Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 7, 1995 TAG: 9509070009
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAMES C. BLACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
And probably the main point of interest this off-season will be how the team performed at Salem Memorial Baseball Stadium.
Simply put, the Avalanche's offensive production went down.
Salem, which was supposed to move into Memorial Stadium at the start of the 1995 season, didn't begin play at its new ballpark until Aug.7 because of construction delays.
When the change in venues came, it venues brought a drop in productivity.
At the old ballpark, Municipal Field, Salem averaged 5.3 runs per game. In the last 21 games at Municipal Field, the numbers dropped to an average of 4.2 a game.
In 21 dates at Memorial Stadium, Salem scored 72 runs and averaged just 3.4 runs a game. And 22 of those runs came in the last four games.
The opposition didn't fare much better at Salem's new home, averaging 3.9 runs a game.
``Here, you have to tighten up your stroke and hit more line drives and more ground balls,'' Avalanche manager Bill Hayes said. ``This ballpark is tailor-made for someone who can hit line drives and spray the ball around the outfield.''
A lack of home runs was probably the biggest reason for the scoring dropoff in the new stadium.
Down the street at Municipal Field where the dimensions were smaller, players had gotten accustomed to hitting home runs that in some cases would have been routine outs in other stadiums.
In a game against the Wilmington Blue Rocks in May, eight home runs were hit.
``Eight home runs here [at Memorial Stadium] - it will never happen,'' Hayes said. ``Maybe three on a good night.''
Salem hit seven home runs at Memorial Stadium. Visiting teams combined for only five.
In contrast, Salem hit 60 homers prior to the move. Twenty-one of those were hit in the last 21 games at Municipal Field.
``A guy may have power, but it's going to be tough to hit homers here,'' said Edgard Velasquez, who homered in the second to last game of the season. ``It's a pitcher's field.''
In 49 home games at Municipal, the team was not shut out and was held to a one run in four games. In the team's final 21 games, Salem was shut out twice and held to one run in two other games.
On the other hand, Avalanche pitchers threw three shutouts in Memorial Stadium as opposed to just one in Municipal Field. Salem pitched consecutive shutouts against Frederick and Durham in the first homestand at the new ballpark.
``The advantage with this stadium is you can get away with a mistake,'' Hayes said.
Would a cutback in homers and runs translate to a shorter game time? Not a significant one, but yes.
The average length of a game at Memorial Stadium was 2 hours, 28 minutes - eight minutes less than the average time at Municipal Field.
by CNB