With a new name, stadium and manager, the Clearwater baseball team is feeling an energy for this season it never felt before.
By BOB PUTNAM
Published April 8, 2004
CLEARWATER - Thousands of minor league baseball fans will be in sports nirvana today when the Clearwater Threshers open their season, ushering in a new era for the Philadelphia Phillies' Class A affiliate.
The Threshers, formally known as the Clearwater Phillies, make their debut at Bright House Networks Field with a new nickname, a new logo and a high-profile manager in Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt. Game time against the Dunedin Blue Jays is 7:05 p.m.
Though the game coincides with the Tampa Bay Lightning's home playoff opener, Threshers general manager John Cook said he expects a crowd of nearly 3,000.
"Everything has aligned for us pretty well," Cook said. "We anticipated there would be some excitement with the new stadium and the name change. Then we get Mike Schmidt as the manager, and that was just icing on the cake.
"I don't want to say it was dead or stagnant before, but you can just sense a certain energy, even among the staff, that we didn't have before."
The anticipation of today's opener began two years ago when the city of Clearwater agreed to build a new stadium to replace Jack Russell Stadium and keep the Phillies in town for 21 more years. At that time, the team also decided to shed the Phillies moniker in favor of a nickname that would distinguish it from the parent club.
Schmidt, who came on board in October, added to the excitement.
The wholesale changes should make a difference at the turnstiles. Jason Adams, the team's ticketing and media coordinator, predicts the team will break the Florida State League attendance record of 200,383 set by the St. Petersburg Cardinals in 1989.
In addition to an increase in attendance, the changes should boost revenue. The Threshers have already cashed in on the lucrative souvenir business with $80,000 in merchandising sold in the past four months, a 70 percent increase from last season.
"Threshers merchandise outsold Phillies item 2-1 during spring training," said Carrie Jenkins, the team's director for merchandise and special events.
Jenkins said the team hopes to be in the top 25 in sales by the end of the season. That's a realistic goal, said Tina Gust, assistant director of licensing for Minor League Baseball.
"Four of the seven teams that changed their name and logo last year moved into the top 25 in sales," she said.
