MiLB.com's Ben Hill conquers Florida and finds diamonds

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Hundreds of years ago, Ponce de Leon explored and discovered what is now called Florida. Although legend says he was in search of the legendary Fountain of Youth, history (and Wikipedia) says he was looking for "the Isles of Biminy". According to the almighty wiki, de Leon first landed on the East Coast of Florida, somewhere between present-day Saint Augustine and Melbourne Beach. After a few days, he and his crew went south along the coast of Florida, along the Florida Keys, and then back up the west coast, landing again somewhere between present-day Port Charlotte and Tampa Bay, although some historians even claim he got as far as Pensacola.

Almost exactly five hundred years later, another intrepid explorer, Ben Hill of MiLB.com, made a Florida journey, coincidentally visiting many of the same towns and areas set foot by De Leon and his mates. Whereas De Leon however came up unsuccessful in his quest for gold and riches, Hill found exactly what he was looking for: the Diamonds of Florida.

Of course, the diamonds Hill found aren't the financial kind, although they are priceless to the people who live by them. They are the grass and dirt of Florida's many Minor League Baseball fields and they are chock full of quirks, traditions, communities, and memories. And Hill gave a great sample of them to his MiLB.com readership.

To begin his Sunshine State trek, Hill first went to Minor League Baseball Headquarters in St. Petersburg, where he visited their player card catalog, toured their library, and took pictures of their amazing displays. I visited MiLB Headquarters a few years ago when I interviewed the Minor League Baseball President, and I really think Ben nailed the mystique of the building and awe of the work the people behind the scenes do. They have a huge job in keeping the Minors together and they do a fantastic job.

After MiLB HQ, then it was down the road to Clearwater, where Ben experienced the sheer majesty of the Threshers' 70's Night featuring Disco Inferno. Longtime readers of Bus Leagues Baseball might remember when I took in 70's Night in full 'fro.

From Clearwater, Ben made his way south along the West Coast of Florida to Fort Myers where he took in the sights of Hammond Stadium and Miracle baseball. There he talked to Cub Scouts, ate a hot dog, threw out a first pitch, and raced on an inflatable horse. That's a good day Ice Cube would be proud of.

Then it was off to Port Charlotte to see the Charlotte Stone Crabs, tour the facility, dress up like a sumo wrestler, and eat another hot dog.

Leaving Port Charlotte, Ben made his way inland to the town of Lakeland, where he caught a Flying Tigers game, was surrounded by local school kids, and toured another facility.

After Lakeland, Ben again went opposite of Ponce De Leon's journey and headed east a few hours to Daytona and historic Jackie Robinson Stadium, where he saw team tattoos, met Front Row Joe, sang a tune, and ate some nachos.

Last, but definitely not least, Ben visited the newest Florida team, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. With an amazing Gulf of Mexico view, the Blue Wahoos are finding great early season attendance success and Ben highlighted their service-first attitude, in the stands as well as in their drinks.

As the sole Florida State League writer for this here corner of the baseball blogosphere, I really enjoyed Ben's tour. I think he did a great job capturing the essence of baseball in Florida. Unfortunately, I was not able to meet Ben in his journey, but seeing his pictures sure brightened my days here in Afghanistan and gave me a little piece of home.

Maybe next time, Ben.

MiLB.com's Ben Hill conquers Florida and finds diamonds

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Hundreds of years ago, Ponce de Leon explored and discovered what is now called Florida. Although legend says he was in search of the legendary Fountain of Youth, history (and Wikipedia) says he was looking for "the Isles of Biminy". According to the almighty wiki, de Leon first landed on the East Coast of Florida, somewhere between present-day Saint Augustine and Melbourne Beach. After a few days, he and his crew went south along the coast of Florida, along the Florida Keys, and then back up the west coast, landing again somewhere between present-day Port Charlotte and Tampa Bay, although some historians even claim he got as far as Pensacola.

Almost exactly five hundred years later, another intrepid explorer, Ben Hill of MiLB.com, made a Florida journey, coincidentally visiting many of the same towns and areas set foot by De Leon and his mates. Whereas De Leon however came up unsuccessful in his quest for gold and riches, Hill found exactly what he was looking for: the Diamonds of Florida.

Of course, the diamonds Hill found aren't the financial kind, although they are priceless to the people who live by them. They are the grass and dirt of Florida's many Minor League Baseball fields and they are chock full of quirks, traditions, communities, and memories. And Hill gave a great sample of them to his MiLB.com readership.

