The Sweets are Here!

The 2011 Walla Walla Sweets have arrived...well some of them at least.  Sunday marked the first team workout of the summer for the Sweets and you could not have asked for a better afternoon.  The morning rains cleared away and 11 players donning new Sweets gear trotted into Borleske Stadium ready to begin a summer of baseball in W2.

Over the course of the last three days, constant runs to the Walla Walla airport have been made to pick up the incoming players.  As the newcomers, and returnee Ryan Richardson, sat in their new clubhouse, you could see the look of excitement on all of their faces for the upcoming summer.

With such a short roster early on, the Sweets stuck to the basics during their first workout.  The four position players took batting practice on the field and got enough swings to last them a while.  As always, the pitchers were the key cog in the BP, shagging all of the balls the batters hit.  Every so often pitching coach Mark Michaud would call one of the pitchers over to the bullpen down the left field line to throw.  A player that some may have heard of this spring, Chance Kopacz from Walla Walla CC, put on quite the power display, hitting several home runs.

As the sun sets on the Sweets first workout there is a great deal to look forward to.  Over the next three weeks, the Sweets roster will continue to fill up as players make their way to Walla Walla from their respective colleges.  Even over the next few days, more and more Sweets will be arriving just in time for Opening Day on Friday.

Season Ticket Books are In!!

Tristan Hobbes

After one mishap on the back cover, the 2011 Season Ticket books have finally arrived at the Sweets Shoppe.  The loyal fans who purchased their season tickets early will be in a for a treat when they pick up their books.  Sean Parsons, our chief designer, did a wonderful job with them and they really are special. 

As you can see in the picture, the front cover is beautifully designed with the W2 logo and each company or individual that purchased the season tickets has their name on the front cover.  Sweets fans are receiving big league type quality in a college summer league atmosphere. 

So, make sure to pick up your Season Ticket books today at the Sweets Shoppe.

How to Use Season Tickets...

I am not a huge fan of the L.A. Dodgers, but I really like this link on their website...a great reminder of how to use season tickets: http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/la/ticketing/st_ways.jsp. That is all for today - more soon!

Baseball and 37 degrees

WSU's Butch rocking a Sweets cap.

It isn't often that I can combine an opportunity to see my alma mater (Utah Valley University) play the closest D-I opponent in the state (WSU) and watch three of the players that will be playing on our club this summer (Brett Jacobs for WSU, Austin Heaps and Goose Kallunki for UVU). What made it even better? Here is the list: the 37 degrees (awesome - dripping with sarcasm), the fact that I was able to go with my family (they are hardcore - they lasted until the 8th inning, in spite of the spilled hot chocolate), the fact that I was able to see a former employee who is progressing towards her degree at WSU (what's up Mariah!), and the fact that I was able to experience a game in Pullman. Despite the spartan crowd (combination of arctic conditions and the start of spring break) the stadium was a fun place to watch a game and the community is your quintessential "college town". We even got a picture of Butch wearing a Sweets cap. Good times...

WSU won behind a dominating performance by LHP Adam Conley (probably 15 MLB scouts sitting by us behind the dish - all with radar guns). The lefty junior (read: draft eligible) touch 96 MPH last night while darting in and out of the strike zone with his breaking ball. I would be surprised if he is not selected in the first 12 rounds of the MLB draft in June. My heart was pulling for the Wolverines (alma mater prejudice). Heaps and Kallunki struggled, although Austin hit the ball hard - very hard - in his third at bat (and reached on an error in that AB), but the Wolverines early season offensive struggles continued. I will chalk it up to playing on a carpet (the whole field is field turf - a little weird!) and that it was weather better suited for football or outdoor hockey. Jacobs was a catalyst at the top of the order for the Cougars, going 2-4 with a run scored. It will be a great experience to have the Tri-Cities native playing so close to home this summer in Walla Walla. 

100 days until Opening Day

Well, it is about 7 P.M., which means that 100 days from today at this time, we'll be lining up along the 3rd baseline for the national anthem and Opening Night of season 2 at Borleske Stadium. Awesome - and where the freak did the off-season go?!?! Seriously - the conversation just a few days ago (it seems) was that we have a great off-season to get ready for year two. Well, now we have a great 100 days. I am excited to see what we have learned from our errors and from our victories.

