Econ Buff Podcast #10 with Nick Gerlich
Dr. Nick Gerlich talks with me about how baseball came back to Amarillo, TX. We discuss what minor league baseball is, what the difference between affiliated and independent baseball is, and why affiliated baseball is important to a city. How the team came to be named the Sod Poodles is examined. We talk about the role of nostalgia in the marketing and consumption of baseball. We consider the branding of the team including the stadium design, the fonts, the logos, the colors, and the symbolism of the different parts of the branding. We explore how the team and stadium are situated within Amarillo’s downtown renovation and how Dr. Gerlich views the future of the team.
Amarillo Sod Poodles Stadium "Hodgetown" Photo Credit: Michael C. Johnson, Amarillo Globe News
Transcript
Stitzel: Hello, and welcome to the EconBuff podcast. I'm your host, Lee Stitzel. With me today is Dr. Nick Gerlich, the Hickman Professor of Marketing at West Texas A&M University. Nick, welcome.
Gerlich: Thank you Dr. Stitzel.
Stitzel: Dr. Gerlich has been on faculty here at West Texas A&M for 31 years. He was a pioneer launching our online business programs here, and he started back in 1997. Oh, excuse me. The program started back in ’97.
Gerlich: Yeah.
Stitzel: His research focus is varied and includes articles on e-commerce, social media, and crisis communication country-of-origin effects, and the role of nostalgia in marketing. He's an active member in the Route 66 community as a researcher, photographer, and enthusiast, and recently co-authored a book documenting the changes along this historic road. So, I have the pleasure of following your work a lot. I very much enjoy the pictures. I noticed you mentioned photographer here in in your bio. And that is, sort of, maybe the most --- I don't say memorable, but like --- outstanding part of your work, I think, to a lot of us. And so, you know, I do, kind of, want to make the point that as the (having you on as this) marketing professional, I want to say that, like, a lot of your work has bigger reach outside of just the academic world, especially the stuff that you do on Route 66. So, our topic today is the Amarillo Minor League Baseball Team. So, you and I have this, sort of, interesting connection here where that's something that you're interested in. You work in the marketing side. I teach sports economics. I thought this is a really interesting intersection of what it is that we do. And so, we'll set this up a little bit as we go. But I want to start us off with one particular question which is: what is minor league baseball?
Gerlich: Well, minor league baseball is a multi-tiered system of professional ball that allows for the development of new talent, as well as the rehabilitation of older talent. Teams are affiliated with a major league team, of which there are 30. And there are several tiers of minor league ball the highest level is Triple-A. And then they go down to Double-A, Class-A, Advanced Class-A, and then short season leagues and rookie leagues. And at the moment, there are 14 different leagues with 160 different teams. Now the teams are independently owned in almost all cases, although there are a few exceptions. And they've long been referred to somewhat jokingly as the farm system, mostly because about 70-80 years ago top-level managers often referred to bringing up somebody from the farm. And so, it, kind of, stuck. And so, now all the minor league teams are the farm system. These leagues and teams tend to be in smaller cities and smaller metropolitan areas. Although a place like Chicago that has two major league baseball teams has five minor league teams in the same area.
Stitzel: So, I don't think many large cities that do have major league teams have minor league ball. Are you familiar with other situations? Chicago pretty unique in that setting?
Gerlich: I think Chicago is one of only a handful. Los Angeles would be another good example where there's two professional teams and a number of…
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich:…minor league teams in the outlying metro area.
Stitzel: And then like in New York you have obviously two teams there in New York City. But then, you have, sort of, nearby teams. Scranton, New Jersey has one for example, stuff like that, right? So, I'm interested then in how you view the minor leagues in their role for the major leagues. So, as a sports economist, right, we refer to these teams as organizations. And, I think, it's one of the interesting parts about baseball that differentiates itself, that you have this extensive minor-league system; whereas in other leagues we don't have that at all. So, how do you view the way that the role that minor league plays for major leagues, as a little bit of an aside before we jump in?
Gerlich: Well, it's basically a feeder system.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: This is where we get talent. And if you contrast it to the NFL --- they get all their players from the college ranks. And so, the colleges and universities are basically that the minor-league system, if you will, although very, very different in ownership and managerial structure. Professional basketball does have one level of a developmental league. And also, professional hockey has minor league teams. But baseball is the one that is the most fully developed with all these different tiers. And I didn't even get into talking about winter leagues, like in Mexico…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…or in the Dominican Republic, [where] they play ball all year long. And aspiring players want to just --- they want to stay active. They want to be playing all the time in hopes that they catch the attention of a scout who pulls them up through a system, and ultimately one day they wind up in the big leagues.
Stitzel: So, it's very interesting, because in terms of division one college football, we have around the same number of universities with college football programs. That number fluctuates, but it's always around 120. So, it's, kind of, interesting that you equated the minor leagues to more like college football, right? The minor leagues are to the MLB as college football is to the NFL. And then, it works, sort of, works out mathematically…
Gerlich: Hmm mmm.
Stitzel:…right? They almost have the same number. And of course, there are even more schools than that that play football. I'm just, sort of, thinking about division one. Maybe that's happenstance. But it's a thought that I had while you were saying. Now, so, we're very excited here in Amarillo, for citizens of Amarillo and fans of baseball, among which I am both of those things. How is it then the Amarillo came to get the team; because, I think, this is a phenomenal story.
