cola Park.

Coming a close second were none other than the Richmond Flying Squirrels:

The Flying Squirrels returned to Richmond after a one-year absence prompted by the relocation of the former Richmond Braves. The Flying Squirrels rebranded and took the team to new heights with a great focus on game entertainment, clever use of the mascot in the community, well-rounded entertainment, an aggressive use of promotional nights and an impressive social media and web iniitivitves to engage their fan base.

Completing the top three was the UFC – Ultimate Fighting Championship

Per the Gameops website their mission is:

Gameops.com is a resource web site designed to connect teams and event producers with ideas and tools that will enhance the entertainment value of their events. The site is produced and managed by Mark Out Productions, Inc.

Congrats to our friends over at Coca Cola Park!

OinK!

Over three years we had a lot of good memories. These 10 are among my favorites and still make me chuckle when I think back…

10. When Wawa sponsored the OINK sign. – Yeah, I miss the Oink… I really do but for a company to recognize us like that is great. We wondered if anyone was watching.. and there was!

9. The Horns. – Love em or Hate em.. we had a good time with them. One game in particular the Pigs were behind late in the game. Surprised right? The Pigs came to bat and we started blaring on the horns. The opposing team’s pitcher walked the first batter. We got louder. He walked the second batter. We got even louder. The pitcher balked moving runners to 2nd and 3rd. We went crazy. The manager came out to the mound and the pitcher was furious. He was waving his arms and pointing at us and complaining to the manager and umpire. That pitcher was pulled and the Pigs rallied for the win. I like to think we had an impact.

8. The smoke screen – On a damp windless summer night this past season the button on our smoke machine got stuck. (Also compliments of Wawa) The smoke made a quick line down to the field and formed a cloud over the opposing team’s center fielder who started waving his arms and yelling up to us. He was laughing and later in the inning Ironpig centerfielder Chris Duffy came out looking confused at us. We had a lot of fun with that.

Photo by George Kordalski

7. Bubba Bell – Yeah, an opposing player. Bubba recognized us at the All Star game autograph session and we promised not to hassle him as he was on our team for that day. Bubba came out to a great Noise Nation cheer and during the game we yelled for a strikeout… “Give me a K!” and everyone yelled “K!” except Bubba. We yelled down “Bubba! You didn’t give us a K” and he turned around and yelled “K”. The rest of the game he helped us out with the K.

6. Matt Joyce – Another opposing team Noise Nation favorite. Matt came to town and was a lot of fun. He danced around, gave out autographs freely and although he didn’t sign “his” K… we had a lot of fun with him.

5. The All Star game home run derby. It rained. It rained a lot the whole time. We all took cover under the K sign and had a great time. My umbrella exploded and we watched home run after home run fly into our area. The incredible boo that followed the late appearance of the magician was possibly the loudest I’ve ever heard the fans at Coca Cola Park. We had fun.. but we were wet and wanted to go home.

4. John Rodriguez Dancing – Scranton’s John Rodriguez had a lot of fun with us. See video below:

3. John Rodriguez Moonwalk – I had to give J-Rod more than one spot here on my list. Great times. Here he does the moonwalk for us. Quite difficult in cleats on grass:

2. Philly Force – We had so much fun at the now defunct softball team part of the National Pro Fastpitch league. We cheered, they joined in. After their last game they asked for our autographs.. took photos of us and invited us out to their afterparty. Details of the party shall be deemed inappropriate for this blog 🙂

1. Drew Stubbs – Stubbs was playing for the Louisville Bats in centerfield. Early in the first game of four we started our traditional LEFT RIGHT LEFT chant and it annoyed Stubbs. He was not having it. During the game he struck out and another tradition is to try to get the centerfielder to sign “his” K if they strike out. Stubbs adamently refused. Before the next game one of our younger members went to ask him again.. “Pweeese Drew.. sign your K.” (Ok we’re bad, I know) He got even madder. One of his teammates signed the K happily and that night Stubbs went 0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts. On the third game we made some room and created a K sign specifically for Stubbs.. with all 5 of his K’s from the series attached. It is considered the ultimate taunt to have a player’s team mates laughing at them.. and his team mates were besides themselves in laughter. He left the field that day upset and unimpressed.

Should have signed the K..

I know some of these things sound immature and juvenile.. but we do try to act as good as we can. We enforce a family environment policy in our area of right-center field and cursing and other insults are off limits. We sure do have a good time.

These are my top 10… what are yours?

Again, my opinion..

Ivan Pavlov lived from September 14, 1849 to February 27, 1936. His legacy, or research to say, lives on…

For those who aren’t familiar with Ivan Pavlov, he was a Russian Physiologist who is famous for his work in the subject of conditional reflex. The story of how he trained his dogs with a bell, making them hungry upon a ring, can show us fans of how the sports world controls us.

Let’s look deeper…

Listen to the below clip:

So, did you find yourself clapping along and yelling out “HEY!” at the appropriate moment?

Let’s try this one:

Now myself, I don’t stand up and stomp.. but I see those that do and I see those who don’t.. but there are very few who don’t clap when the announcer yells out, “EVERYBODY CLAP YOUR HANDS!”

Yeah, just like the dog salivating over the ring of a bell. The popular show, “The Office”, also shows a character training a co-worker to ask for a mint each time he reboots his computer.