To begin his Sunshine State trek, Hill first went to Minor League Baseball Headquarters in St. Petersburg, where he visited their player card catalog, toured their library, and took pictures of their amazing displays. I visited MiLB Headquarters a few years ago when I interviewed the Minor League Baseball President, and I really think Ben nailed the mystique of the building and awe of the work the people behind the scenes do. They have a huge job in keeping the Minors together and they do a fantastic job.

After MiLB HQ, then it was down the road to Clearwater, where Ben experienced the sheer majesty of the Threshers' 70's Night featuring Disco Inferno. Longtime readers of Bus Leagues Baseball might remember when I took in 70's Night in full 'fro.

From Clearwater, Ben made his way south along the West Coast of Florida to Fort Myers where he took in the sights of Hammond Stadium and Miracle baseball. There he talked to Cub Scouts, ate a hot dog, threw out a first pitch, and raced on an inflatable horse. That's a good day Ice Cube would be proud of.

Then it was off to Port Charlotte to see the Charlotte Stone Crabs, tour the facility, dress up like a sumo wrestler, and eat another hot dog.

Leaving Port Charlotte, Ben made his way inland to the town of Lakeland, where he caught a Flying Tigers game, was surrounded by local school kids, and toured another facility.

After Lakeland, Ben again went opposite of Ponce De Leon's journey and headed east a few hours to Daytona and historic Jackie Robinson Stadium, where he saw team tattoos, met Front Row Joe, sang a tune, and ate some nachos.

Last, but definitely not least, Ben visited the newest Florida team, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. With an amazing Gulf of Mexico view, the Blue Wahoos are finding great early season attendance success and Ben highlighted their service-first attitude, in the stands as well as in their drinks.

As the sole Florida State League writer for this here corner of the baseball blogosphere, I really enjoyed Ben's tour. I think he did a great job capturing the essence of baseball in Florida. Unfortunately, I was not able to meet Ben in his journey, but seeing his pictures sure brightened my days here in Afghanistan and gave me a little piece of home.

Maybe next time, Ben.

Chronicle of a Rays Fan in Afghanistan

I’ve been in Afghanistan now for two months. Two weeks after I arrived, baseball season started. While it’s not incredibly difficult to stay in the know on what’s going on with my favorite team, it does feel a bit weird being so removed after being so close for so long.

Before I moved to Tampa in 2006, I had to follow baseball from afar in the desolate burg of Tallahassee, Florida. All I had was SportsCenter, ESPN.com, and satellite TV at the local sports bars. Here, I have but only one of these options. There is a pub of sorts, but they cater to the soccer fans (they call it “football”) and they don’t have the MLB Package. So all I can do is follow along on my favorite websites, and sometimes swing by ESPN.com.

All is not completely lost, however. We do have the Armed Forced Network’s sports channel and every so often that is put on in the office. I do sometimes see a highlight or two and I actually did watch a few innings of a Mets versus Marlins game a few weeks ago. Those new Marlins uniforms are going to take some getting used to.

As a contractor, I don’t have to wear military attire here in Afghanistan. Some might say that’s a detriment as I have to pick what I am wearing every morning, but after my few years in the military a while back, I think if I had to go back to wearing the same thing every day I would go nuts. I like a little variety in my wardrobe. Although most of my undershirts are of the plain, solid color type, I did bring a few charismatic tees to remind me of home. I brought an FSU t-shirt, an Obituary concert t-shirt, a Power Moves Entertainment t-shirt, and of course, a Rays t-shirt.

There is one small condition to wearing Rays attire in Afghanistan, however. I can never wear my shirt outside my dorm without another shirt over it. My Rays shirt has a huge “TB” on the back and unfortunately, TB is the often-used acronym for Taliban, public enemy number one over here. The last thing I want is for someone not familiar with Tampa Bay to think I was wearing a shirt supporting the bad guys. Or worse yet, to think I was one of the bad guys.

(Rays marketing people, take note: if you are ever going to try to crack the Afghanistan market, push “Rays” and not “TB”. You don’t want to be a real-life version of the mythical “Nova” marketing tale.)

Since I have been here I have met one other person with Rays garb. A co-worker of mine who said his son lives in the Tampa Bay area came in wearing a Rays hat. People of course gave him guff for wearing a “Taliban” hat, but from my perspective, it was good to see someone else supporting the cause, even if he was only a casual fan by blood.

