This image of some pregame event is from five or six years ago, when the Red Barons were still in Moosic. Before the Yankee farm team moved in the turf was swapped out for grass. They now want a new park. But is the park the reason they don't draw that many fans?Batting Practice Live remains my fave program on MLBN, with the live drop-ins as a close second. Coming down with a cold yesterday, I whiled away a lot of time last night watching baseball on TV. That is how I got to see the many very empty parks around baseball. Atlanta? The team's in first place, the weather was temperate, and the park was empty. But compared with Cincinnati, another first-place team, Atlanta was jumping. Cleveland? Nothing but crickets. Arizona? A ghost town. Tampa Bay? Embarrassing. I didn't see Yankee Stadium but guess it was pretty much sold out. The Giants too should have drawn a decent crowd. OK, school is starting in some places but I think the IronPigs last night drew more than some of these parks.
Dodger Stadium started off empty but reached its usual level, and the place was buzzing as Hiroki Kuroda took a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Fittingly, it was Victorino, who has a history with Kuroda and with Dodger fans, who broke it up. Kuroda was lifted for Kuo, who preserved the one-hitter in a 3-0 blanking of the Phillies, the 11th time the team has been shut out. Halladay gave up one run in the 1st, one in the 2nd, and one in the 5th, but I was already dubious after the first. Kuroda has gone down this road with the Phillies again and again.
For all that the Phillies swept the Padres over the weekend, they only hit .163 doing it.
