Easy to say.
Honestly, you think MH has the money in hand, he would not just say so?
Money is ALWAYS a problem at Marshall, in athletics, and academics. ALWAYS.
M.U. Baseball Stadium/Pool.
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Easy to say.
Honestly, you think MH has the money in hand, he would not just say so?
Money is ALWAYS a problem at Marshall, in athletics, and academics. ALWAYS.
Power Park was suppose to cost $20 million, in 2004-2005 dollars, and ended up costing $25 million.
A lot has changed in the area since the Cubs left. The area's Population has shrunk, considerably, and so has the number of businesses and industry. Marshall can't sell-out games so I have doubts a minor league baseball team can draw enough to survive.
I've wondered how Appy League teams have survived in Princeton and Bluefield for twenty plus years. How does the Power survive? Other than student day, they rarely look to have half that park filled, if that.
On my last visit to the area I visited Power Park. I was told the attendance has dropped off to levels equal to or less than the park they left. Bottom part of the SAL.
Honestly, I think MH is using this as a way to raise money. I know for sure the naming rights are up for grab.
Very humorous. You have WAY too much time on your hands.
Look, all I, and plenty others, am saying is "believe what you see". Specifically for baseball, but also in other MU endeavors, and in this area more generally we have seen things be promised and be "done deals" and then had nothing happen for years thereafter, if at all. I certainly HOPE MH can pull this off. He is the best AD we have ever had. But I also have been around for a while and have seen this movie before, and I KNOW the financial realities of this region. That is all I, and plenty others, are saying.
What I do find interesting is all of the anti MH, butthurt over the AAC, anti-Doc, woe is us, posters are the same posters who believe he, without any public fundraising, has found $50M to spend on a non-revenue sport.
Which is it?
Look, all I, and plenty others, am saying is "believe what you see". Specifically for baseball, but also in other MU endeavors, and in this area more generally we have seen things be promised and be "done deals" and then had nothing happen for years thereafter, if at all. I certainly HOPE MH can pull this off. He is the best AD we have ever had. But I also have been around for a while and have seen this movie before, and I KNOW the financial realities of this region. That is all I, and plenty others, are saying.
What I do find interesting is all of the anti MH, butthurt over the AAC, anti-Doc, woe is us, posters are the same posters who believe he, without any public fundraising, has found $50M to spend on a non-revenue sport.
Which is it?
The only reason there is still baseball in Charleston (or 90% of minor league cities) is because young people like to drink beer outside. You build a new ballpark, have some awesome beer specials, you get good crowds. As time goes on though, the new car smell wears off, somebody opens a biergarden down the street, the city starts letting people BYOB to concerts on the river, and the team responds to declining sales by diluting those beer specials that brought them out in the first place.
You could have seen this coming when the park first opened: the stands would be maybe half-full, but the concourse would be jam packed. Tons of people there, but nobody watching the game. As the years have gone on, the crowd in the stands hasn't changed much, but that concourse is way less packed than it used to be. The only good beer special is the party deck, and that's more about the booze and buffet than baseball.
By the way, attendance at the WV Black Bears, the short-season minor league affiliate brought in to justify the $16 million stadium built for WVU, saw its attendance decline this year by over 20%. This was their third season.
Booze is important. There is a reason Louisville Slugger Field has a microbrewery on site (and legit one of the best in the region) and sells liquor in the stadium.
Huntington does have an advantage there because of Marshall, plenty of young people looking to get drunk.
I made another phone call today and was told, the money is on hand, but Dan wants to use this as a way to fundraise and keep some money for a rainy day. I don't know if its money MU got from all the teams leaving C-USA, bonding, or funds from another source but I am told the money is on hand.
Most of the funds are coming from private donations.
That is true but if the hypothetical minor league team is a short-season team, that means their season runs from mid-June to the end of August. The same time frame that the majority of Marshall students aren't in town.
At one time, and maybe it has changed, Huntington fell under the WV Power's territory and any affiliated minor league team would have to get their permission to play in Huntington.
Bluefield and Princeton have made it work all these years. Huntington could as well. I seriously doubt MLB organizations worry about making money at that level. It's all about player development and getting them in the show - that's when the payoff comes.
