Fans treated to a victory in home opener
Isotopes handily beat Las Vegas in home opener
IALBUQUERQUE t had all the niceties one might expect from a baseball opener.
The players were called out one at a time to line up on the baselines. The mayor came onto the manicured infield with the team owner to say a few words of civic pride, then exchange pleasantries over an oversized rent check. Then the ceremonial first pitch was thrown out by a local hero as the color guard stood watch.
Even the weather cooperated as Tuesday’s home debut for the Albuquerque Isotopes was played in temperatures that hovered in the high 60s as the game ended just past 9 p.m.
When it was all said and done, the Isotopes took care of business in front of 9,104 fans with a 7-3 win over Las Vegas, Nev. It was the first of 70 scheduled home dates between now and late August, and one that ’Topes manager Glenallen Hill said was the perfect way to start what he hopes is the best year in the short relationship between Albuquerque and the parent Colorado Rockies.
“The fans here love baseball,” he said. “They come out and support the Isotopes. Yeah. It was how an opening day is supposed to be.”
The fact that his bullpen worked four scoreless innings didn’t hurt. After starter David Holmberg allowed four hits and
three earned runs in the first four innings, the relief allowed just two hits the rest of the way as the Topes scored the final seven runs from the third inning on.
The heart of the order had 11 hits and scored all seven runs. That included the first home run at the friendly confines by Topes second baseman Derrik Gibson, a three-run shot in the sixth inning that erased a 3-2 deficit and put Albuquerque on top for good.
Reliever Shane Broyles got the win after spelling Holmberg to start the fifth.
Afterward, Hill immediately retreated behind closed doors to break down scouting reports with Rockies manager of player development Chris Forbes. In town to scout a number of specific players, Forbes had to have liked what he saw despite some of the behind-the-scenes glitches that sometimes happen on opening night.
The stadium’s automatic teller machines were out of order, forcing fans to buy promotional stadium bucks that concessionaires treated as cash. If that weren’t enough, the traditional Mexican food race pitting the
taco, salsa jar, and chiles red and green was dominated by the
taco, as usual. Not even a long winter could break that habit.
“When things get going there’s an even increased amount of excitement when the team’s playing well,” Hill said.
GAME NOTES
Tebow time? Fans hoping to get a touch of Tebow Fever might have to take a road trip to get it. Tim Tebow is a farmhand in the New York Mets’ system and is currently stationed at Double-A Binghamton in the Eastern League.
Las Vegas is the Mets’ Triple-A club. The Isotopes and 51s face one another 16 times this season, each team hosting eight games. All eight visits from Vegas this season come this month, meaning Tebow would have to get promoted some time between now and the 51s’ last appearance in Albuquerque on April 29.
Don’t hold your breath. The Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback who now spends his spare time breaking down college football games on ESPN is batting just .133 in four games with eight strikeouts in 15 at-bats for the Rumble Ponies.
Yes, the Mets’ Double-A team is called the Rumble Ponies, who lost Tuesday to the Akron … wait for it … RubberDucks.
Signage: Hill has a white sheet of paper hanging on the wall next to his desk. It says, simply, “Find the Feeling,” a small quote attributed to former player German Marquez.
“Players work a lot on mechanics and mechanics lead to being able to perform without thinking about your mechanics and feeling what that’s like,” Hill said. “Sometimes you can get stuck on the mechanical aspect of performing and we try to focus more on the feeling of it.”