Borleske Stadium, in its 85th year, is worth renovating.

 

In other news, as I was doing some research for a proposal that I am writing, I found out that the official year of opening for Borleske Stadium was 1926 - which makes 2011 the 85th anniversary of it's opening. How many stadiums in the country are still functional at 85? I don't know - but it would be interesting to find out. A research project for another day or an intern - but a fun one. I think that is something that should be embraced in this community - a testament to the pioneers who had the foresight to build it, and how can we keep that vision in place while bringing the stadium up to the standards of a modern facility? It deserves the effort it will take to get it there.

I like what the Red Sox have done with Fenway (happy 100th by the way...) - a historically relevant facility that, ten years ago, was ready to fall apart. The two paths that existed for the Sox were either build new (at the cost of at least $500M and probably closer to $1B) or put together a master plan to renovate. The club chose the latter - and look at the results. They are culminating a nearly $300M renovation project (much less expensive than a new build) that has all the bells and whistles of a "new" facility while protecting the history and romance of a classic early stadium. Plus, it saw two World Series victories and an end to a Curse, so I'd say it worked out.

Now, Borleske isn't Fenway - but it is an historically significant, culturally relevant stadium that houses a great history in a community that doesn't have another athletic facility like it. What we have done over the past 18 months is start the process to protect its history and identity while making it a viable facility for the foreseeable future. (photos courtesy of the Walla Walla Sweets).

Musings...

A few things out and about this week in Sweets World...


We reached an agreement with Andrae's Kitchen to serve at Borleske Stadium in 2011. The menu is still in the works, but at least they will have my personal favorite dish of all time - poutine. We may be the only park outside of the province of Quebec to serve poutine in the ballpark. I am VERY excited about that...looking forward to friends from Canada getting down to Walla Walla to give it a try...

Our new web feature explores with a little depth the companies that invest in our product.

We have a new feature on the website called "Partners in Play" - a feature that takes an in-depth look at the companies that help drive our business. They truly are the partners that help us put together a great product and are the ones who's businesses we support in the community and the region. Check out this week's inaugural column that features Wildhorse Resort & Casino.


Tickets are starting to really pick up - we have sold out of the available new premium seats behind home plate (construction starts Monday!) and have seen a great bump in reserved and general admission tickets. It is shaping up to look like roughly half the games this season will be sold out - can we get to ALL the games? Baby steps...we are looking for another rush around the time (March 1) that we release the promotional schedule, so get in early...when they are gone, they are gone!


Just so everyone knows, we have the best staff in the game - they are passionate, involved, and smart as you will find in the industry. Get to know them here - I am lucky to work with such talented people.


See you in roughly 4 months for Opening Night!

Back from Nashville - a report...

What a cool city! We just returned back from the ABCA Conference at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel (which is a city in and of itself). It was a great opportunity to meet with some of the top coaches in the country (which lends itself to a more efficient recruiting process - I learned more this year in terms of the schedule top programs keep in placing their players), to meet with other top leagues around the country and learn just from meeting people and having a ton of one-off conversations how to improve our product both on and off the field. Plus, we enjoyed a great night with the Sweets crew out at Jack's BBQ a great hole-in-the-wall BBQ joint on Broadway (downtown) then spent the evening rocking out at Tootsies and The Stage on Broadway in true Nash-Vegas style. Don't be surprised if the Sweets brand shows up on a CMT special in the near future (no reason that it would, I'm just saying don't be surprised!!) One take-away from this week was the overall health of the summer collegiate game - in legitimate leagues - is strong. It is a future of baseball that is exciting and very much what minor league baseball must have been like 30-35 years ago.

A quick "Thank You" to all the Expos fans that are now following our Tweets and this blog. A place and a team that have such a special place in my heart - and I am excited that we are bringing Sweets joy to our friends in la Belle Provence.

For those that are looking for it, here are some links that may be of interest for you:

Walla Walla Sweets - Official Home Page
Walla Walla Sweets - Official Facebook Page
The Sweets Shoppe - exclusive home of Sweets Gear
Sweets Tickets - season tickets are flying right now - and you'll love our Del Taco Family Four-Pack!

Have a great night...