A few comments.
First, Bluefield has gone from approx. 20,000 pop. to down around 11,000-12,000 currently. Yet, it and area have supported Appy League rookie level team since the 50s. Mercer County pop. overall like Cabell's: static or declining. Yet, in nearby Princeton, Tampa Bay also has had an Appy team, Rays, for several years in a city of about 7,000 pop. If Huntington can't support similar minor league team in a new stadium, then it needs to roll up the sidewalks and erect headstones with "R.I.P." inscribed on all roads into town!!
As for "funds in place", I wonder if Danny D.'s comments were referring to the CAM/Gullickson upgrades only. Like SamC, I'm a little curious, and skeptical, as to exactly where ALL these private $$$$$ are coming from in economically declining/depressed Huntington? From the Hoops empire, already heavy donors to MU and/or Huntington? From super rich alum, Chris Cline? Again, a heavy contributor. And note: Both Hoops and Cline are heavily involved in Coal Mining, and, in Cline's case, other fossil fuels interests. And we all know what a certain party of nameless Jackasses wants to do there!!
So where else in Huntington's "robust" private sector is MU looking to for big time $$$$$$? The vast Hill Billy Hot Dog empire, perhaps? The super successful heads of the Fat Patty's chain? The Miller auto group family? Or will MU go a little farther and solicit funds from the Kingpin Pimp in town? Accept funds from the head local representatives of the super successful Detroit Drug Cartel? Or maybe from the nation's major syringe manufacturers?
As for MU's other billionaire alum, Ole Gov. Jim himself, well I'm not sure he's still sorting out all the nuts and bolts in order to pay all of his arrears taxes in several states and locales! Not to mention all other creditors who have sued, or are suing, his various business interests/entities!!
First, Bluefield has gone from approx. 20,000 pop. to down around 11,000-12,000 currently. Yet, it and area have supported Appy League rookie level team since the 50s. Mercer County pop. overall like Cabell's: static or declining. Yet, in nearby Princeton, Tampa Bay also has had an Appy team, Rays, for several years in a city of about 7,000 pop. If Huntington can't support similar minor league team in a new stadium, then it needs to roll up the sidewalks and erect headstones with "R.I.P." inscribed on all roads into town!!
As for "funds in place", I wonder if Danny D.'s comments were referring to the CAM/Gullickson upgrades only. Like SamC, I'm a little curious, and skeptical, as to exactly where ALL these private $$$$$ are coming from in economically declining/depressed Huntington? From the Hoops empire, already heavy donors to MU and/or Huntington? From super rich alum, Chris Cline? Again, a heavy contributor. And note: Both Hoops and Cline are heavily involved in Coal Mining, and, in Cline's case, other fossil fuels interests. And we all know what a certain party of nameless Jackasses wants to do there!!
So where else in Huntington's "robust" private sector is MU looking to for big time $$$$$$? The vast Hill Billy Hot Dog empire, perhaps? The super successful heads of the Fat Patty's chain? The Miller auto group family? Or will MU go a little farther and solicit funds from the Kingpin Pimp in town? Accept funds from the head local representatives of the super successful Detroit Drug Cartel? Or maybe from the nation's major syringe manufacturers?
As for MU's other billionaire alum, Ole Gov. Jim himself, well I'm not sure he's still sorting out all the nuts and bolts in order to pay all of his arrears taxes in several states and locales! Not to mention all other creditors who have sued, or are suing, his various business interests/entities!!
From what I take from talking to John Sutherland, most of the big money is coming from OUTSIDE Huntington. He has a lot coming from Herd baseball alumni from MLB. Both past and present players.
The teams in Bluefield and Princeton are also not-for-profit businesses, with one owned by the city I believe, and only have 2 or 3 full time employees. Breaking even, financially, is a win and free tickets are usually plentiful. Also, both had an average attendance figure around 700.
As for money coming from Marshall alumni in the MLB, we've only had a handful make it to "The Show" in the last 25 years. Those being Reed, Montgomery, Straily, Blair and Shackleford. No offense meant toward those guys, as all of them are great players and people, but how much can they and are willing, to donate?
