So since I've been at the first few games,I can discuss a few of the changes for the teams presentation,the stadium and more.
Keep in mind that we here at TRS have the luxury (or difficulty in some respects) of not being the house bullhorn,
Unlike some of the other sites that cover the Suns,We choose to talk honestly (on positives and negatives) with hope the writing is taken from someone that cares enough to want things corrected and not just being a crank! Ha Ha!
The stadium seems to have fewer advertisements on the outfield wall,which shows the difficulty that the team will have until they make a firm commitment to the area.
I know that there is more to that situation,but the facts are until the constant problem of team commitment against the aging facility is settled on one side of the line or the other-Suns baseball will remain a tough sell to local advertisers,
I'm not sure if I like more open space or the advertising better....
There is a positive to the outfield wall as the wall in right center has been removed and replaced with a chain link fence.
This looks better than the previous wall,allows fans to see the visiting bullpens better,you can follow the ball better when hit to that area and could see more spectacular catches (or at least attempts anyway) by outfielders.
I love this change!
The Suns have brought back an old promotion where a local furniture store donates a recliner or love seat for the "best seats in the house" on top of the Suns dugout.
This is pretty harmless,albeit a bit cheesy looking,but when you have the sponsorship woes that the Suns have,I cannot begrudge almost anything (hang in there) that the team does to bring dollars into the fold.
I wish I could say the same of the idea of the Suns hosting an in game race of various suited characters.
Many teams do this with various themes,but the Suns may have taken the cake with a tasteless race sponsored by a local liquor store that features a beer bottle,wine glass (looks more like a trash can,which this thing belongs in,but..) and beer can along with a pink elephant that produced the most laughter seen at a Suns game in years at the season opener.
Now,of all these various races throughout the majors and minors,I generally have the least issues with these compared to other in-game "entertainment" as they can actually be fun to watch on occasion,but this crosses the line.
As a non-drinker (nothing moral,I assure you),I'm not offended by the alcoholic inspired battle,but I do have a problem in marketing this to children.
The Suns have always been a team that sold alcohol as an attraction to fans (Thirsty Thursday says more than I ever could),so that part is not a new development,but making these "kid-friendly" with a elephant tossed in for kids to pay even more attention to the race to me is bad taste and questionable.
However,when you consider that someone managed to get sponsorship for this and will make money for a team drowning in red ink,I realize that this will be around for a while and even understand it.
The part that made this funny on the opening night came in the first race,when the elephant literally lost its head as she (it?) fell down and sent the head spinning into the infield like a top from the old kids game Battling Tops!
I haven't laughed that hard at a Suns game since Darnell Coles threw an entire bucket of baseballs on the field one night after a typically lousy SAL umpiring call!
That event led to the second race that saw the elephant more concerned with holding its head on than running the race with the zany mishaps that follow.
The race has the potential for yearlong unintentional comedy,but I still wish the characters were not so adult oriented.
There is a new in-game host,who isn't that bad on the mic.
He reminds me of Kenny Powers (minus the cursing) of Eastbound and Down fame when he was in his all white "La Flama Blanca" phase as the host wears an all white suit.
The getup reminds me of a cross between the Good Humor ice cream man and the white jumpsuits seen by caddies on the pro golf tours.
In any matter,he isn't overly loud on the stick to annoy those that aren't interested in the various forms of "entertainment" and certainly seems to be more comfortable than past Suns hosts that ranged from annoying to "hey,kids look at me!" to downright uneasy with the microphone in their hands.
A upgrade from past hosts,and although I could do without the job at all,he is the best the team has had in a while...
The Suns have always struggled with music,mainly because everyone's tastes are different,but apparently the newer hits feature borderline words and one discussed getting high.
Now,I've written that my own questionable use of language is second on the list of things I'd change about myself,so I'm no prude as far as language goes,but I'd think twice before playing some of these songs.
Nothing to get upset about,but someone else might be offended more than I.
You'll never please everyone when it comes to music in public places,so the best way might be to be a little more middle of the road in their selections.
I'm not a huge fan of the new "Camo" uniforms,but the less than expensive style actually works in the jerseys favor in this case as the camo blends in more than stands out.
I wouldn't say I like them,but I've seen worse around the game.
I'm interested to see the other uniforms that are planned for the season,including this weekend.
It's nice to see some things addressed with the Hagerstown Suns and there are a few positives,so I suppose things have improved and I'll be interested in seeing just how things progress over the course of the season.
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