TRENTON-Bill Frawley, with his two kids and next-door neighbor, had never been to any of the minor league ballparks in the New Jersey and Pennsylvania area. That is something of an oddity for these baseball travelers. The four, who will be joined this week by Joe Turano and Alan Skaggs, are part of a group called the Minor League...
TRENTON-Bill Frawley, with his two kids and next-door neighbor, had never been to any of the minor league ballparks in the New Jersey and Pennsylvania area.
That is something of an oddity for these baseball travelers.
The four, who will be joined this week by Joe Turano and Alan Skaggs, are part of a group called the Minor League Men. Their quest is to see every minor league stadium in the country. Frawley, who is from Arlington, Texas, was joined at ARM & HAMMER Park Sunday by his two sons Charlie (16) and David (13), and neighbor Brendan Morrow (17), as the red-hot Thunder hosted Altoona in a double-header.
This is their fifth trip, on what has become an annual adventure around some of the best stadiums in the country.
"We try to hit parts of the country on each trip," Bill Frawley said. "We have done the Southeast: Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Louisiana. We have done north of Texas: Oklahoma, Kansas. We have done up and down I-35 in Texas. And we did Tennessee on another trip."
"Now it is time to expand out and we had never been through Pennsylvania before," Bill Frawley said. "So this seem like a good place to go. There are a bunch of Double A and Triple A teams."
"It is a new environment," Charlie Frawley said. "So each trip carries new experiences."
But it is more than just the games for the group, who get to experience everything that comes with a trip to a ballpark. It also means a trip to the souvenir shop.
"I get a souvenir bat from each place," David Frawley said. "My favorite was probably Birmingham. It was a newer stadium, and I like the outside."
"My favorite was the New Orleans Zephyrs game," Morrow said. "Because Round Rock (Texas Rangers, who play in their home town) was visiting them, and we got to interact with all the players we knew from the Rangers prospects."
Of course, no trip to a stadium can happen without a visit to the food stands. For their trip to Trenton, that means Case Pork Roll, Chickie and Pete's crab fries, and all manor of other foods. Bill Frawley picked up a "Pigpen", which consists of a pile of mashed potatoes, pulled pork, chopped up Case Pork Roll, bacon, and some barbecue sauce.
"I have to say, it is the thing to get here," Bill Frawley said. "In Memphis, there is one that stands out as well. It was a bacon-wrapped barbecue chili hotdog, at AutoZone Park. That was great. That was three years ago, and it still stands out in my mind."
The kids have fond memories of their various food experiences throughout the land as well.
"I don't have a certain food, but at each ballpark I go to, I try and get a souvenir soda cup of batting helmet with the ice cream in it," Charlie Frawley said. "That is a good way to take a piece of the ball park with you."
"I remember in Montgomery, the biscuits," Morrow said. "They had a stand that sold biscuits, and they were so good."
They got to see the Thunder (68-40) beat Altoona 4-1 in the first game, and stuck around as the home team swept the Curve 3-1 in the second contest, before hitting the road for their next destination, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. They will see the team Trenton is battling for first place in the Eastern Division standings, Reading, as it hosts the Bowie Bay Sox Tuesday night, before a trip to the big leagues Wednesday night to see the Phillies play the San Francisco Giants.
But their trip to Trenton, and Mercer County, was not complete without a nice prize. Bill Frawley was named the Brothers Pizza fan of the game, and received a t-shirt and a gift card to one of the top pizza joints in the state. And what is a trip to New Jersey without a little pizza?
The Minor League Men's road trip schedule includes:
July 31 - ARM & HAMMER Park, Trenton, NJ
August 2 - FirstEnergy Stadium, Reading, PA
August 3 - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia (A quick call-up to the majors, then back to the minors)
August 4 - Peoples Natural Gas Field, Altoona, PA
August 5 - FNB Field, Harrisburg, PA
August 7 - Coca Cola Park, Allentown, PA
Thunder's Adams has a chance to be special
According to the Press Release about the trip:
"For the fifth consecutive year, the Minor League Men are warming up for their annual road trip across the country to celebrate America's pastime and perform community outreach. After four baseball seasons spent driving across the Midwest and south, the group is taking to the air, to take on one of the best areas for baseball in the country - eastern Pennsylvania and South Jersey.
"This group of passionate baseball fans and proud minor leaguers (pic included below and attached), whose lineup includes Bill Frawley, his two sons (ages 13 and 16), his brother-in-law and nephew, is on a quest to see a game in every minor league ballpark in the country. This journey to the Delaware and Lehigh Valleys along with Pennsylvania's Capital Region will allow the North Texas and Central Florida-based group the chance to round the bases in a new area and see some of MLB's top affiliates."
"While on the road, Frawley and the rest of the Minor League Men often lend a hand in the communities they visit. The often perform outreach among the homeless population in those cities by providing those on the street with food, water and an ear to listen to their stories. The Minor League Men's quest to touch 'em all (minor league ballparks, that is) has received media attention in a number of cities in previous seasons and is being documented on Instagram (@MILBTOURS) and online at www.milbtour.wix.com/milbt"
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Contact Sean Miller at seanmillertrentontimes@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheProdigalSean