Batavia never disappoints
It doesn’t take a whole lot to please a true baseball fan.
Sure, going to a Major League game is special and an experience that should never be taken for granted.
After all, when you can see the greatness of Mike Trout or the vast potential of a Vladdy Guerrero, Jr., up close and in person, it’s something to behold and worth the price of admission.
But as satisfying as it can be to see the best of the best, a minor-league game can be just as much fun.
A trip to Batavia last week to catch a New York-Penn League game once again proved it’s the game itself and the people you watch it with that make baseball such a magical experience live.
I’ve gone to Batavia, about an hour east of Buffalo, almost every season since the St. Catharines Stompers left town. I was fortunate enough to cover many, many games there in my previous incarnation at the St. Catharines Standard and the park and tiny community have always been among my favourite places to visit.
With that as a backdrop, my son Ryan and I rounded up former Stompers general manager John Belford and baseball guru Pete Kozela last week for a game and the experience certainly didn’t disappoint.
Now, no baseball excursion is complete without a trip to an eatery beforehand to sample the local fare.
Our trips to Batavia almost always featured a trip to Sunny’s, located in a downtown mall, a well-known establishment famous for its prime rib.
Much to our disappointment, we arrived only to find Sunny’s had gone out of business.
A sombre moment of silence was held and off we went to Alex’s, another local watering hole in the shadows of Batavia Downs.
Alex’s was open, but a 40-minute wait wasn’t going to work, so we made our way to Dwyer Stadium where we could combine dinner and the game.
And with a ticket cost of just $8 for the game, that meant we had even more of that smelly American money — it has a scent like no other — to spend on food and beverages.
And spend we did.
Hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza and nachos all went down very nicely, thank you.
Through all the munching we managed to watch an entertaining contest between the hometown Muckdogs, who are affiliated with the Miami Marlins, and the Lowell Spinners, farm team of the Boston Red Sox.
The field at Dwyer Stadium looked as well-maintained as I’ve ever seen it — I remember one game being cancelled when the field was not up to snuff — while the park itself has aged nicely since being built in 1996.
It’s a no-frills stadium with no real distinct features other than it is good enough to be home to a professional baseball team.
I often wondered what that park would look like were it situated on the site of Community Park, former home of the Stompers.
I made sure to keep the memory of the Stompers alive by wearing my official purple and green satin jacket I was given when the team left town.
It’s gaudy, silky . . . and absolutely magnificent. I wasn’t in the park two minutes and someone commented on how much they liked the jacket and how they missed going to St. Catharines.
I also came home with a Muckdogs T-shirt for a paltry $10 while my son picked up an authentic, fitted Batavia cap for only $25. Mr. Belford was fortunate enough to catch a Batavia shirt that was shot into the stands while my son somehow ended up with a shirt and can holder, courtesy of a famous beer company.
Our night also included nearly being decapitated by a vicious line drive that landed one row behind us and left a clear dent in the aluminium seat it bounced off. I’m sure the exit velocity was at least 200 m.p.h., if not more.
The evening wrapped up by listening to the Angels no-hit the Seattle Mariners on the way home.
It’s hard to imagine a better night all around.
Next up: Erie for a AA game.
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