Gerlich: Well, this goes back a few years now to about 2017. Elmore Sports Group owns several teams in minor league baseball. And as is common in minor league ball, teams move about dependent upon their successes or lack thereof, and the desires of the ownership group, the availability of stadiums, and sometimes enticements offered by cities. And so, in 2017 Elmore found itself with the San Antonio Missions a Double-A team in the Texas League, the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox in the Pacific Coast League, and the Rookie-Level Helena Brews of the Pioneer League. Now, The Missions wound up moving to Amarillo, but left their name behind for the Sky Sox to adopt. So, Colorado Springs is now moving to San Antonio. San Antonio is moving here. And the Helena team moved to Colorado Springs, where they are now known as the Rocky Mountain Vibes. It was, you know, it's just a big checkers game, basically moving these pieces all over the board. But after all of this shuffling and moving, Amarillo came out as a winner with a new team entirely that it never had. San Antonio moved up in stature from Double-A to Triple-A. Colorado Springs went down a few notches. And Helena just lost out.
Stitzel: So, it --- there's a lot of movement between, you know, which clubs are associated with which minor league team. And so, this happened in conjunction with that. And then, it's somewhat more rare but still common then for, like, teams to move locations if you will. And by teams in this case, I mean, you know, the organization (the minor league organization) there. And so, this may not be, you know, quite in your wheelhouse, but I am, sort of, curious if you know any of the, like, reasons for these types of movements, right? So, sometimes from, like, a development side you have cases where you don't want to put players in certain, like, literal-physical environments. Because baseball can be played differently if you're in the thin air of Colorado, for example. This is a well-known problem that in Colorado the air is thinner. The ball seems to carry more. You know, and there's lots of --- there's actually lots of papers, even this about the physics literature about what's happening there, right? And, you know, so it strikes me that your Sky Sox might be a “problem.” I'm, sort of, using scare quotes in that context though. As a, you know, as a baseball fan I imagine that to be, sort of, part of the mechanism that happened here. So, I'm curious. Is this just business machinations that are happening here? Or are there, like, specific forces that we can point to that that caused these particular things?
Gerlich: My perspective on it is that it is primarily business. Now there might be some behind-the-scenes wishes of the major league team wishing to have placement in certain markets around the country. But from my perspective, this is more about money.
Stitzel: O.K. So, it is a business, Elmore Sports Group having an opportunity to put their teams in bigger markets and capitalize. O.K. that's neat. So, I did, kind of, want to tell a, sort of, brief anecdote that I had. You know, I went [and] did my graduate work in Oklahoma. And so, I got to see those teams there in Oklahoma up close, and particularly, [my] Oklahoma City team which moved from being the Red Hawks to the Dodgers while I was there. And from my understanding of that situation [is that] the Dodgers bought both Oklahoma City team and the Tulsa team so they could have a Triple-A in Oklahoma City and a Double-A there in Tulsa for the express purpose of being able to evaluate their players in, like, a neutral stadium environment (i.e., the ground isn't hard like it often is in Arizona, and so you get weird bounces; you don't have thin air like you do have in Colorado; you don't have, like, extremely gusty wind --- maybe that's debatable in Oklahoma but you don't have extremely gusty wind --- that you might be worried about in particular areas). And so, from, like, a development perspective that that's, kind of, part of their reasoning there. So, I was curious if we knew about any of those ties here?
Gerlich: Well, that could actually be a good example to contrast with the Springfield, Missouri Cardinals. As I mentioned a few minutes ago, there are a few exceptions where the top-level teams actually own their minor league teams. Well, the St. Louis Cardinals own…
Stitzel: Yes.
Gerlich:…the Springfield Cardinals in the same state 200 miles apart. And so, it makes it easy from management perspective to go check on the --- what's going on down at the --- farm.
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich: And I guess, the same thing would hold true for the Dodgers if they come to Oklahoma. They can check on two teams that are only a hundred miles…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…apart. But those are exceptions. And I've seen another one, I think, with the Atlanta Braves owning one of their farms…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…teams too.
Stitzel: Yeah. It's very interesting, because you have a lot of these. You actually anticipated one of my next questions, which is to talk a little bit about what it means to be independently owned, you know; whereas, you know, all the teams have, sort of, deals if you will. And so, you have, for example, you ---- the team that I root for is the Rangers. They recently struck a deal with Nashville's Triple-A team. So, now they're the Nashville Sounds. That is almost nothing changed in Nashville, except where the players are being supplied from, is from the Rangers organization, when before it was --- I'm not sure, let me not say could, I can't remember, but it was --- a different organization before. And so, you know, I've, kind of, watched and kept an eye on the way that they moved that around. And so, you know, it might be valuable to an organization like the Dodgers to have some kind of stability. You said it's easy to check in on them. They also, you know, care about where it is that they're moving players from, like, your Triple-A location relative to your team. Your home stadium might be a factor. Now, the Dodgers don't seem to care about that, because they're going halfway across the country. But the Cardinals do seem to care…
Gerlich: Hmm mmm.
Stitzel:…about that, because they're there in Springfield. And I remember a lot of discussion between, you know, the Astros taking over the Oklahoma City team back before the Dodgers came in, and that they wanted closer proximity to their homefield. And, you know, they had, kind of, the Rangers had actually been that Triple-A team even before the Astros took it over. And so, those two teams seem to have cared about that at that time. And, you know, at the end of the day, like you said, right, this is musical chairs. And so, you can't. Sometimes you just get caught holding the bag. And there was a --- I don't want to run away with this topic too much, but there was a --- case I remember where the Rangers had a Single-A club in Myrtle Beach, which is very popular. That's one of the best minor league clubs going. And they lost that contract, and the Cubs got it. And then, the Rangers were one of the last teams to settle. And they ended up in what's called High Desert. And that's that kind of problem that we were talking about before, where you can't evaluate players in that environment, because the ball just flies out of that park. You just can't keep it in the park…
Gerlich: Yeah.
Stitzel:…at all.
Gerlich: You could make the same argument about Amarillo. It's all --- you could almost bunt it…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…over the left-field wall…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…even though it's a typical size field, you know, the way the prevailing wind is here in the late Spring and Summer…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…blowing out at 20, 30, 40 miles an hour. It's not uncommon for them to have homerun derbies out there.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: A pitcher's nightmare.
