THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 2, 1995 TAG: 9504020146
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 116 lines
Baseball America magazine named the Norfolk Tides the Triple-A Franchise of the Year last season.
That honor represents a leap of light years from the Tides' sleepy days at now-demolished Met Park.
With the city's Harbor Park entering its third season and more than a million tickets sold in their first two years there, the Tides have become a model franchise that others wish to emulate.
Overseeing the transformation has been Tides president Ken Young, a food-service executive from Tampa, Fla., back for his third year in Norfolk. He has helped make the Tides a vital presence in his adopted community despite the lack of playoff-caliber teams, while leading the effort to makes Tides games special events.
He also, um, gave life to Rip Tide. We'll have to see if the community ever forgives him for that.
Last week, with baseball's labor strife still unresolved, Young addressed the state of the game and the Tides.
Do you think the strike will hurt the Tides in particular and minor league baseball in general?
``I really don't think it will hurt minor league baseball, but I will say that I think that from the middle of March on that there's been a lack of exposure, at least of anything positive, because much hasn't been written about spring training games.
``I think that, early in the season, could hurt minor league baseball a little bit. Overall, I don't think it will have a negative affect on us. Our season-ticket sales were neck-and-neck with last year until (late March) and then fell slightly less than 1 percent.
``I think it's possible once we begin to play and (Triple-A) may have the best talent on the field in baseball, it could be the amount of publicity we get for that could have a positive effect.''
Many of the prospects you expected to have won't start the season with the Tides because of the strike. Has that dulled some of your excitement?
``The heart of the team we anticipated having may not be there for a while if the 40-man-roster players don't come back (immediately). But I think one of most important things right now is that the competitive balance be equal so we see competitive baseball.
``I think we will get the nucleus sooner rather than later. The reason I feel that way is you've got a bunch of prospects here and it's in their best interest and the minor league team's best interest to be playing those guys. They don't have a lot of money, for the most part. By letting them play in the minors, the union hopefully would see that it's not going to be beneficial to the major league team.
After two successful years, are the Tides running smoothly enough that you can relax a bit and stop working so hard to market the club?
``No. I think it is fair to say things are moving kind of smoothly here. But I can tell you I think the staff worked as hard this year, they're always brainstorming about things we can try, other events and add-ons to baseball that we can bring into it.
``I don't think we should ever have any letup in the effort. Just the acknowledgement of hey, things have gone well, so stick with the status quo - that should never be the attitude.
What did winning the Triple-A Franchise of the Year award mean to you?
``It meant a lot in that the rest of baseball acknowledged the efforts that our whole staff has put in. It says that we put an excellent product in the park. It meant a lot that we're a top franchise.
``I heard from a lot of people, and they may not be in the baseball business. But as I mention the Norfolk Tides, I often hear from people who know about minor league baseball and they say, hey, you've got a heck of a facility, it's managed well and you do a great job there.
``Sometimes it surprises me, even people on the West Coast know about us. I think that's great.''
Are other minor league franchise operators coming to you now for advice?
``Yeah, they are. At least in one case, somebody came to us who wants to build a new facility and attract a team. They want to pick our brain on all those things, the reasons we're successful. They're talking about not just the baseball operation but the opportunity for everything else that goes on in a facility that we do here. In some cases people may have come through the facility and toured it and some might have heard about us word of mouth.
``It's surprising how many people we do have come through during the baseball season that are with other teams potentially looking at new facilities. Some are in our league, some aren't. Rochester and Syracuse came through here. Oklahoma City and its mayor came last year. I love to talk to them.''
On a different sports subject, you've expressed an interest in getting into hockey, from buying into the East Coast Hockey League to even trying to bring an NHL team to Norfolk. Where do your hockey efforts stand?
``I would really like to have a minor league hockey team and came very close to one in the ECHL in Pensacola this year. We had a lease agreement, but there were a lot of factors involved. . . . I think the ECHL would like to have me as an owner and the county would like to have a team, but it just didn't work out for this year. . . .
``I still think the potential is there for the NHL and a new arena in Norfolk, with a combination of a public- and private-sector partnership. I've talked to a couple of people in the front offices of teams, but nobody in the league office.
``When I read stories about NHL expansion, the five or six cities mentioned most often are ones that have relatively new facilities or are willing to build facilities. It takes both to happen at the same time, the commitment of a team before a city commits to a facility.
The big questions: The original guy inside Rip Tide quit since last season. Will the Rip Tide character be back and will there be much change in its act?
``Rip Tide is a big part of the experience, as far as the kids go. Certainly, we're going to have Rip Tide all over the community making appearances. There are some things I'd like to see different. The kids love it when Rip Tide walks through the seats and so forth. I'd like to see maybe more skits that involve other things and other people.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
FILE PHOTO
``I don't think we should ever have any letup in the (promotional)
effort,'' says Tides president Ken Young.
by CNB