As for money coming from Marshall alumni in the MLB, we've only had a handful make it to "The Show" in the last 25 years. Those being Reed, Montgomery, Straily, Blair and Shackleford. No offense meant toward those guys, as all of them are great players and people, but how much can they and are willing, to donate?
We've never seemed to give Montgomery much love. Never could figure out why.
Tammie Green and womens golf the same way. Haven't seen her on campus in eons. If I was Brooke, I'd be giving her a call.
Tammie Green and womens golf the same way. Haven't seen her on campus in eons. If I was Brooke, I'd be giving her a call.
This is correct. There can be some knitpicking, but in a nutshell, the players and coaches are paid by the MLB club, and the non-profit businesses are paid a fee by MLB. The fields are maintained with existing workers (Princeton by the school board, Bluefield by the city park). All they need to make is enough to cover the part of the travel the MLB fee does not, and some smaller costs. Whatever they take in in tickets (which are often free) and concessions is an attempt to break even. It is more of a community thing, they just want to break even.
The WVU deal is about the same thing.
Could such a thing work in Huntington? Probably, although it is no big deal.
Montgomery came to the MU Baseball Banquet in 2006 I believe. I'm not sure if he's been back, as an invited guest or speaker, since then.
That stinks. Hopefully he still has good ties to the school. Hope we didn’t burn that bridge as we did with many during the KO years.
Montgomery, I think, is, and has been, a member of the Royals broadcasting team, either radio or TV, and probably pretty busy with those endeavors. Blair never caught on with the Braves and not sure if he wasn't released outright this summer. Shackleford never stuck with the Reds and I believe ended 2018 in the minors. Straily had a down year in 2018 and not sure he's a free agent or not. Would probably do his career good to get out of the mismanaged three ring circus headed up by Derek Jeter in Miami. Don't think we have that many well heeled alums in the MLB world as some on here think.
Back to the Appy League, yes, it is a Rookie League in most respects and the ML teams do fund a lot of the operations, players' salaries, etc.. If one league team, located in WV, VA, TN and NC, is perhaps looking to move/relocate then Huntington should try and attract that team. Also, when it comes to a new MU stadium, then Hamrick and the stadium "planners" should take a trip to Greeneville, TN, where the Reds' Appy League team resides. They have a new baseball stadium there and the Reds TV broadcasters raved all summer on how nice a facility it is!!!
Blair had to have shoulder surgery and Shackelford had to have elbow surgery. Both were released by their teams to free up a roster spot.
The stadium in Greeneville TN, Pioneer Park, is on the Tusculum College campus. I believe it opened around 14 or 15 years ago, so it's not brand new but still a nice ballpark and the best one in the Appy League. The Astros had their Appy League team there before the Reds took over for the 2018 season.
I'd always heard that one of the negatives from the Huntington Cubs years was the travel costs. With the profit margins being slim, the travel to east Tennessee and North Carolina added up, even for a short season team. Most of the teams in the Appy League are located close to each other, in some cases they're around a 20 to 30 minute drive. For Huntington, it was several hours. Maybe that's just one of those rumors that got started and then grew, so who knows for sure.
The stadium in Greeneville TN, Pioneer Park, is on the Tusculum College campus. I believe it opened around 14 or 15 years ago, so it's not brand new but still a nice ballpark and the best one in the Appy League. The Astros had their Appy League team there before the Reds took over for the 2018 season.
I'd always heard that one of the negatives from the Huntington Cubs years was the travel costs. With the profit margins being slim, the travel to east Tennessee and North Carolina added up, even for a short season team. Most of the teams in the Appy League are located close to each other, in some cases they're around a 20 to 30 minute drive. For Huntington, it was several hours. Maybe that's just one of those rumors that got started and then grew, so who knows for sure.
I agree with you about the Greeneville/Tusculum ballfield. It is around 15 or so years old and the best low minor field I’ve seen.
Tusculum has the top athletic facilities, that I’ve toured, on their level. Not sure who wrote the biggest check but they got their moneys worth.
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Montgomery was at the MU Baseball Scrambles at Sleepy Hollow last Friday. Hamrick was there as well.
Not bad. I really didn’t count the groups, but my group started on 16 and there were two groups assigned to that hole. I assume that means there were more than 18 foursomes.