Stitzel: Yeah. So, that's interesting, because Amarillo probably plays true except for the wind. That's my impression. Do you get the same…
Gerlich: Hmm mmm.
Stitzel:…impression?
Gerlich: Right.
Stitzel: And so, then the problem is if you're a pitcher who's fortunate enough that to start on a day where the wind isn't too bad, [then] you feel like you're getting a fair shake. And if you're out there and it's 20-mile gust straight out to left field, [then] you don’t want pitch to any right-handed hitters, right? So, let me ask this then. I know that especially given your photography background, you have a sense of these kind of things. You know, it's my non-scientific impression that in Amarillo when the sun goes down, [that] the wind tends to fall as well. Do you see that as being a factor in, like, how the field there in Amarillo plays?
Gerlich: Absolutely. And you're right about the wind dying down, especially late Spring [and] early Summer. The wind speed is often mirroring the time of the day, and the heating that's going on of the Earth from as the sun is up, you know, throughout the day. And so, the wind gets wound up significantly by late afternoon on until sunset, which is not until after 9:00 p.m. in late June and early July. But soon as soon as the sun goes down, it gets oddly calm unless there happens to be storms in the area. So, but by then the game can already be 18-12…
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich:…because of homeruns.
Stitzel: So, the first pitch is often at 7:00 p.m. And so, you're saying: yeah sure, it's fair enough to say the wind is probably dying down. But you're talking about 9:00 p.m.?
Gerlich: Yeah.
Stitzel: Not 7:00 p.m. Yeah, O.K. Great point. So, we've, kind of, set the stage here. How did Amarillo come to get this team? And, you know, you made the point, sort of, in passing. And, I think, this is an important point. So, you know, feel free to correct me on that front. But a big part of that is Amarillo’s willingness to build a stadium. So, can you talk about how that factored into them…
Gerlich: Yeah.
Stitzel:…getting the team?
Gerlich: Yes. The recommendation for a stadium actually came about a number of years ago from a consulting firm that no longer is in business; and, kind of, got discredited on a number of different levels for various reasons. But it was all part of the beginning of downtown redevelopment in Amarillo. And Amarillo is no different from most other towns our size. There is a very big movement toward reviving our center cities. And rightfully so, because that's the heart and soul of every town. It’s where it started...
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…and it shouldn't be where it ended. And so, a lot of towns are/have turned themselves around literally and are trying to grow inward as opposed to outward. And so, there's been an emphasis on hotels, dining, entertainment, and sports, along with convention centers. And so, Amarillo was really little different from most other cities its size about 10-15 years ago getting advice to do this kind of activity. Well, after the controversies with that consulting firm, kind of, died down for a while, but then it arose again in the mid-teens. And the city found a way to fund the stadium without being a burden on property owners, and that was through the hotel occupancy tax. And, you know, a lot of folks don't realize that when you rent a room or a car in in any town, [that] you're usually paying at least double the normal sales tax. And half of that, you know, is what goes to the city. It goes into their coffers. In the state of Texas that's heavily regulated as to how that money can be used. It can't just go into general funds…
Stitzel: Hmm.
Gerlich:…and become, you know, a slush fund to, you know, just play with and have fun with. No, it has to be used for tourism-related functions, of which a stadium can be argued fits that bill. And so, that was the argument put forth by the city, that we could use hotel occupancy taxes to pay for a new baseball stadium. Of course, we already had an old stadium. It --- and it's old. It's kind of rickety and all that. And, you know, it's the “American Way” to want to get rid of our old stadiums…
Stitzel: [Laughs]
Gerlich:…and build shiny new ones. And anyway, long story short. City Council decided or voted to move ahead with this new stadium. And like just about all building projects, especially ones that are municipal-backed, costs went a little bit higher than anticipated. And so, yeah, it wound up being a little more. But and it depends on who you talked to for the estimates. Some say $45 million. Skeptics will say: oh no, it was more like $70 million.
Stitzel: Wow.
Gerlich: Yeah. It's a lot of money, and especially for a stadium, that on a good day --- with people standing around in the outfield, and in the picnic areas, and sitting on the grass, and so forth --- can pack maybe 7,000 in there for 70 home dates. You know, people are busy doing the math here. How long is it gonna take, you know, to cover this and make, actually make, some…
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich:…money on this. So, as it stands, you know, we're dependent upon the taxes coming in from other people [such as] tourists, people passing through town, business people coming here to do their jobs and so forth, [and] people renting cars. And as long as those numbers stay good, [then] we should be O.K.
Stitzel: So, a couple of things pop up in the process there, because you covered so much interesting ground there. The first thing that I want to ask is: it was my impression that essentially, whether it's for the Elmore group or minor league baseball in general --- because I'm sure the league itself has some say in how these things happen; [whereas] that having a new stadium was a big selling point in that the minor league team that Elmore Group was, sort of, that Elmore group owns had some options and --- [is] what put Amarillo over the top is a stadium. Do you view that as a factor or?
Gerlich: Absolutely. When I was in school in Indiana back in this in the Stone Age there were still few dinosaurs wandering across the prairies.
Stitzel: [Laughs]
Gerlich: Mayor Hudnut. Mayor Bill Hudnut of Indianapolis --- former Presbyterian minister turned politician did a lot of amazing things for that town. He made Indianapolis into the amateur sports capital of America. The Pan Am Games were hosted there, I think, back in ’87. They still have state-of-the-art facilities there for many, many sports. But he also did something really insane. He built a stadium --- the RCA Dome --- and he didn't have a team in sight. So, he built a stadium. And basically, his mindset was [to] build it and they will come. And well, the Baltimore Colts did. They left Baltimore under cover of darkness, loaded up the trucks and trailers, and headed to Indianapolis where they settled in as the Indianapolis Colts. That was a risky move. It paid off for Mayor Hudnut. And of course, now Indianapolis has a much newer, much bigger stadium. And, you know, in keeping with the American tradition, we don't keep our stadiums for long. We like to build them, use them, [and] tear them down. And so, they did. So, Amarillo on a much smaller scale, kind of, did what Mayor Hudnut did.