Although I haven’t seen a pitch or an at-bat by anyone in a Rays uniform, there a few things I do know.

I know Fernando Rodney has been another in a series of annual bullpen discoveries by the Rays. I am not entirely surprised by this, but I didn’t think he would be this good. Outside of a certain incident with a broadcasting booth at that Trop, Rodney’s a professional and although he had been clobbered in the last few seasons, I figured with some tinkering by the Rays coaches he would either be good or the Rays would cut him in spring training. Then he would have pitched for a few weeks in Durham until catching on somewhere else.

I also know that the Rays have been bit by the injury bug quite often this year. On one hand, I am glad they are getting hurt early instead of later in the season, on the other, it doesn’t bode well for the team when their best position players keep going down with injury. Fortunately, the Rays keep finding enough spare parts in the wastelands and scrap piles of Major League Baseball to hold themselves over while their starting regulars get healthy. Hopefully they get all their pieces in place prior to the postseason push.

(P.S. I purposefully placed “p”s in parallel in this part of the post.)

I’m definitely not surprised by Matt Moore’s struggles either. A few long-distance observations here: 1) he is only a rookie who started last year in Double-A. There is a lot to learn at the Major League level. 2) In the minors, he traditionally struggled early in the season. Through June of 2010, when he pitched for Port Charlotte, he was terrible in the early going. The strikeouts were there, but so were the walks and hits and hence the losses and the high ERA. Don’t give up on him, he’ll be fine.

All this, and the Rays are duking it out for first place with Baltimore.

Wait a second. Baltimore? I leave the country and the Orioles are a first place team? What’s going on over there? How did that happen? What is going on in America?

Q&A: Baseball Team Logo Designers Jason and Casey of Brandiose

One of the things that makes Minor League Baseball so appealing and unique are the team names. Names that usually represent something and give Minor League Baseball its local feel and attachment. For the Minor League Baseball team logo designers of Brandiose, images play just as important of a role. They are the visual representation of not just the team, but the city, town, and community as well.

We emailed the design team of Brandiose, Jason Klein and Casey White, and asked them a bunch of questions including the importance of logos, how they come up with the great ideas they have had, and whether or not they've gotten some free swag.

Bus Leagues Baseball: So how did you guys get into doing Minor League Logos?

Jason: The two of us grew up in San Diego, and have been best friends since kindergarten. As kids, we loved telling stories and bringing creative ideas to life.

Once in college, we started designing high school logos out of our dorm rooms. We then sent letters to 150 Minor League Baseball teams, and only one got back to us: the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx. They told us, “If we like it, we’ll buy it.” That summer we set out with the same goal we have today: Doing whatever it takes to make teams famous.

BLB: Why Minor League logos?

Jason: Minor League Baseball is the story of America. Hardworking people who are looking to relax, and bring their kids out for family, fun, entertainment. It fits with our DNA and we love working in this world.

BLB: What are your artistic roots?

Jason: Casey studied Painting at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and I studied Advertising and Graphic design at the University of Alabama.

BLB: What are some of the things you consider when designing a logo for a team?

Jason: Each club likes to believe they're all the same : Family Fun Entertainment, but we found this isn’t the case. Each club has a unique story, a unique community, and their own special type of fans. We focus on this Brand Story. By communicating the story, the brand will better resonate with fans - which translates to higher loyalty and retail sales.

BLB: Do you feel you have more creative freedom with Minor League teams as compared to Major League teams or other businesses?

Jason: Major League Baseball brands have to reach a larger audience than Minor League Baseball clubs. As a result, MLB logos depict less of a narrative than Minor League logos. There's a little bit of storytelling in there, but not as story heavy as Minor League looks. The Minor Leagues are certainly influencing the Major League clubs in their fan experience. You see the Major League clubs adopting a lot of the showmanship that the Minor Leagues have displayed for years: the crazy promotions, the intimate ballparks, the activities for the kids, etc.

BLB: How important is it to have the freedom to design as compared to having someone tell you exactly what they want?

Jason: Because our process is a true collaboration, ideas come from us, from owners, operators and interns. We love brining all these ideas together because we believe no idea is a bad idea!

BLB: How does process work from start to finish? Do teams seek you out or do you pitch proposals to them? Do you get a second chance if your first idea isn’t what they are looking for?

