What's All the Buzz?

I rarely get to enjoy a good baseball game from the perspective of a fan because I'm usually working in the pressbox for the local professional team. Last night, however, I broke free from the pressbox and sat in the patio area with a pile of my colleagues from my day job where we got to watch the Winnipeg Goldeyes baseball team don a new identity as they searched for their sixth win in a row! If you came here for hockey chatter, there will be some at the end as I relate this fun night of baseball back to hockey, but this article is all about having a good time as a fan, enjoying a beautiful night on a patio, and watching the home team as a fan rather than a stats guy for the first time in a long time! And if the Goldeyes could beat Lincoln, that's even better!

If you have a larger group who wants to attend a baseball game, the patio at Blue Cross Park is a great way to get that group to the ballgame. The Malibu Patio, where we sat, holds 65 people and located right in the left field corner above the Goldeyes' bullpen. The sightlines are incredible from this location as you can see virtually everything happening in the park, and it didn't hurt that this was prime seating for the fireworks display scheduled after the game!

The patio has serving staff assigned to it and a private bar so that the group never would never need to venture far if it needed food or beverages. We declined the serving staff as there were many different requests for food, but the private bar was used all night and was a solid added benefit. Combined with the patio tables, umbrellas, and bar-like seating around the railing, the Malibu Patio as perfect for a group of our size to enjoy a night at the ballpark!

The Goldeyes debuted their one-time-only alternate identities last night as they took the field as the Manitoba Mosquitoes to welcome the Lincoln Saltdogs to town, and the Mosquitoes were buzzing early in this game. Five runs in the first inning followed by two more in the second and four more in the third inning put the Mosquitoes up 11-0 early on the Saltdogs, and it seemed like all Manitoba had to do was nurse that lead. Adding to the fun was pitcher Ryo Kohigashi as the league's third-best pitcher for strikeouts was dealing again on Friday night, striking out nine Saltdogs to push his total to 79 this season. That leaves him ten punchouts back of the league lead, so the Fish have a hurler who could win one of the key stats races before the season is over! But the bigger question was if the Mosquitoes could keep the win streak going.

Despite surrendering four runs in the top of the fifth inning, the Saltdogs would get no more as the Goldeyes used that early run support to cruise to the 11-4 win on a gorgeous night at the ballpark. No homeruns were hit on night, but centerfielder Noah Marcelo led the way with three RBIs to pace the Goldeyes. On the fun side, Lincoln's Cary Arbolida struck out to send the fans home with free pancakes, and Lincoln's Nick Schumpert went home with a platinum sombrero after striking out swinging five times in the game! Ouch!

After the game wrapped up with high-fives and handshakes on the Goldeyes/Mosquitoes side of the field, the fireworks display literally happened right in front of us, giving us the best view of the night sky. A handful of brightly-coloured explosions brought oohs and aahs from the crowd that stayed behind for the display, and the kids who were part of our group were absolutely thrilled with the spectacle!

Some people ask me why I love minor-league professional sports, and it's stuff like this where the local team dons a new identity for a fun night at the ballpark or rink. We've seen lots of teams rebrand to represent their communities, and I honestly love that minor-pro teams do this as often as they do. I get that the professional teams are tied to their communities as well, but minor-pro baseball and hockey teams always seem to have fun rebrands and jerseys they roll out every season. Seeing these ideas come to life is so much fun!

If you want to know why I support leagues like the AHL and ECHL more than I support the NHL, it's for this very reason. Sports are supposed to be fun and every time a minor-pro team rebrands or has a crazy bobblehead night or some other zany promotion, the end result is a fun night at a stadium or arena. Our group had a blast last night, there was a buzz about the Mosquitoes jerseys and how good they looked, and the Mosquitoes showed up in a big way to send the crowd home happy. Add in good food, good baseball, an awesome fireworks display, and ticket prices that didn't put anyone into financial distress, and the end result was an incredible night at Blue Cross Park in Winnipeg.

I'm not telling you not to cheer for your favorite NHL teams and players, but I am saying you should go support the minor-pro teams whenever you can. Having fun nights as the Manitoba Mosquitoes, in my view, should be encouraged as often as possible so we see more fun jerseys like the Manitoba Polar Bears and the Winnipeg SeaBears' Space Jam jerseys. And if minor-pro teams can attract more fans with these fun rebrandings and a winning attitude, that helps the minor-pro franchise and the community it serves in a big way!

I'm off to the ballpark again tonight, only I'll be doing stats in the pressbox. There's serious buzz coming from downtown Winnipeg, though, as the Goldeyes search for their seventh win in a row and their third series win in a row. Maybe the bigger question is who could have thought that Manitobans would love Mosquitoes?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!