Stitzel: So, the stadium component there is so interesting to me, right? Because in one sense, the stadiums are so durable. And yet, now we see a stadium reached 20-30 years old and people are clamoring to tear it down. Of course, the Indianapolis case is really interesting, because RCA Dome is a relatively famous Stadium. But then, the Lucas Oil Stadium that’s there now is one of the nicest [and] most well-respected stadiums, which is crazy given the size of cities that are in the NFL. And they do a lot of things there, including what's happening now, which is the NFL [Scouting] Combine, right? And so, yeah, maybe. Maybe a lot of vision therefore for the mayor. So, I, kind of, want to backtrack a little bit. And we/we've talked about how Amarillo came to get the stadium, and, sort of, what were the business components of what's happening there. But Amarillo does have a history with baseball. It is kind of a baseball town, a baseball area if you will. I know there's, you know, high school baseball is a big deal here, and we have history. Can you, kind of, talk to us about Amarillo's history with baseball?
Gerlich: Oh, this goes way back, all the way back to 1922 and 1923 when The Gassers played in the West Texas League and the Panhandle Pecos League. Now imagine having a team with that name today…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…The Gassers! But, you know, kind of, it interestingly played into the oil and natural gas industries that were prevalent in the area at that time. As we move forward though, teams came and went. The Texans played in the Western League from 1927-1929. Ten years later, the Amarillo Gold Sox arrived, and they played from 1939-1942 and 1946-1954. And you might be wondering: well, what about the gap years? That was World War II. No baseball was played.
Stitzel: Hmm.
Gerlich: There were a lot of things that weren't done back then.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: But --- and then after a season off in 1955, they resumed play from ‘56-‘58. But it was in 1959 that things get really good for baseball, because that's when they got their first Double-A team. And they had a variety of affiliations through the years. The Baltimore Orioles to the Chicago Cubs to Houston. And they would have been --- back in the 60s that they would have been --- known as the Colt 45s before they became the Astros. And also, the San Francisco Giants. The team’s name changed some through those years. But basically in 1976, they returned to the Texas League as an affiliate of the San Diego Padres, just like they are now with Sod Poodles.
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich: And they retained their affiliation until 1983 as the Gold Sox, and then that's when baseball, kind of, petered out here in Amarillo for awhile. It came back in ’94, but we were never quite able to get to the same level of play that we once enjoyed. We wound up with semi-pro teams starting back in the mid-90s --- the Dillas, later the Sox, and then the Thunderheads. And those were in various different semi-pro leagues, but without affiliation. Those teams tend to be populated by players who were hopefuls who really just enjoyed playing the game more than anything, and even a few former pro players, who either never made it to the big leagues, or we're on their way down.
Stitzel: So, this, I think, highlights one of the things that I really want to draw out of this podcast. And so, I'm going to turn this question to you. Why is it so important to have affiliated baseball? Because you laid out this long history where we have stretches of affiliated baseball, and then we've got some semi-pro. And you know that Amarillo Dillas team that you're talking about, you know, sort of, a dear memory of my upbringing, right? But then, I don't have any sense of how was the popularity of that relative to the affiliated. And now, we've got affiliated baseball back here in Amarillo. Why is that important?
Gerlich: Well, more than anything, I think, it helps with civic pride to have a real professional team that is associated with a major league baseball parent team [which] allows for all the local fans to build strong affinities with both the organization and the players; because there's a good chance they're gonna see some of the local team make it to the big leagues. And not just eventually, but possibly even in the same season, like [what] happened last year with four of the Sod Poodles. So, semi-pro baseball may be fun, but there's really no end game like there is within the minor league system. Amarillo will never have a major league baseball team. And Triple-A teams are usually reserved for second-tier cities with major population centers like Oklahoma City…
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich:…Albuquerque etc. And sure, there are some legacy teams in cities still in the big leagues like Pittsburgh. You know, they probably wouldn't be awarded a major league baseball franchise today. But since they were apart of this from, you know, many, many decades --- they're still in it. But the mass, but vast majority of teams are in urban centers with many millions of people like Chicago, New York, L.A., Houston, Dallas, Tampa, Miami, etc. Double-A teams will gravitate toward your 3rd tier cities like Amarillo. And since Amarillo has this ongoing rivalry with Lubbock, we can now say that we have something that they don't.
Stitzel: Right. That's awesome. So, what, I think, is interesting --- and you hit this right on the head. And so, as a baseball fan I love that aspect of, you know is these are guys that I'm gonna watch, you know, play on TV anytime now; and Double-A is really cool because, you know, like you said Triple-A is the closest proximity to the big leagues. And so, you end up with a lot of players there, that are good players that could be in the majors tomorrow if things happen on the roster (i.e., trades or injuries or whatever). But what's interesting ---- about Double-A is your high-profile prospects will often jump from Double-A. And of course, we saw this several times. Fernando Tatis Jr. played a rehab stint here in Amarillo which was very neat. And then players like McKenzie Gore that are top, top prospects this year going into the season ---- we got to see them a little bit last year, and probably some this year. You mentioned that there were four players that made the jump. So, you know, Double-A ball from a baseball fan perspective is almost the optimal thing. Yeah, I've watched Triple-A there in Oklahoma City, which is phenomenal. And definitely, I think, there would be an argument that that would be what you would pick if you could just pick which level that we would have. But Double-A, I think, is a very important league just from a, like, a baseball perspective. But then you mentioned that civic pride this is a very central idea in sports economics, right? So, you're coming from marketing. I'm coming from economics. It's great to see the overlap there. And so, there's this idea, and it's especially prominent in cases like when the Oklahoma City Thunder --- or when the Super Sonics moved to Oklahoma City became the Thunder --- what's called The Big-League City Effect. And people talk about: well, Oklahoma City is on the map now because we have the NBA, and we have Kevin Durant. Do you see any tie-in between, sort of, the civic pride that you're talking about (which, I think, is very real, and very important)? And he is, sort of, like put us on the map or Big-League City Effect. Or do you think minor league baseball is just not quite that powerful?
