Friday, April 18

I wanted to open this edition of my newsletter with a joke based on today’s date, but 4/10-ately for you I couldn’t come up with anything. I’m Ben Hill, a.k.a. Ben’s Biz. Let’s talk about Minor League Baseball.

Why did the Winston-Salem Dash host an in-game high school prom? Because a pipe burst in Georgia. Welcome to the 2025 Minor League Baseball season.

The fateful pipe burst occurred early last week at AdventHealth Stadium, home of the Rome Emperors. Surveying the damage, team officials determined that "our stadium is currently not in a condition that meets the standards we hold ourselves to for [fans'] game-day experience, or for the health and safety of our players, staff, and visiting teams."

In search of a new venue, and fast, the High-A Braves affiliate reached out to the Winston-Salem Dash (High-A White Sox). The Dash were scheduled as the away team during Rome’s season-opening April 4-6 series. Might they be able to host?

"I got the call Wednesday night," said Dash president and general manager Brian DeAngelis, speaking on Monday, April 7. "And by the way, this was on April Fools'. … I’m for one second like, 'This could be a joke.' And then I saw a video of their clubhouse underwater. 'OK, it's not a joke. Now what?'"

The Dash agreed to host the series at Truist Stadium, playing as the away team at their home ballpark. But it's not so simple as opening the gates, throwing some dogs on the grill and waiting for the umpire to yell, "Play ball!"

"Most people forget how many events we do that are non-baseball. We actually do more non-baseball events than baseball games," said DeAngelis. "And so of course, we had a prom scheduled Friday night. We had a prom scheduled Saturday night, and then we had a 50th wedding anniversary and also a 5-year-old's birthday party on Sunday. So when I’m asked to relocate the games, of course all those things come up."

At the top of the list was the Friday night prom. Students at Davie County Early College High School in nearby Mocksville were slated to dance the night away within Truist Stadium’s upper-level Flow Club.

"We can’t move a prom. This is the biggest event for these kids in their lives," said DeAngelis. "Doing a Friday day game is not a great option either. You want to make a little bit of money, a little bit of lemonade out of the lemons we were dealt. So we said, 'Hey, let’s just do it all at once. Let’s have the prom and let’s have a game.'"

The Dash came up with a clever tagline for the endeavor -- "Prom Wasn’t Built in a Day," get it? -- and got to work to make it happen. Dash players were surprised with printouts of their own prom pics before the game; the prom king and queen were crowned on the field during the game; the T-shirt toss featured fans throwing T-shirts from the stands into the Flow Club where the prom was taking place; former prom kings and queens were invited to attend the game free of charge; fans were encouraged to wear tuxes and dresses to the ballpark and prom-themed clips from movies such as Back to the Future and Grease were played on the videoboard.

After the game, Dash players -- who, on the field, debuted their new road jerseys in front of a home crowd -- visited the students to sign autographs, pose for pictures and distribute game balls as well as a team-signed jersey.  

"We welcomed a pretty large crowd for a Friday night [game] that was announced 36 hours [prior]," said DeAngelis. "They were invested into the game and kind of got what was going on. So overall, a huge success."

There were so many other aspects to consider over the course of the three-game series, including, yes, another prom on Saturday evening (set-up began immediately after the conclusion of a 1 p.m. day game).

"I gotta worry about the [Dash’s] workout schedule, and how they’re going to approach this now that their plans changed," said DeAngelis. "Getting Rome here, finding a hotel is a challenge. Our team hotel was booked. Staffing … everybody had their last weekend before the season already planned out. Do we have enough food in the building?"

And on and on it went. The Rome Emperors organization pitched in as much as it could, with the team’s groundskeepers working the field and front office staffers at the ready for whatever was needed (Emperors general manager David Lane ran the Dash team store, for example). DeAngelis looked at the saga as a good test run for the Dash’s real Opening Day, which took place on April 8.

"When the stadium is actually full and bumping and the promos are going as planned and we’re on the home side not having to adjust our entertainment?" said DeAngelis. "Yeah, I think it’s going to all hit."

My first ballpark visit of the 2025 season will be FirstEnergy Stadium, home of the Reading Fightin Phils.

Saturday, April 19, vs. Binghamton Rumble Ponies

Reading has long been one of my favorite places to visit. This will be the first time I’ve been there in a professional context since 2017. One of the things I remember about that night is that my mom came to the game. Hi, Mom! Love your shirt!

If you’re interested in being the Designated Eater -- eating the ballpark food that my gluten-free diet prohibits -- in Reading on April 19, send me an email (subject: Reading Designated Eater) stating why you’re the man or woman for the job. I’ll select this individual early next week.

See you there? Or somewhere? More ballpark itineraries are, yes, coming soon.

The Syracuse Mets played their home opener on April 1, but it was two days later that things really got foolish. Or, more accurately, totally surreal.

Before the End: Searching for Jim Morrison, a new Apple TV documentary, posits that Doors frontman Jim Morrison faked his own death and then started a new life as a Syracuse maintenance man named Frank X.

Totally plausible, right? And totally right for an implausible Minor League Baseball promotion. The Mets tracked down Frank X -- the Lizard King himself? -- and had him throw out a first pitch.

Later in the night, there was a Jim Morrison look-a-like contest that appeared to stretch the definition of look-a-like.

The young man in the below photo, resplendent in yellow, emerged as the winner. Presumably he received a Doors prize.

Congrats to that Morrison-esque young man, congrats to Frank X for actually being Jim Morrison, and thanks to the Syracuse Mets for staging a ridiculous theme night on a chilly Thirsty Thursday in early April. That’s the Minor League Baseball spirit. 

If the answer to that question is yes, then keep scrolling. If not, kindly proceed to the next email in your inbox (it probably won’t be as interesting as this one, though. It’s probably someone asking you for money).

OVG Hospitality, concession provider for 24 Minor League teams, recently unveiled a cornucopia of new items. Here are three of them:

Deep-Fried Pizza (Hub City Spartanburgers) – I’m sure I’ll zero in on Spartanburger burgers at some point, but for now consider this: “Golden deep-fried crust stuffed with gooey mozzarella cheese, savory pepperoni, and a rich marinara sauce, sprinkled with parmesan.” 

Sticking to items photographed with a pair of decorative tomatoes, we move on to…

Loaded Fried Green Tomatoes (Augusta GreenJackets) -- Almost as pleasurable as getting soused with Jessica Tandy and Kathy Bates: “Golden-fried green tomatoes, layered with melted cheese, smoky bacon, topped with a tangy sauce.”

Finally, for dessert…

Ice Cream Nachos (Albuquerque Isotopes) -- This is Albuquerque, so you can add green chiles if you want. Might be fine as is: “Crispy wafer cookies dusted with cinnamon sugar, then drizzled in chocolate and caramel sauces paired with creamy soft-serve ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream and sprinkles.” 

Thanks for reading. I hope you’re doing well. I hope I’m doing well. Get in touch anytime: benjamin.hill@mlb.com.

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