TAKE ME DOWNTOWN TO THE BALL GAME

BY DAN MILLER
(originally posted June 8, 2005)

Of all the pro sporting events I've ever attended, my most magical memories are of minor league baseball when I was a boy.

The minor leagues are flourishing right now.
Old established leagues are enjoying record attendance, even as new independent leagues are popping up.

The reasons are obvious.

The minors offer baseball as close to "pure" as any professional sport can be.
You don't go there for star gazing.... it's not about multimillionaire celebrity players, better known for their contracts than for their accomplishments on the field.
You'll see young men who still love the game, not yet concerned with big contracts and commercial endorsements.

It's played in stadiums where the fans can get close to the action and the players.....
Where the kids can cackle with excitement over clowns, mascots, fireworks and fun promotions....
Where you can still purchase a ticket on game day, and get a darned good seat....

Where the hot dogs and peanuts taste just as good as at any big league park.... the beer is just as cold.... but the price of admission is less than what you'd pay for parking at the major league level.

I heard about a survey showing that most folks attending minor league games don't even know the score when they leave the stadium.
They're not there to concern themselves with victory or defeat..... they come for the magic.
And it's often that very same magic that creates a world class city.

I hope the Sounds will soon get their new park downtown.
I truly believe a new stadium there on the banks of the Cumberland -- even though it's minor league ball -- will directly benefit downtown Nashville far more than the Coliseum, where the NFL Titans play (mostly on Sundays).... or the Arena, where the NHL Predators play (mostly on winter nights).

Think about it..... 50 or 60 home games for the Sounds.... right there in the heart of downtown.... mostly on warm summer nights..... with 8,000 to 10,000 people in the stands.
It's the perfect number to pump up downtown restaurants and shops, without clogging the city's traffic arteries.

And beyond that, there'll be concerts and other special events in the ballpark.

Ask someone from Memphis about AutoZone Stadium.
It literally revitalized and energized long abandoned places in downtown Memphis.
The same with Slugger Field in the business district of Louisville.
And it will happen here as well.

So come on guys..... let's get it worked out..... and build it....... and they will come.
I know I will.

__________________________________________