Published: June 03, 2009 11:09 pm      

P-Rays counting down

GM Holland upbeat despite economy

PRINCETON — In 15 days, a chartered bus with the 2009 Princeton Rays aboard will pull in at Hunnicutt Field. On June 23, the Appalachian League baseball season begins with a home game against the Burlington Indians.

The myriad of tasks now under way at the ballpark are geared toward having the whole package for fans’ enjoyment in place on that evening. That makes for a busy June for general manager Jim Holland and his staff.

“Doing this as long as I’ve done it, and some of my staff members have done it, we seem to have different things we’re doing on different days, knowing that it’ll all piece together and be ready on June 23,” Holland said.

The pieces have been arriving already. In the gift shop, Holland adjusted a display of new T-shirts and caps bearing the Tampa Bay Rays’ official new color scheme of shades of blue, highlighted with a white-and-yellow ray burst.

“There’s a new lid in town,” he said.

New blue foam fingers, key rings, car flags, refrigerator magnets and an assortment of helmets are arrayed for sale. Shirts come in a range from triple-X to small youth sizes.

Holland said, “Our program has been at the printer now, for over a week.”

Advertisers’ signs in the outfield should be going up on Tuesday, he said.

The energetic GM was upbeat despite the national economy that has been beset by recession.

“We still have one or two wall signs we could sell,” he said. “Our sales right now, versus the (economic) things that are going on in the world — we have out-performed where we thought we would be.”

Speaking about the club’s advertisers, he said, “We’ve lost a person or two, but we’ve gained a few, so in the end it balances pretty well.

“All things considered, we’ve put the effort out there; we’ve had good response. Now it’s time to just put the numbers together and make them work for us.”

This year’s effort is buoyed by Tampa Bay’s rise in 2008 from mediocrity to a World Series appearance against the Philadelphia Phillies.

“The big thing is, it kept the Rays name in front of people, when the Rays were on the stage by themselves,” Holland said.

“When there were down to just a few teams left, and eventually, down to just two teams left, the Rays name was still front and center on the national stage.”

“Obviously, the longer you’re on the stage, the less time (potential fans) have to forget about it before the next summer comes around.”

Also working in Princeton’s favor, though perhaps not immediately, is the addition this year of a farm club in the Gulf Coast League, a level below the Appalachian League. That means there will be a level of development for many of the players before they are assigned to Princeton.

“Tampa Bay is back in the Gulf Coast League this year for the first time since 1998,” Holland noted.

“They’re also strengthening their Venezuelan League and Dominican League programs. So there are some places for younger kids to go, rather than to directly throw them into an advanced rookie league situation.”

Though he said he thinks that may make Princeton “a little bit better,” this summer, Holland said, “Common theory usually tells you that Gulf Coast (League teams) have to be in place one year for the clubs above it to really see the benefits.

“There are several cases in the Appalachian League that I’ve seen through the years that would seem to justify that. The second year is when things start kicking in for a club. But, you know, our big club (Tampa Bay) bucked the trend last year, so maybe we can, too.”

As far as physical facilities go, the number of hitting tunnels in the new indoor hitting facility is increasing to two, and a couple of “live dirt mounds” are expected to be ready for the Rays’ June 19 arrival.

The improvements are never over at Hunnicutt Field, Holland said.

“We’re tickled with what we’ve got to date, but you can never be satisfied. There’s no such thing as the perfect facility. You continue to want to identify weak spots and strengthen them,” he said.

“When you bring your weak spots up to par with your strong spots, then you’ve got what you’re really after.”

Another point of pride is Holland’s streak of having a promotion or giveaway at every Princeton Appy League home game since the end of the 1991 season.

All in all, it’s a good place to be, Holland said as he looks forward to his 18th straight Appy League opener in Princeton.

“We feel like we’ve got some strong building blocks to build on,” he said. “Plus, Princeton’s always been a Rays town, since they first came here.

“Throw in the World Series factor, and the excitement about the new style and the new look — plus Jared Sandberg, a former player, coming back to manage, and a former Appy League MVP to boot — plus, our ticket sales are going real well.

“When you look at all those things, a lot of good ingredients there.”

He added, “I feel blessed to still be here. I’ve been fortunate to be surrounded by good staff, good fans, a good board of directors. Throw them all into the melting pot, and it produces good results.”

Of course, he’d like to add even more fans.

He noted the June 23 game in Princeton will have free admission, courtesy of First Community Bank.

“Maybe that will get some new people hooked on baseball, right out of the gate,” he said.

— E-mail:

tbone@bdtonline.com