Jason: We begin by visiting the team in their home town, meeting with fans, eating a local restaurants - becoming honorary citizens. We want a firsthand account of local traditions, icons, stories, and the community's personality. We tour the city, absorb the city's color palate, meet with mayors, visit local history museums - anything we can to immerse ourselves in the community's heart and soul. Then we collaborate with the club on fresh ways to tell the community's story through the ballpark experience. People love being told stories - and they love their hometowns. So clubs seek us out help achieve these goals and we always present several ideas!

BLB: Which logo is your personal favorite and why?

Jason: They're all great, because they all tell unique stories. Whether it's the Lakeland Flying Tigers paying homage to the WWII aces that trained in Lakeland, or the steel that forged America in the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs identity. They're all captivating brands. We find ourselves mutually agreeing with clubs on the concepts that best tell the story, so there's not a whole lot of discussion about rejected logos we liked. It's really focused on which tells the best story and why.

BLB: Do you get any free swag from the teams after you design their new look?

Jason: Every so often a real treat of a swag piece does show up at the studio. We just received a Bottled Water design that we dreamed up for the Mobile BayBears - it's the taste of champions!

BLB: What team or entity would you most like to work for? What logo would you most like to do?

Jason: I'm not sure I've ever really thought of this. We wake up every day and simply love the challenges that arrive at the studio, so I'd have to say we kinda love the mystery of not knowing what project is coming next!

BLB: Is there a different sense of satisfaction when you see fans wearing logos you designed as compared to the players and teams wearing the logos?

Jason: We love seeing fans wearing the look, because it means success for our friends at the clubs, Our goal is to make their brands famous, so the more we see the logos in the community, the better job we're doing.

BLB: Have any teams ever recognized you at a game as a token of appreciation?

Jason: Ha ha, not yet! However, we were honored that the Mobile BayBears have a permanent page that shares our collaboration together here.

BLB: I noticed you guys enjoy having contests on your site. How important is it to reach out to fans and other artists? Do they ever inspire new ideas?

Jason: Collaboration of any kind is really important to us. We were always daydreaming and doodling and dreamed of designing our own logos. So to have the opportunity to bring that dream to life for other artists is a great feeling!

BLB: What would a Bus Leagues Baseball logo look like?

Jason: Great question! I think you'd have to start with a poll of you readers and have them tell you what they think of your brand and personality to start!

Q&A: Dunedin Blue Jays Broadcaster Craig Durham

(This post originally appeared on Bus Leagues Baseball.com)

Last season I did a lot of work in Dunedin with the Dunedin Blue Jays staff. Craig Durham, a man who wears many hats as you will soon find out, was instrumental in coordinating interviews for me and helping me find my way around the ballpark when needed, to include the first time I ever covered a game from the press box. For whatever reason, however, I failed to ask Craig his story. This season, I figured we would fix that.

Bus Leagues Baseball: So how is the season going so far?

Craig Durham: The season is off to a great start. The team is 16-4 through its first 20 games, and they have simply been awesome. There is a lot of young talent in the Blue Jays organization right now so being able to be a part of it night in and night out is really a blast.

BLB: How did you get into broadcasting? Was it a lifelong dream or something you fell into?

CD: I wouldn’t say that it was a lifelong dream, but it is something that I’ve been interested in from a very young age. My first year in broadcasting was in 2009, the year after I graduated college, when I worked for the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod League. I had been with the Whitecaps the previous summer, but not as a broadcaster. Fortunately the same two guys came back to broadcast in 2009, I asked if I could join them and they said yes. I definitely wouldn’t be here today if they hadn’t given me that first opportunity.

BLB: How long have you been with the ballclub?

CD: This is now my second season with the Dunedin Blue Jays. I started here in January of 2011.

BLB: Do you announce games for the major league club during spring training? How does your role change from spring training to the Florida State League season?

CD: I don’t get to do any broadcasting during Spring Training, and it’s almost as if I have two separate jobs – one from April-September when the Florida State League is in season, and one October-March when it’s not. In the “offseason” I spend most of my time preparing for, and selling for Blue Jays Spring Training.

The consistent piece between the two seasons is that I run dunedinbluejays.com, handle the Dunedin Blue Jays facebook and twitter accounts, and send out press releases about the Blue Jays Florida.

BLB: How much research do you put in to your job? How much time do you take to look at other teams and their players?

CD: Not as much as I wish I could! I usually get to do most of my research in the few hours before the game, as I have other office responsibilities during the day.

BLB: What visiting player are you looking forward to seeing play the Dunedin Blue Jays?

