Manchester Fisher Cats Growing Fanbase
As the weather warms up and the Red Sox start their march towards October, baseball buzz can be heard all over the state. With the Sox certainly holding the popularity prize, Manchester’s Double-A minor league team, the Fisher Cats, are becoming more and more popular.
Since coming to the city from New Haven, CT in October of 2003, attendance is up and their popularity is too. Last year was full of impressive numbers for the team as a team record total of 371,710 fans attended games at their Merchantsauto.com Park. Not only was the season attendance record set but the single day record was set, there were a record seven sold out games in a row, and last July the team welcomed its one millionth fan, Dew Farris of Andover, MA.
The team is a Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. What does that mean? That means that players with contracts playing for the Fisher Cats, if they made it to the majors while still under contract, could only play for the Blue Jays. Double-A is part of the so-called “farm” system that allows major league teams to develop young talent and prepare them for the major leagues. If a player has shown great promise, he will probably be promoted to the Blue Jay’s Triple-A affiliate in Syracuse, then perhaps make a show at Rogers Stadium in Toronto in the big leagues. Who has played for the Fisher Cats and has made it to the big leagues? Try Gustavo Chacin, Aaron Hill, Casey Janssen, Adam Lind, Jesse Litsch, Dustin McGowan, and Shaun Marcum for starters.
Based on last year’s success, the Fisher Cats seem to be poised for another great season. The park is not only a much more accessible park than say Fenway, but families enjoy the absence of less than PG Yankee insults and Boston fan intensity.
This year 2007 Eastern League All-Star outfielder Aaron Mathews; right-hander Mike MacDonald, the team's all-time wins leader; and left-hander Ricky Romero, all fan favorites, will be returning. "We're excited to see many familiar players back in New Hampshire, as well as a number of up-and-coming prospects the Blue Jays are sending our way," said Fisher Cats President/General Manager Rick Brenner.
The team enjoys a competitive neighbor to the east, the Portland Seadogs who are the Double-A affiliate of the Red Sox. Games between the two are the most prized and are quick to sell out. NH fans can catch a glimpse of a favorite player doing a rehab stint in for the Seadogs or scout for up and comers like Dustin and Jacoby were.
The Eastern League has been known to produce great talent with Vladimir Guerrero, Alfonso Soriano, Scott Rolen, Roger Clemens, Derek Jeter, David Ortiz, Gary Sheffield, Manny Ramirez, John Smoltz and Mariano Rivera all being Eastern League alumni who were named to All-Star teams. It’s no surprise that the Fisher Cats are becoming more and more a fan favorite here in New Hampshire.