Minor League Baseball

For Ger and I one of the great perks of living in South Florida is the abundance of baseball. I am not a great baseball fan who has to faithfully attend all of my favorite teams games. In fact, I don't have a favorite team! At least not in the "Big League". Being a displaced New yorker I do HATE the Yankees and I like the Mets. I have been known to attend a few Mets' games and cheer the team on but I am not even close to being the Met fan that our son Kent is. His dog is named Mookie after player Mookie Wilson and there was some concern that his soon to be born son would be named Shea after the old stadium in Flushing, Queens where the Mets have played for years.
Rather, Ger and I are Minor League baseball fans and our team is THE JUPITER HAMMERHEADS !! When we moved to South Florida we found ourselves living down the street from a wonderful, new, little stadium called Roger Dean Stadium. It is the site of Spring training for the Florida Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals. March baseball madness hits our area when all the Cardinal fans come out to see their team practice for the season opener. All the Snow Birds flock to the stadium wearing their red shirts and hats to cheer their team on. On days that the Marlins are playing there are fewer fans but the stadium gets about $30 a ticket so they manage to stay in business.
Come April the BIG TEAMS leave and in come the Jupiter Hammerheads and the Palm Beach Cardinals. Once again the Cardinals have the greater following but the Hammerheads are still our favorites. Every day for the months of April through September there is a game to be seen. some days the Cardinals play the Hammerheads. Other days they are playing the various other Florida minor league teams but who ever is playing you know it is going to be fun. These young men are playing a game they love with all the energy and enthusiasm they have. Each minor league team has a mascot . . . Robbie the Red Bird for the Cardinals and Hamilton the Shark for the Hammerheads. These characters wander the stadium during the entire game sitting with the fans, taking pictures with fans and entertaining the crowds between innings. There are also sack races, water balloon baseball and other crazy stunts for the kids in the crowd to participate in out on the field between innings. All this adds up to a great evening or afternoon out. Most games are at 7PM when the sun is cooling down and there is some shade to be found to maximize the breeze that is blowing in off the ocean. Could life possible get better than this? YES !!! A year ago the promotions group for the stadium hit upon a sure thing. The SILVER SLUGGERS were introduced to the fans. The stadium already has The Knothole Gang for kids, Dog Days of Summer for the pet owners, (Once a month dog owners bring their dogs to the game), and a few other gimmicks to get the fans to attend the games. But the Silver Slugger was a stroke of genius. Sponsored by Humana Health Care persons over the age of 55 can join The Silver Sluggers for $20 for the entire season. This entitles you to one ticket for EVERY Wednesday night game, (that would be 20 games) for the season, a FREE hot dog and a FREE soda. That is 20 baseball tickets, 20 hot dogs and 20 sodas for the unheard of price of $20. AND they play baseball bingo every Wednesday so you have a chance to win movie tickets and restaurant coupons! It's a deal you can't refuse. It was such a hit this past year that the stadium decided to do it again this year. Naturally the price went up to $25 for the season but come on, it is still the best deal in town.
And so we are now FANS ! OH, did I forget to mention that last year we got free seat cushions and this year we got a free hat? Be still my heart. There is nothing that a Florida Senior Citizen loves more than two for one coupons than something for FREE! PLAY BALL !