News:

Long overdue maintenance happening. See post in the top forum.

Main Menu

Save Tulsa Baseball

Started by RecycleMichael, August 23, 2007, 08:43:44 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

restored2x


RecycleMichael

When I was a teenager, Bake McBride played for the Tulsa Oilers baseball team. I was a worker at the park that year, doing everything from grounds crew to batboy to cleaning up the locker room.

Three or four times after a game, Bake Mcbride would put my bike in the trunk of his car and give me a ride home. Once we even stopped by McDonald's and he bought me a burger and soft drink.

He would just love to talk about baseball and I knew he was going to be special.
Power is nothing till you use it.

Friendly Bear

quote:
Originally posted by recyclemichael

When I was a teenager, Bake McBride played for the Tulsa Oilers baseball team. I was a worker at the park that year, doing everything from grounds crew to batboy to cleaning up the locker room.

Three or four times after a game, Bake Mcbride would put my bike in the trunk of his car and give me a ride home. Once we even stopped by McDonald's and he bought me a burger and soft drink.

He would just love to talk about baseball and I knew he was going to be special.



I enjoy occasionally going to Driller baseball, and while I definitely hope they will stay at their perfectly adequate and fully paid for Fairgrounds facility, I would not offer them financial incentives to stay in Tulsa.  

It only costs Mr. Lamson around $78K per year for the facilities and concession split at Driller Stadium.  He probably clears at least $500K per year.  Easily.  Probably much more.  

Let's get Randi Miller to OUT the Driller's business plan, then we'll ALL know!

Sports Franchise Owners have demonstrated countless times, that their only loyalty is to themselves, and the Almight Dollar.  

And, that Loyalty to No City is exacerbated by the club owners Overactive Ego.
A volatile mixture.

[^]

restored2x

quote:
Originally posted by recyclemichael

When I was a teenager, Bake McBride played for the Tulsa Oilers baseball team. I was a worker at the park that year, doing everything from grounds crew to batboy to cleaning up the locker room.

Three or four times after a game, Bake Mcbride would put my bike in the trunk of his car and give me a ride home. Once we even stopped by McDonald's and he bought me a burger and soft drink.

He would just love to talk about baseball and I knew he was going to be special.



How cool! Sounds to me like he was already special.

Did you name your boy Bake?

sgrizzle

quote:
Originally posted by Friendly Bear


Sports Franchise Owners have demonstrated countless times, that their only loyalty is to themselves, and the Almight Dollar.  



I would say Chuck Lamson is far from a typical franchise owner. He has been with the Drillers forever and owner for a few years in which he has made no significant changes. Now he talks about maybe he might change something in 2-3 years and he is accused about being an egomaniacal money grubber. Impressive.

Friendly Bear

quote:
Originally posted by sgrizzle

quote:
Originally posted by Friendly Bear


Sports Franchise Owners have demonstrated countless times, that their only loyalty is to themselves, and the Almight Dollar.  



I would say Chuck Lamson is far from a typical franchise owner. He has been with the Drillers forever and owner for a few years in which he has made no significant changes. Now he talks about maybe he might change something in 2-3 years and he is accused about being an egomaniacal money grubber. Impressive.



Whatever his qualities personally, his current strategy fits the pattern of Franchise Owners:  They want the fans to LOVE them until the owners get a better deal, and happily sell them down the river.  

Or, maybe he's just testing the water.

His ploy may only be part of the Snakey-Turncoat-and-Flake PR campaign to create "River Buzzzzzzzzzzz".




Kiah

quote:
Originally posted by recyclemichael

While Mookie and Yogi are fine, upstanding names, neither played for my favorite MLB team, the St. Louis Cardinals. My son's name comes from a Cardinal player.

Tonight is the Driller game.

Get some free tickets and come out and tell the Drillers we want them to stay in Tulsa.



Ozzzzzzzeeeeeeee . . . .
 

MichaelC

From KOTV

quote:
Baseball fanatics take a swing at keeping the Drillers in Tulsa. Die hard Drillers fans showed up to the stadium Tuesday night to cheer on the team, and to keep the organization from moving to Jenks. News On 6 anchor Omar Villafranca met with a few of the supporters; he reports the team is fighting to make the Texas League playoffs, while the fans are hoping to keep the team playing in the Tulsa ballpark.

Loyal Drillers fans lined up before the first pitch to support Tulsa's baseball team, and while the team warmed up, fans that read "Tulsa Loves Our Drillers" were handed out to baseball fans. Ralph Erz and his wife Marilyn believe baseball just wouldn't be the same in Jenks.

