Suns making the most of top draft pick’s stay
Hagerstown, Md. – It was “Jersey Shore” night at Municipal Stadium on Thursday. Fans who arrived dressed as one of the cast members from the ubiquitous MTV program earned a general-admission ticket to a future Hagerstown Suns game.
Welcome to minor league baseball, where teams must get creative if they want to put people in the seats — even if they have the top prospect in the sport.
Hagerstown found itself with the perfect marketing tool to start the season; it’s where Nationals phenom Bryce Harper is plying his trade for the first time as a professional. The 18-year-old outfielder — Sports Illustrated cover boy and major league baseball’s No. 1 draft pick in 2010 — so far has laid waste to the low-A South Atlantic League, four rungs below the big leagues.
| The Harper File |
| » Nationals No. 1 draft pick Bryce Harper entered the weekend leading the South Atlantic League in batting average (.395), on-base percentage (.473), slugging percentage (.702) and OPS (1.175). |
| » Harper began wearing contact lenses in late April. That adjustment coincided with his current hot streak, which included a 16-game hitting streak entering a weekend series at Lakewood (Ohio). |
| » Nineteen of Harper’s first 45 hits as a professional went for extra bases (eight home runs, 11 doubles). He also ranked second in the league through 32 games with 30 RBI. |
A Las Vegas native, Harper should be preparing for his senior prom and high school graduation back home in Nevada. But his unique talent took him on a different path. Harper skipped his final two years of high school, earned his GED certificate and spent last year at the College of Southern Nevada, one of the country’s top junior college programs. His presence is a golden opportunity for a minor league club like the Suns, who have used it to solidify attendance and build their own brand in the first year under a new ownership group.
“We absolutely want to capitalize and sell tickets,” Hagerstown general manager Bill Farley said. “At the same time, you don’t want to go overboard and make your entire operation Bryce Harper-driven because pretty soon he’s going to move on. He is that good. That’s going to happen any day now. And you’ve got to have something to draw the fans in afterwards.”
Farley wants to get them through the gates first, though. Through 17 home dates the Suns are averaging 2,077 fans a game — a slight dip from 2010, when they averaged 2,089 for the season. But they are still reaping the benefits of Harper’s presence even if he likely will be promoted soon. With kids still in school and families reluctant to commit to a night out, April and May are always tough sells for minor league clubs. It didn’t help that Hagerstown’s first homestand was plagued by bad weather and two rainouts and another rain-delayed contest drew just 287 people. That hasn’t been the norm, however. Hagerstown hosted an over-capacity Opening Day crowd of 6,107 on April 15. Thursday’s game against Delmarva — the Baltimore Orioles’ low-A affiliate — drew 2,611.
The Suns are taking advantage of Harper’s presence in other ways, too. Walk into Hagerstown’s team store and there are authentic Bryce Harper jerseys selling for $200. On another rack hang T-shirts with his No. 34 going for $25.00 and “Harperstown” T-shirts that cost $10.00. The club even sells “eye-black” stickers so fans can imitate Harper, who at Southern Nevada would smother his face with so much of the grease that he resembled a character from the movie “Braveheart.” As a pro he’s had to tone down that act.
The Suns certainly have expanded their geographic footprint. Eighth-grader Bryce Starner left his school in York, Pa., 30 minutes early Thursday so he and his dad, Jeff, could make the 70-mile drive and catch Harper in person. Bryce Sterner, wearing a No. 34 Harper jersey, said he has been watching video of Harper “for years” to pick up tips on how to improve his own game. Nats fans Doug Peterson and Linda Woodhouse said they made the 75-mile trip from Alexandria just to see Harper.
“I’m used to that kind of attention. I dealt with it all last year [at Southern Nevada]. It’s nothing I can’t handle,” said Harper, whose team entered the weekend 22-12 and in second place. “Everybody’s telling me [Hagerstown’s] not that great. But I’m going to make it great, make it a baseball town, and we’re going to win.”