Gerlich: Minor league baseball is not quite that powerful; but at the same time, it does legitimize you just a bit. It does put you on the map. And I have come to know a number of people who just love minor league baseball, and they travel the country going to minor league games. Just like there are folks who have their lifetime goal, their bucket list, of going to every major league baseball park, there are folks who do that with minor league ball. And I've met some of them who traveled last summer and went to minor league games from Missouri to New Mexico, including Amarillo, Texas and had a blast.
Stitzel: Oh, I bet. Yeah. I'm one of those that the major league stadiums is on my bucket list. So, I want to tie two ideas here together. So, you mentioned, you know, the hotel occupancy tax and the tourism. And now you're talking about people coming to visit Amarillo. I think as a cynic who lives here in Amarillo said: well, nobody's here to visit Amarillo. I'd push back on that. I think there are things to see here. And so, I'm curious about your view between this civic pride, this legitimacy of --- O.K. maybe I shouldn't call it Big League City Effect --- The Medium League City Effect, I'll call it, and this tourism idea. Are people coming here to Amarillo to see things? Because it does have, I think, a very interesting overlap with your work about the history and the role of Route 66. We have I-40 going through town. I don't think Amarillo is necessarily one of those cities that you pencil in, you know, [that] I got to see Amarillo before I die. Maybe it should because there's a lot of cool stuff here. Do you think there's a legitimate role for tourism, even if Amarillo is just, sort of, a convenient stopping place between Oklahoma City and Albuquerque?
Gerlich: There's definitely a role for it and while it may be small right now. I think it will only grow with time. I am heavily involved in Route 66, especially on the tourism side. I really want to build tourism on the Mother Road, but specifically in Texas. I'm also the President of The Texas Old Route 66 Association. And so, one of my top of mine goals is to just build tourism here for the 178 miles that we have between the 100th meridian and 103rd meridian, otherwise known as the Oklahoma and New Mexico state lines.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: And so, any way we can do that the better. And if it involves getting them to spend the night downtown or wherever, and then go to a ballgame, go to some restaurants, [then] hey, that's great. Because as it stands, one thing I have found among many of the Route 66 tourists [is] they do two things when they come through Amarillo. They get a steak, and they paint a Cadillac [at Cadillac Ranch].
Stitzel: Yep.
Gerlich: And we would like to provide a few more speed bumps to get them to spend the night; because once you do that, [then] you start appealing to the three pillars of tourism which are gas, food, and lodging.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: Get them [to] spend money there --- the rest of its gonna be pretty easy.
Stitzel: Right. Right. So, it's very interesting then. I'm gonna, kind of, broaden this a little bit. In a sports economics class, one of the things that I teach my students is that where you put that stadium physically matters, for what the economic impact is gonna be. And so, right, you just described for those that aren't familiar with Amarillo, all right, you say you get a steak. You're referring to The Big Texan, like, a very famous restaurant there on I-40. I'd be happy for you to talk about that. What's interesting about that is that's out on the east side of town. And then you talk about the Cadillacs, which is another very prominent feature here in Amarillo. You feel free to talk about that as well as if you want. And that's out on the west part of town. And then right there in the middle, probably roughly halfway between them, downtown Amarillo just right off of 40, that's where they put the stadium. Can you talk about how you view the importance of choosing that location? You mentioned downtown revitalization. That's happening a lot in, like, nearby cities that are a little bit larger. And so, if you, kind of, tie those things together, and tell us a little bit about what you think about where they put the stadium.
Gerlich: I love that it is downtown. It's very, very on trend these days. Our fellow Texas League foes --- the Springfield Cardinals and the Tulsa Drillers play in downtown stadiums. The Oklahoma City Dodgers of the Pacific Coast League also played downtown Oklahoma City, specifically in the Brick Town district. Minor league stadiums are easier to shoe horn into a tighter urban area, in spite of having a similar size playing field. Parking is not as much of an issue with a stadium with a capacity of 10,000 or fewer people. It's fair to say that many minor league cities are using their stadium as part of their downtown redevelopment program --- one among many pieces in a puzzle that are intended to bring people downtown for dining, entertainment, and lodging. And while there's been a lot of debate about the use of public monies to pay for stadiums, such as bond issues and hotel occupancy taxes, it can be argued that downtown stadiums enhance the overall quality of life, to which it it's impossible to attach up a real economic value like dollars and cents. It's a lot like pornography [but not really] to use a cliché. It's kind of hard to define, but, you know what when you see it.
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich: And when I see people coming to downtown Amarillo to dine and go to a game, [then] I know that we're stepping in the right direction. That stadium may not directly bring economic benefit, or even show a break even, but it's providing some of the glue to revive our downtown area, and also help us attract new people to this town either as tourists or residents. And another thing. While the Texas League eight teams are spread across four states --- and actually Texas League really has little to do with the state Texas and more to do with an infield fly, you know, a Texas leaguer…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…. --- there are Route 66 cities in this league including Amarillo, Tulsa, and Springfield. And last year, the championship became a Route 66 series with the Sod Poodles duking it out against the Tulsa Drillers and winning with a dramatic ninth-inning Grand Slam. It's hard to beat that.
