The SBP Archives - Your less than frequent dose of SBP!

Is third time the charm?

If you were to ask the average Ottawan, I'm sure the idea of fielding another ball team after the demise of the Lynx and Rapidz (Rapids?) wouldn't be met with a warm reception. Who can blame them really? I mean, even when things looked like they were going to turn around two summers ago...the Rapidz ball club actually averaged about double the attendance of the troubled triple A Lynx...the rug was pulled from underneath again and any remaining ball fans certainly are feeling a bit slighted.

Lynx stadium looked like it had a date with the wrecking ball.

But now, some new owners have come forward, perhaps the most optimistic of all people in the city, to try to save baseball in Ottawa. The team, called the Ottawa Fat Cats (a gentle jab at the type of industry Ottawa is generally known for) will play in Canada's oldest baseball league dubbed the Intercounty Baseball League for a season that runs from May until July followed by playoffs. Only the last place team will fail to make the post-season, where each series will be a best-of-seven encounter.

Some good selling points of this team: Tickets are cheap at just $6-$12, kids under six as well as veterans can attend games free. They also provide free bus tickets to St Laurent station with ticket purchase and will have shuttle bus from there running back and forth to bring fans to the stadium. And the fact that the weather should be co-operating by the time May rolls around should help attendance as the traditional April start date was never a nice time to attend a ball game in O-town. They've also promised fair priced concessions.

One thing I thought was an interesting way to attract season ticket holders was a sort of "bonus' that accompanies a two-seat, 36 game package. For $398, you get the season tickets plus either two bus-chartered games to see the Blue Jays play in Toronto, 66 days of skiing at Mont Tremblant or one week's worth of accomodations at a golf resort in Florida amongst other choices.

On the flip side, of course, is that many think baseball is long dea and it's a complete waste of time. No players have yet been signed and it's not very clear what level of baseball we're getting (single A perhaps?). It seems that anything outside of hockey ends up in disaster as we brace ourselves for the return of the CFL at the revamped Lansdowne Live in two-three years.

I hope the Ottawa Stadium Group who are responsible for bringing a baseball team back are successful, and only time will tell if the fans are ready to return to the stadium to give it another chance. If it fails, that's likely the end of baseball in this city.