Ponies to make Dehler Park debut tonight

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Ponies to make Dehler Park debut tonight
Mustangs finally return home after 14 road games in 15 days

By MIKE SCHERTING
Of The Gazette Staff

GREAT FALLS - It's not really the comforts of home that the Billings Mustangs have missed.

Because really, so far in this Pioneer League season, Mustangs players haven't even been in Billings long enough to get settled into their living situations and know what those comforts are.

Several of the Mustangs joined the team on the road, and even the 29 or so players and coaches who have seen Billings had been in town only a matter of 18 hours or so before they had to embark on their mammoth 15-day, 14-game road trip to start the season.

They've been to Missoula, to Great Falls, back to Missoula, to Helena and back to Great Falls.
But finally, the time has come to play at new Dehler Park. Their odyssey complete, the Mustangs play the first Pioneer League game at the park tonight at 7 p.m. against the North Division-leading Great Falls Voyagers. More than anything, the Mustangs are ready to hear a few friendly voices.

"Basically, we're on a three-month road trip, to tell you the truth, because we're all not from around here," Mustangs infielder Alex Buchholz, a sixth-round selection of the Cincinnati Reds out of the University of Delaware, said with a chuckle before Monday's game against the Voyagers. "But to get to Billings and have the fan support, that'll make you feel at home. When we score we'd like to hear some roars and rahs, you know?"

The players are well aware that the reserved seating for tonight's game has been sold out for some time, and that a large walk-up crowd is expected as well. And besides getting the much anticipated crowd support, the Mustangs are also looking forward to an easier day-to-day life.

"I'm excited to get home and not be in the hotels all the time, constantly traveling," Buchholz said. "It'll be nice to get on a steady program at home because we get to the field a lot earlier than we do when we're on the road.

"Everything from rest to eating. We eat fast food on the road all the time. At home we'll get to eat a little bit better, and get more rest. I'm looking forward to that."

The respite won't be long - after three games with Great Falls and three with Helena - it's back on the bus for a seven game road trip to Orem and Ogden, Utah. But they entered Monday's road finale in Great Falls with seven wins, guaranteeing themselves of a break-even trip.

Though pleased with the team's record, Mustangs manager Julio Garcia said he didn't put a number on how many games he'd like to see his team win on the initial trip. Instead, he was more focused on finding a formula for everyone to get playing time.

"I didn't even put a number on it, in terms of wins and losses, to tell you the truth," he said. "... The driving, the buses and all that kind of stuff, is the one thing that's been a little tough on the guys. But they've come through it pretty good.

"We'll get to wear the white uniform when we get home ... everything will look new ... I wouldn't want to do it again, but it's been a good experience."

Clayton Shunick, a fifth-round pick from North Carolina State, will get the ball for the Mustangs against Daniel Hudson of the Voyagers. Shunick will be making his third start after taking a break of nearly three weeks from the time he was drafted by the Reds to the time he made his first start with the Mustangs.

"I'm starting to get more and more comfortable out on the mound after taking a little bit of time off," said Shunick, who is 0-0 with a 6.75 ERA in eight innings. "I was starting to feel the groove back toward the end of my last start, so hopefully that carries over into this next one."

Since Shunick joined the Mustangs after the season started, he hasn't seen Dehler Park in person. He has viewed photos of the park on the Internet, and the significance of tonight's game isn't lost on the 21-year-old right-hander.

"I know it means a lot to the town of Billings and I've heard they've got a great fan base there," he said. "I'm excited and I'm honored to be starting the first game there. Hopefully we can start out the new stadium with a win."

http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/01/sports/local/21-mustangsopener.txt

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Rain does little to dampen reviews of new ballpark

By GREG RACHAC
Of The Gazette Staff

A couple of hours before the first pitch was thrown on Tuesday night, new Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty emerged from the Billings Mustangs' clubhouse at Dehler Park.

Jocketty, in Billings to take in the opening-night festivities at his rookie league affiliate's $13.7 million ballpark, stood on the concourse overlooking left field and professed his high regard for the vibrant new stadium.

"I think it's a great ballpark. And I don't care what league you're in, if you look at the playing surface it's top notch," said Jocketty, a well-respected Major League GM who was hired in Cincinnati five months ago after 13 successful seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals.

"This is a great place for our franchise to be associated with."
Jocketty was joined at Dehler Park by other Reds' brass such as director of player development Terry Reynolds and director of baseball business operations Dick Williams.

Though it rained - heavily at certain points - the weather did little to dampen Billings' 9-7 win over Great Falls in the first professional game in Dehler's history.

Jocketty said the ballpark is another in the list of fine parks in Cincinnati's organization, which includes quality facilities in Louisville, Ky., and Dayton, Ohio.

He said Dehler Park "ranks right up there" with the rest of them.

"We're trying to build an organization that has great facilities at each level," Jocketty said. "This is a great place for guys to start their pro careers."

Joe Mock, the author of the Web site baseballparks.com, is a man who has traveled countless miles and watched countless innings at parks around the country.

He was in attendance Tuesday night and vouched for every last bit of Jocketty's testimonial.

"The thing I like most about this park is that it's not overdone," said Mock. "Here, the focus is on baseball. It's a reflection of how the folks here feel about this sport."

Mock's Web site gives in-depth reviews and analysis of the professional parks he has visited - Major League or otherwise - since launching his database.

He said there are four new ballparks that opened in 2008 in professional baseball, and that Dehler Park holds its own.

"It compares very favorably," said Mock, referencing the new Major League park in Washington D.C., and the new minor league stadiums in Allentown, Pa., and Springdale, Ark. "I enjoyed myself here tonight more than I did at the Washington Nationals' new park."

One man had a unique feeling while serving beer and taking in the first pro game at Dehler Park.

Les Barnes was a member of the inaugural Mustangs team in 1948 and played in the first professional game at Cobb Field.

Though he raved about the conveniences of Dehler Park, Barnes said the two ballparks cannot be compared.

"The facility is fine," said the 81-year-old Barnes, the Mustangs' shortstop in 1948. "But how can you compare a modern-day atmosphere to an old time ballpark? It's hard. But I think this facility is great for what we have. I really do."

Though they were hardly aware of one another on Tuesday, Barnes and Mustangs designated hitter Andrew Means will now walk together forever in history.

Barnes had the Mustangs' first-ever RBI at Cobb Field in 1948 against a team called the Salt Lake Bees. Means, meanwhile, collected the team's inaugural RBI at Dehler Park on Tuesday.

It's a fact Means appreciated afterward.

"It's something you can talk about when you're older," he said. "It's a great feeling when you finally get to this level."

The aforementioned rain fell throughout much of the game but the playing surface, thanks to its underground draining system, kept the field relatively dry.

Mustangs catcher Jordan Wideman agreed.

"It took water pretty well," Wideman said. "We had to clean up the plate area a little bit, but it performed well on the first night."

Billings' Frank Meade, also a catcher, is currently out with a hamstring injury he suffered during the team's 14-game road trip that started the season.

Meade is a holdover from last year's team that experienced Cobb Field.

He said the new ballpark is a gem compared to what the organization had a year ago.

"It's like night and day," Meade said. "Everything here is brand new. The facilities here are outstanding. It's a thrill."

http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/02/sports/local/22-rainout.txt