Stitzel: Yeah. Instant classic, right?
Gerlich: Yes.
Stitzel: So, you mentioned Brick Town. And, I think, Brick Town is such a fascinating case, where it goes from just a pit in the middle of Oklahoma City, to being a very nice area and very much an attraction in Oklahoma City. Give me, however brief, your view on how Amarillo's downtown is, how its developing, [and], sort of, how you feel that combination of --- because there's more than just Sod Poodles. You have the Civic Center. You have The globe Performing Arts Center. You have all of that going on there on Polk Street. So, for our listeners, especially for those of those that aren't maybe as familiar with Amarillo, what do you think about where it's at, where it's been, [and] where it's going?
Gerlich: I think it is going places. It's doing well. That's not to say there won't be missteps and stumbles, and businesses that come in, and then don't succeed for whatever reason. But overall, there is a huge vote of confidence in downtown Amarillo. Sometimes we might like to see it happen a little faster. But, you know, even our biggest cities [like] New York, Chicago, and so forth --- they weren't built overnight.
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich: They grew over time. And so, Amarillo is growing slowly over time downtown. And, you know, that's kind of in keeping with the area's conservative outlook on life anyway. We like to hold our cards close to the vest and, you know, make our moves calculated and very deliberate. And so, we really don't want to see something just explode overnight, because that's really not on solid ground. We want to see it do it very deliberately, very slowly, very carefully, [and] methodically. And that's where we're going. Right now, we've got two really good hotels downtown. We've got the Marriott Courtyard, and we've got --- which is the renovated Fiske building, a 1928 structure, and then --- the brand-new Embassy Suites Hotel that's conveniently located diagonally across the street from the stadium, and right down from the current Civic Center. But at the corner of 6th and Polk, the Marriott Barfield Hotel --- an autograph hotel in the Marriott collection --- will be opening very soon. And it's an old building --- a 1926 structure that has stood vacant gutted for decades --- is now turning into a very posh boutique hotel. And what? But wait! There's more! Just up the street three blocks, the Rule Building is going to become the fourth boutique hotel in downtown Amarillo. Those are votes of confidence…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…from outside developers who are pumping a lot of money into Amarillo. Now we can discuss and debate all day long the merits of municipalities and governmental entities, kind of, priming the pump a tad; [accordingly, we can discuss] whether they're using hotel taxes, or bond revenues, or whatever to build certain key aspects like a stadium, or a civic center, or an arena, or whatever. But the fact remains the other outside entities are taking note and now they're coming to. And they're turning downtown Amarillo into a very desirable destination. And I will say that the most important aspect of all of this is walkability. Ditch your car. Just get out and walk. That's the way to see, to experience, to do everything in downtown Amarillo.
Stitzel: Yeah. It is very walkable. I feel like they've done a good job with that so far. I found it very appealing --- your description of, like, taking these older buildings and then making them into two boutique hotels. I mean, it always matters what the execution is like there. You know, but I have this image even as somebody who, you know, I'm from this area. I am in Amarilloan now. I --- when I think downtown Amarillo, I literally have images of these maps with those old buildings that you're talking about. And I can't point to which ones which or that kind of thing. But, like --- Santa Fe building for example downtown, I can vision that. And so, it is it is very appealing to think about --- we take some new business, some new life, some development, and infuse it, and combine it with what we have down there. You're not gonna run over downtown Amarillo. Hopefully you get a really nice product out of that. O.K. so, we've talked about the stadium location. Let's go inside the stadium here. I get the impression, you know, [that] the outside of the stadium --- I could see where people might have, sort of, a somewhat negative view of the way that the outside; but it does feel like it fits in downtown Amarillo to me. And then, when I think about inside stadium, I mean, I was blown away the first time that I walked in there. I had I had the opportunity (very blessed) to have gone to National Stadium in Washington D.C. and feel the layout of that stadium. And then I came to Amarillo. Oh, and, like, the similarities just hit me. The way that it's the playing field is sunk down in the surface, so that the concourse area is street level. It's very walkable. It's, sort of, very wide open, and it gives you, you know, great amount of mobility there. And you can, kind of, see the playing surface from almost everyone on the concourse. So, I got from a baseball stadium design feel [that] I just loved the way that they laid the stadium out. So, give me your impression as a marketing expert here. How do you view the outside of the stadium? How that fits in downtown Amarillo, especially where it's located, like you said across from the hotels? And then what do you think of the inside of the stadium? And of course, you can go into more detail there if you want to talk about some of the different features.
Gerlich: I think it's a beautiful addition to downtown Amarillo. Some people may be turned off by certain design elements, or colors, or whatever. But, I think, they're important. There's a lot of yellow on the outside of the stadium. Well, O.K. guys. We live in Amarillo.
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich: Yellow! Come on. Get with it. It goes with the territory. It's just a nice subtle nod to where we happen to be. It is a beautiful stadium. And the best part of it is not the outside. It's what's on the inside. There's not a bad seat in the house. And the true beauty of it is if you feel the need to take a 7th-inning stretch in the 4th-inning, [then] you can just get up and do a lap around the stadium and not miss a pitch. You can't hardly do that anywhere in pro-ball. So, you've got ultimate mobility. You can go check out all the food and beverage vendors. You could even go sit on a grass for a while, if you want to out in the right field. But you can take in the game really on your own terms, and for a very, very inexpensive price. This is cheap entertainment.