My point. Well, the PA announcer holds control over you. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. Sporting events are supposed to be fun and being led in cheers is a good time and leads to crowd noise (Which I highly approve of). At least we don’t have cheerleaders. Yeah I said it. I don’t like cheerleaders. At least not what cheerleading has become. How many cheerleaders lead cheers anymore? Very few. Can the voice of 15-20 young women at the sideline be heard by 60,000 people in a stadium with blaring music? Nope. That PA announcer can be heard though.

If you want a real thrill, attend an Ironpig’s Education day where the majority of the crowd are children. They jump. They dance. They yell on demand. They can sing the commercials and they can explain to you things that you wouldn’t believe. Last summer a 12 yr old explained to me what “Supermanning a Ho” meant. (Yes, this song was played regularly at the Coke) If you don’t have a child to explain it to you.. I would try google-ing it.

So with the control aspect of this it seems the fans lose creative thought. How many home made signs have you seen lately? Not as many as you saw in 2008. How many foam fingers do you see? A lot. How many jet balloons did you see released all at the same time? How many chants and cheers are started by fans? Not many.

Late in the game during the last home game of 2010 the Noise Nation attempted to get a cheer going to encourage Andy Tracy to enter the game. We placed people in every section of the park. We were the only ones cheering. Responses we got:

“He’s not in the game” (Yeah, we know.. we want him in the game)

“If they wanted us to chant it they would have it on the loudspeaker”

“Are we allowed to do our own cheers?”

Soon into our chant, the PA started off with more music and we dissolved back into the K korner in centerfield.. disappointed.

Where has the originality gone?

Where have the cheers gone?

Well, I guess we can try to overcome the Pavlov response to the PA system.. or we can just concede and become another drone.

Just my opinion… what’s yours?

Last winter my pal Joe and I made a trip to the Ironpig’s Phillies Caravan charity event. We had a ball!

The event raises money for Ironpig’s Charities which in turn benefits the youth of the local area. Tickets and grants to youth organizations go a long way to help kids enjoy sports and much needed exercise.

One thing that they do support is the Miracle League of the Lehigh Valley. There is a beautiful park out in Schnecksville where kids can play on crutches and wheelchairs and have fun. I volunteered there once last summer and plan to help out more in the 2011 season. Very rewarding from many aspects. If you wonder where the charity money from Ironpig’s charities goes… take an afternoon and check out one of these games and you will see it is well worth it.

So about the Phillies Caravan. Last year we were treated to Charlie Manuel stories, speeches by Andy Tracy, Matt Provence, Ricky Bottalico and many others. There was an auction and although I couldn’t come close to any of the bids, just seeing some of the stuff being sold was amazing.

I won’t go on too much about this event. The food was great, booze was included and tickets were $80 a person. There is a discount for a table of 10.. details can be found on the Ironpig’s website. Anyone want to buy a table and invite me along? 🙂

Really, if you get a chance to go.. go. You won’t regret it.

OinK!

Well the Ironpigs now have a new manager in Ryne Sandberg and a couple days ago we found out that Hitting coach Greg Gross was replaced by Sal Rende.

My first thought was.. Who is Sal Rende? Minor league fans often find themselves asking these questions in the off season and thanks to baseball reference online I found some answers.

From baseball-reference.com

Infielder Sal Rende was drafted in the 28th round of the 1977 amateur draft by the Cleveland Indians. He played seven seasons in the minors, mostly with the Chattanooga Lookouts.

Rende was a manager in the minors for twelve seasons between 1984 and 1996. His teams finished with the best record four times and won four league titles in his first seven seasons. His teams finished no higher than 4th in his last five seasons. In 1999-2001 he was a coach for the Calgary Cannons. He was a coach for the Columbus Clippers in 2003, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons in 2004-2006 and the Ottawa Lynx in 2007. In 2008-2010, Rende was the Minor League Hitting Coordinator for the Philadelphia Phillies. In 2011, he will be the hitting coach for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

Rende has been involved in some personality conflicts of note. Carl Everett had a confrontation with Rende that led to Everett being ousted from the Florida Marlins organization. In 2003 Bucky Dent wanted to fire Rende from the Clippers over the handling of Drew Henson and Dent had to be talked out of quitting when the Columbus GM wouldn’t get rid of Rende.

Rende most recently managed in the Edmonton Trappers(Pacific Coast League) in 1993-94 and the Charlotte Knights in 1995-96. Only one of those teams finished with a winning record.

Looking at notes around the web it looks like Rende might bring a fire to the bench at The Coke that Greg Gross didn’t appear to.

Here’s to 2011!

OinK!

From multiple sources we’ve heard that Rich Thompson has re-signed with the Ironpigs. Rich is the only one to return for the 4th season of the team’s existance. Good to have him back. Also re-signed Nate Bump and Tagg Bozied (Reading).

Both Joe Bisenius and DeWayne Wise have filed for free agency.

Jeff Larish after sending a Joe Savery pitch into the Trough. Photo by Dennis

“On June 10th, 2010 the Toledo Mud Hens hit 3 solo homeruns in the first inning off Joe Savery at Coca-Cola Park . The third homer was hit by Jeff Larish. Larish was signed by the Phillies today. He is 28 years old and splits his time between playing first and third base. He bats lefthanded and throws righthanded. Here’s a picture of him crossing homeplate after hitting his first inning homer.”

Looks like the organization is working on building us a team again this year. Let’s hope that there aren’t any opt out clauses….

Also of note from our friend Dean – Mickey Morandini will be managing the Williamsport Crosscutters this season. I wonder how Jorge Valendia is doing out there…

OinK!