CD: One guy I’m very excited to see is Gerrit Cole, last year’s first overall pick who is currently with the Bradenton Marauders.

BLB: What game that you were in the booth for stands out the most and why?

CD: The last game of last season when we were eliminated from the playoffs definitely stands out as a game I will probably never forget. It was a winner take all game 3 of a 3 game series, and we led 3-0 going into the 8^th before it all fell apart. Daytona scored 4 in the bottom of the 8^th, and in a flash we went from being favorites to win it all to being eliminated. The suddenness of it, and the realization that it was all over for at least six months was tough to take.

I also called a no-hitter in the Cape League in 2010, but I did mostly color commentary for that game, and it was the pitcher on the opposing team that threw it so I don’t have as many memories from that one.

BLB: What players have stood out the most during your time in the booth?

CD: I love watching good pitchers, and last year we were blessed to have a ton of them. I really loved watching Nestor Molina pitch because he worked so quickly and threw lots of strikes. I also enjoyed watching our closer from last year, Wes Etheridge, for the same reasons that I liked watching Molina.

From the Cape League, I really loved watching Jed Gyrko, who is now in the Padres system. He is a smaller guy, but he can hit the ball a very long way.

BLB: Do you root for guys to get promoted or secretly hope they’ll stay in Dunedin so you can keep announcing their games?

CD: Haha, no comment ...

BLB: Do you travel with the team?

CD: I go on most of the bus trips, yes. If we go on an extended road trip I prefer to drive so that I have a little more freedom and flexibility in terms of what I can do with my “down time”. Having my own car also allows me to seek out better food than whatever is available within walking distance of the team hotel!

BLB: Being that Dunedin is one of the smallest towns in the Florida State League, I’ve noticed there is a strong community vibe to the team and the organization. How does that effect your announcing? Are you recognized in town outside of the ballpark?

CD: Haha if I am recognized in town it’s certainly not because I am the broadcaster. Dunedin is a great little town with a lot of owner operated businesses and restaurants so I have gotten to know a lot of people here through the team and also just by living right downtown, which I am lucky enough to be able to do. If people know me as a Blue Jays employee its likely because I’ve tried to sell them an ad or some sort of sponsorship at one point or another!

BLB: How important is your broadcast to the community? To the families of players who might listen online?

CD: I know a lot of our season ticket holders appreciate the broadcasts of the road games because they are an extremely loyal group of fans. I’ve also had fans tell me they like listening because that’s how they really learn about the players.

I know that the broadcasts mean a lot to the families and friends of the players who are often very far away from home. The broadcasts of the games are, in some way, how they keep in touch with their loved ones, and frankly I am most proud of the fact that I am able to provide this link for them. Many of the player’s families have emailed me at one point or another to thank me, and it truly means a lot to me.

BLB: Before the season, you wrote a passionate plea in a local newspaper for fans to come out to the ballpark and see the Dunedin Blue Jays. How important is it for the community to support the team?

CD: It’s extremely important! Seeing empty stadiums night after night last season was a real shock to me, and it was incredibly disappointing to see. It’s not just Dunedin that struggles to draw fans in the summer, it’s 75% of the teams in the Florida State League, and 100% of Florida’s teams in Major League Baseball. It’s sad really, there is so much good baseball being played and nobody watching it.

BLB: Why do you think attendance struggles so much in the Florida State League?

CD: There are a ton of factors, and having only lived in Florida for 16 months I don’t want to pretend to be an expert, but I think the economy and the weather are two big problems. The economy in Florida isn’t doing all that well, and people are very careful about how they spend their money. Unfortunately it seems like baseball is one of the first things they cut out, despite the fact that tickets to Florida State League are so inexpensive.

The weather is the other big one. It’s really really hot here from May-September, and people would rather be inside with air conditioning than out in the sweltering heat and humidity. The fact that it rains almost nightly (and right around gametime) doesn’t help either. While it really stinks, I can definitely understand people who just can’t stand the heat enough to stay home instead of coming to a game.

BLB: Lastly, what are you looking forward to this season?

CD: I’m looking forward to everything. Being back in the booth, getting better at calling games, getting to know the players, eating stadium food, and 1,000 other things.

I also believe that the D-Jays have a great chance to win the FSL Championship this year, something that’s never been done in the team’s 27 year history, and to be a part of that would obviously be an amazing experience.

We would like to thank Craig for his answers and wish him and the Dunedin Blue Jays the best of luck this year.