Stitzel: The --- so, talk about the colors a little bit. So, we've got the, kind of --- I hate to describe this way, maybe you have a better way to describe, sort of --- a dull yellow brick on the outside. And then, you have the logo that says Hodge Town. And it's got the stock of wheat there. And then you have of course the, like, fencing that, sort of, I think, fits with those colors. You go inside the stadium, and of course all stadiums are going to be concrete. But then, you have these elements that match some of the team colors [such as] the dark blue fencing on the wall, with, of course, the yellow striping as you're gonna see in in any stadium; because that's, you know, denoting the, sort of, official. Talk to me a little bit about the colors that go in the stadium, because I want to translate that here in a minute. Because I'm gonna ask you about --- state the colors of the team themselves. Those jerseys…
Gerlich: O.K.
Stitzel:…and logos.
Gerlich: Well, this all really ties together here. But, I think, the colors are genius they reflect highly upon local and state elements. Obviously, yellow goes with Amarillo. And Texas --- the red and the blue are huge. Maybe even more huge than at the national level.
Stitzel: Right. Seriously.
Gerlich: Because we always joke about when we see the flag poles, the Texas one is about a half an inch higher than the national one.
Stitzel: Hmm mm.
Gerlich: I don't think anybody's ever measured. But it's just an ongoing joke. And so, we take those colors very, very seriously here. They are very nice reinforcements to everything that we hold near and dear out here. We've got our yellow, which is our city name. We got our red and blue, which is our state and our country. They're all, in their own way, a call out to local history and culture. But here's what I like at a more subtle level --- they're about as patriotic as one could get. And baseball is as American as apple pie. You know, this is our long-standing tradition with the boys of summer engaged, you know, in our very own pastime right here in downtown Amarillo. At the national level, attendance at major league baseball games has been on a slow but steady decline, as well as viewership on television. But subtle, yet effective, marketing tools like choice of color can help reinforce those old traditions, and remind people of our recreational heritage. We may be living in the 21st century, but the game of baseball is essentially unchanged from a century ago, well, except maybe for the designated hitter.
Stitzel: Right. So, you're talking about the red and blue. You know, I, sort of, led you in with the stadium there. You're talking about the green jerseys.
Gerlich: @46:46??
Stitzel: There's not a lot of red in the stadium, is that right?
Gerlich: Not a whole lot.
Stitzel: I'm trying to...
Gerlich: Mostly blue.
Stitzel: I’m trying to picture.
Gerlich: Mostly blue.
Stitzel: Mostly blue. And then how do you how do you --- I want to come back around to the Jersey and the thing that you said because it's very eloquent, but how do you --- view that dark navy that's the walls in the batter's eye? So, for our non baseball fans, you'll notice. If you're watching a game in the stadium or on TV, you’ll notice directly from --- if you imagine you were standing in --- the position of the batter. You look out beyond the pitcher. You, sort of, by regulation you have to have, you know, no fans. You have to have a steady color so that the batter can pick up the ball coming out of the pitcher’s hand for obvious safety reasons. And that's called the batter's eye. Here in Amarillo our batter's eye is a giant navy wall, which I imagine is excellent to serve as a batter's eye. if you look in the majors, there's lots of very cool and unique versions of batter's eye, including, like, The Ivy that they have in Camden Yards in Baltimore, and the waterfall and the walls there in Kansas City. We could probably go on and on, right, about what the different batter's eyes look like in all the different places. They're here in Amarillo. One of the only things that I felt from a design perspective that it wasn't crazy about is just how much navy blue is going on the wall and then the batter's eye. Am I over selling that? Or does that strike you as well?
Gerlich: I think it's important to have that dark color. It makes the ball a lot easier to pick up when it comes out of the pitcher’s hand. That's critical. I mean, you picture yourself playing at Wrigley Field, where you got ivy growing everywhere out there. And now, you've got to see a ball with a backdrop 400 feet away. Hell be it. Just lush greenery. And it can be hard to pick…
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich:…up the ball…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…in that in that context. The dark blue makes it really easy to see the white ball.
Stitzel: That’s an important point. So, now you went to talk about the colors. The team came out and announced their colors and team name. We got to get to the team’s name. I'm, sort of, holding that in reserve for a moment. We'll do that next. They announced the team colors. I actually really like the way they did it. And, like, my reaction to the jersey, the logo, the colors, [and] everything was super positive. I just loved it. So, what they did is [that] they've got, like, a classic red, white and blue, like you talked about. And then, they add elements of, like, a light blue. And then, they add that yellow in. And to me that's the finisher. I really like it. It goes with the logo itself. You know, and then they weave it into the colors, I think. And this comes from a Texas Rangers fan, right? So, that's a red, white and blue team that (and not super crazy about that way that looks) there's something about --- I think you said the word subtle, right, there's something about --- the subtlety of adding that light blue and that yellow that just really looks great. And then, they have several varieties of jerseys, right? They got the white with the blue caps. The white with the red caps. I think they have, like, a digital camouflaged looking thing that's base color is red. It was very cool. I'm sure the kids love that. They've got a light blue jersey with yellow lettering. Talk to us a little bit about those color choices. I know that you, kind of, teased us with that a little bit. How do you view those color choices, specifically that light blue and that yellow, and how they got added into the red, white, and blue.
Gerlich: The yellow is more than just the origin of the city name, but also the dirt, the sand that blows around, and also a nod, once again, to the amber waves of grain, one of our principal agricultural products out here. But the blue, the light blue is --- it's a retro blue. And that speaks to our Route 66 heritage. And so, that it's another one of those little things that a lot of folks don't know, but it ties it all in a really good knot.
Stitzel: They a --- there's something about the light blues that looks so good when you use it sparingly.
Gerlich: Hmm mmm.
Stitzel: They've done that really well here. So, I want to turn now the team naming process was super interesting and super divisive here in Amarillo. I think that's as an interesting as a story as I think I've heard in a very long time. And of course, I got to witness it first hand in person. So, I'm not gonna steal your thunder. Lay out for us how the team’s name came to be and, sort of, how you view that process.
