A Night At The Ballpark

The success of the Lakewood BlueClaws is truly amazing and shows no signs of slowing down in their 11th season. Last night our shore group of radio stations occupied a good portion of the third base picnic area during our annual family outing. On a perfect July evening we enjoyed baseball and burgers and each other’s company and of course we were not alone. Just over 6,800 others decided to do the same thing on a Tuesday night and at this time of year as long as the weather cooperates FirstEnergy Park is usually pretty filled up. Lakewood has led the 14-team South Atlantic League in attendance in each of their first 10 years and they’re on their way to making it a perfect 11 for 11. The BlueClaws have drawn 284,239 fans through 48 dates, averaging just over 5900 per game which is about 200 fans more per game than the second-place Greensboro Grasshoppers. The BlueClaws numbers are made more impressive by the fact that the weather has not exactly been great for them this season with five rainouts and a handful of games played in extreme heat.

On the field the BlueClaws have won three South Atlantic League championships
in the last five years and that includes back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010. It did not look like this team had any chance of making it a “three peat” as they got off to a slow start and have had trouble scoring runs. Lakewood finished last in the Northern Division’s first half race and probably the only way they can make the playoffs is to win the second half. With last night’s 4-3 victory over Augusta the BlueClaws moved into second place and are just two games back of Hickory so they remain very much alive in the playoff race.

Of course to most of those at last night’s game the BlueClaws are not just a baseball team but an experience and it’s what’s made the Class A affiliate of the Phillies such a great success story. From little kids throwing out opening pitches, to eyeball races and special promotions a night at FirstEnergy Park is chock full of events. While some are watching Jim Murphy at-bats others are watching their children play in the Kids Zone or waiting in line for funnel cake. And they keep coming…night after night and season after season.

The Lakewood BlueClaws are no longer new…but they are always relevant and looking for new ideas that make a night at the ballpark a truly great part of summer at the Jersey Shore.