"It wouldn't' be, it wouldn't be, no, it's Tulsa, Tulsa Drillers," said Drillers fan Ralph Erz.

"We're baseball people so we love it," said Ralph's wife Marilyn Erz.

Ralph and his wife started going to Drillers games back in the 70s, he doesn't want the team to move to Jenks, or from this stadium.

"It's just a great location here, it's easy to get to," he said. "To take it downtown I think would be a mistake. I think you'd lose fans."

Mike Patton of savetulsabaseball.com brought homemade signs to the game. He wants to preserve Tulsa's baseball history by keeping the game in town. He admits Jenks might end up stealing the Drillers home plate, but felt he had to do something.

"You know if they left town and we didn't do anything we'd feel terrible," said Mike Patton, creator of savetulsabaseball.com. "So that's why we got together so quickly. I mean this is a last ditch effort, a 9th inning rally to try and make something happen."

"Tulsa Loves Our Drillers" fans were handed out by savetulsabaseball.com before the game, hoping to sway the teams decision, but a big factor in that decision is Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor. She was at Tuesday's game, she says she wants the Drillers to stay in Tulsa and play ball in downtown Tulsa, but no plans about that ballpark have been made public. In contrast Jenks developers have already showed private money and plans for a new ballpark to the Drillers. The News On 6 asked Mayor Taylor if the City of Tulsa is all talk.

"I can tell you we've drawn ball stadiums, we've been working with Chuck and his advisors for the last six months," said Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor. "The announcement in Jenks was a non-binding letter of intent, it's just what we have with Chuck, and that is serious discussions about the right place for the future of the Tulsa Drillers."

Of course we'll have to see how this all plays out. According to people at the gate attendance for a Tuesday night, free ticket game was up slightly, and it might have something to do with savetulsabaseball.com.

cannon_fodder

Whoa, Mike Patton from Mr. Bungle, Fantomos, and Faith No More?  [;)]

Thanks for the update.
- - - - - - - - -
I crush grooves.

RecycleMichael

We had a great time at the ballpark last night.

We passed out a thousand plus bumper stickers and hundreds of homemade fans. Many people came by to tell us how much they loved the Drillers and wanted them to stay in Tulsa.

My favorite part was when a bunch of kids presented the blue bull mascot Hornsby with a couple of dozen red roses. Hornsby was very gracious and posed for pictures with kids over and over again. He is just more proof that the Drillers are a class act and the ballpark is a great place for families.
Power is nothing till you use it.

Sardonicus Rex

I live in Jenks and I gotta say I'm not jumping up and down over this whole possibility. The existing infrastructure can't even accommodate the traffic in and out of Riverwalk Crossing. I'd hate to see what adding the Drillers to that mix would do -- especially on a weekend.

I'd just as soon see the Drillers stay in Tulsa myself, but I'm not excited about going downtown to see them. I'd rather they stay at the fairgrounds the way God intended.

MichaelC

I'd rather have them at the fairgrounds too.

But it's probably time, they know what they're looking for better than I do.  If they want an updated stadium downtown, let's do it.

ougrad92

Are you people completely delusional? That stadium is a dump. It's worse that the old 89er's stadium in OKC.

If they move it to downtown, where are they going to put it? Across from the new Walmart? Over by the jail? Oh wait that's where the new arena is going. No one has bothered to actually put some thought into it.  All I hear is, "Wah wah wah, it's OUR team."

If you don't want the team to move to Jenks then build them a stadium that's half-way decent. Quit living in your childhoods, like you've done with everything else in this town, and realize it's 2007.

sgrizzle

Another developer announced plans to put the drillers on riverside in Tulsa long before Jenks came up for their plan and GDP has plans to put them where the proposed walmart may go. There are plenty of options other than Jerks.

Renaissance

quote:
Originally posted by ougrad92

Are you people completely delusional? That stadium is a dump. It's worse that the old 89er's stadium in OKC.

If they move it to downtown, where are they going to put it? Across from the new Walmart? Over by the jail? Oh wait that's where the new arena is going. No one has bothered to actually put some thought into it.  All I hear is, "Wah wah wah, it's OUR team."

If you don't want the team to move to Jenks then build them a stadium that's half-way decent. Quit living in your childhoods, like you've done with everything else in this town, and realize it's 2007.



Stadium isn't a dump, Davaz.  It's clean and well maintained.  It's just not new and made of brick.  Try stopping in sometime.