Commentary
Wild Things debut gets solid ‘thumbs up’ WASHINGTON – The Wednesday evening forecast called for showers and a thunderstorm, but it turned out to be a perfect night for baseball.
The Washington Wild Things minor league team, the newest member of the Frontier League, played their first game to a sell-out crowd of 3,212 at Falconi Field, and just about every aspect of the debut went well except for the final score.
Washington dropped a 3-0 decision to the Canton Coyotes.
Otherwise, it was an extremely successful opening for the area’s newest professional team.
“Somebody upstairs was smiling on us,” said Wild Things director of communications Christine Blaine. “We put in a lot of effort in a very limited amount of time to get this up and running, and, for the most part, I’m very pleased with how this first game turned out.”
The experience at Falconi Field was certainly a pleasant one.
First of all there were the Wild Thing employees, all of which were cordial beyond belief. Questions were answered and information was given with a smile, up and down the line. If someone couldn’t help with a query, a sincere apology was given and another who might be more helpful was pointed out.
Tickets are reasonably priced at anywhere from $5 to $10 (senior citizens and children four-to-12 years old pay $4 for general admission tickets, while children under four enter for free). One option is to take a seat in the picnic area down the left-field line. It’s reserved for group outings before the game, but opens to the public around the second inning.
The food is reasonably priced as well. A hot dog and a coke will run you $3.50, which isn’t bad, especially compared to major-league ballpark standards.
For non-game entertainment, there is a video arcade area, a play area for kids, and a radar gun to test the speed of your fastball. There is a small gift shop that features a nice array of Wild Things clothing, etc.
The facility is intimate and first rate. A stroll around the stands shows that there are no bad seats, and you’re up close to the action.
Perhaps too close at times, however. You have to be on your toes for foul balls. If there was one drawback to the field, it was that the net behind the plate seemed to be a bit too low. Two or three pitches were fouled back and came screaming into the upper rows of the stands. A couple fans were nicked, but no injuries were reported.
Everything else gets a thumbs up, though.
The grass field is well kept, the backdrop is a hilly terrain of trees, and a double row of billboards curved around the symmetrical outfield fence with a fairly basic scoreboard in left-center. For those interested in dimensions, it’s 325 down the lines and 410 to straightaway center field.
The game itself was well played with only one error committed.
Of course, there were other festivities going on besides the baseball game.
A long pregame ceremony pushed the start of the game back from 7:05 p.m. to 7:22, when Wild Things pitcher Matt Baber threw a ball to Coyotes leadoff hitter Jason Driscoll.
During the game the team mascot, a wild cat-like creature appropriately named “Wild Thing,” did an admirable job of entertaining the crowd.
There was organ music, a T-shirt toss similar to the one the Pirates hold at PNC Park, and several contests for spectators that included singing part of a song (The Troggs’ original version of “Wild Thing” of course), an ice cream eating race and a water balloon bashing competition.
Fans seemed to be having a good time, despite the Wild Things’ ineptitude at the plate against winning pitcher Phil Kojack, a crafty left-hander who allowed only four hits in eight-plus innings.
If you’re into (Wild Things official) ballpark “firsts,” Driscoll flew out to center fielder Casey Stone as the first batter, Washington lead-off hitter Mike Check dropped a perfectly placed bloop single into short center field to record the first hit, and Canton’s Adam Rittenhouse doubled home Mark Thomas in the fourth inning with the first run.
After the game, there was a first-rate fireworks display.
All in all, it was an excellent experience for this baseball fan.
The Wild Things are obviously a well-run organization, especially when one considers how quickly everything had to come together to make opening day go off so well, as Blaine pointed out.
“It was about six months ago when we got official word that everything was a go with the team,” said Blaine, who gave general manager Ross Vecchio credit for getting the ball rolling as far as baseball operations. “He had a baseball background, and he brought in some people that knew baseball.”
Among the Wild Cats’ more recognizable members are director of operations and pitching coach Kent Tekulve and hitting coach Joe Charbaneau, a former American League Rookie of the Year.
“When you consider what we did in six months, it’s been amazing,” Blaine continued.
“We tried to check out other teams from all over the country to see how they went about it. One team, the Lexington Legends, took two years to get up and running. We didn’t have near that much time.
“We had 26 interns come in two weeks ago. They have been working so hard, and they were fantastic.
“We had a few behind-the-scene things that need to be worked out, but overall it went very well. I think one of the reasons is the desire and the attitude here are right. We’re fan friendly. It’s sort of warm and fuzzy.
“I just hope the fans enjoyed it and keep coming back.”
Here’s one that will, and a recommendation that you should, too.
Rob Burchianti is assistant sports editor of the Herald-Standard and can be reached at rvburchianti@hotmail.com.