Gerlich: Well, this is where things got a little messy. The team announced the naming contest inviting the general public to submit their favorites. And as you might expect, and when you throw open the doors like that, [then] everybody and their brothers gonna submit something. The underlying assumption was that one of those names would be chosen, and it would thus be a completely grassroots effort to involve the public. That was partially true. But there was never a guarantee they would choose one of those submitted names. I mean, what if all they received were bad ones? They couldn't follow through.
Stitzel: Vote @52:05?? or something.
Gerlich: Yeah, that would be terrible. So, as it turned out, the team had already hired a sports marketing company from San Diego, Brandiose. Between the public contest and consultation with the firm, five finalists were presented to the public for voting. And that's, you know, that's when it really blew up, because a lot of the general public were not happy with those five names. They were looking for something different, little, maybe a little more evocative of rough-and-tumble West Texans and cowboys and all that. The five finalists were Sod Poodles, which is supposedly a pioneer nickname for prairie dogs, of which we do have plenty. The Scooters, the Bronc Buster's, the Jerky, and the Long Haulers. And of course, there was a lot of booing and hissing about all of these.
Stitzel: Let me interject really quickly. Those are objectively terrible names…
Gerlich: [Laughs]
Stitzel:…especially the last four.
Gerlich: Yeah. Yeah. And even the Long Haulers was a reference to somewhat Route 66, and also the fact that Amarillo is, kind of, a truck stop town.
Stitzel: Yeah. That those are boring and not evocative names…
Gerlich: Yeah. Yeah.
Stitzel:…the last four. I didn't like any of those.
Gerlich: Yeah. Exactly. So, people felt like their submission should have been the one chosen, because they didn't feel like any of these reflected kindly on the tough West Texan mystique that they think typifies this region. Well, it was all complicated, you know, more and more by the fact that the stadium wasn't exactly welcomed by everybody. And if you don't mind, I'll explain a little bit more on that. Funded by the hotel occupancy tax, the stadium had been proposed, you know, years earlier. And the cost, kind of, got a little bit higher than what they had originally said. But it didn't seem to matter to local voters that this money was going to be an expense borne exclusively by travelers, and not by local residents paying off bond issues. There was (and still is) a small, but vocal group, in Amarillo opposed to all downtown redevelopments. They would prefer to see things out on the edges of town, reinforcing their suburban lifestyles. Never mind that downtown Amarillo is never more than 8 miles away from the farthest city limits sign. So, it's not like having to drive across L.A. to go see a game or get dinner.
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich: The decision to use hotel tax revenues was as a funding source was passed by the City Council, which was within their purview. The uproar was loud, and the city eventually acquiesced to the point of holding a non-binding public vote. In other words, we'll let you vote on it, but it really doesn't matter. Residents had complained they had no voice, even though it wasn't their money at stake. And as is quite common in Texas, elections --- which is a separate subject now the --- turnout was small, and the eyes prevailed by a narrow margin. Not that it mattered of course, because the entire vote was just a bone thrown to the stridently opposed. But it was hoped that this would settle matters. And of course, it didn't. And the nays continue their diatribe against all things downtown, which continues to this day. Anyway, back to the name. Once the finalists were announced, the team set about doing their due-diligence such as registering domain names online, and social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter for all five of those. They forgot to do one other thing, which was to register the trademark.
Stitzel: Oh man.
Gerlich: Yeah, big mistake. And it's a tedious and expensive process to register a trademark. I mean, it takes, like, two minutes to get a Facebook page, and only a couple minutes more than that to buy a domain name. But getting a trademark is a lot harder. This turned out to be a big issue later on. Ultimately both management and the general public voted on Sod Poodles as the name. And the winning entry was announced with much fanfare at a live streamed event. I watched it on Facebook in my office.
Stitzel: Yeah, that's exactly what I was riffing and saying what the colors.
Gerlich: The rest is baseball history and the team then had to engage in a messy, protracted battle to get its trademark from a local person who had the foresight to jump on it and register it as his own. The team prevailed in the end, but this is a lesson I use with my students all the time. It Illustrated how important it is to cover all of your bases…
Stitzel: Right.
Gerlich:…early in the game. Owning domains and social media accounts --- it’s not enough. But anyway, quickly how I'll finish. As for the team’s name, we need to remember that Brandiose has one job, and that's to market teams. Their specialty is minor league baseball, and they work with a number of teams. And they really couldn’t care less about one-loss records. Their primary concern is sales revenues, which result from tickets and merchandise sales. And so, there's been a big trend of late among minor league baseball teams. They have very unique names. And while there are still some older teams --- with names like the Tulsa Drillers, reflecting their oil heritage, and the Albuquerque Isotopes, reflecting their atomic energy history ---- new teams in the modern era are much more whimsical. For example, we have the El Paso Chihuahuas, the Binghamton, New York Rumble Ponies, the Florida Fire Frogs, and the Greensboro Grasshoppers. How's that for alliteration on the last two? Anyway, the current thinking is that city should just have fun playing baseball and watching baseball. And it's not so much about trying to scare people with teams named after ferocious wild animals or demons.
Stitzel: I --- when I saw that list, yeah. I, sort of, almost picked the Sod Poodles out by default. I didn't know what it was. And then, these kind of stories about prairie dogs made it around. You know, had it been up to me, I’d have gone for Dillas as an homage. But, you know, like he said, that's a semi-protean that maybe wasn't so popular; and, or I was advocating for, like, Atomic Cowboys. We have, you know, the…
Gerlich: Hmm mmm.
Stitzel:…nuclear facilities out here in the cross, and then that’s a little more whimsical. But, you know, in retrospect, you know, we're here on the eve of the second season there. They hit a home run with that. I think Sod Poodles is funny, and people have embraced it. You know, there was a lot of uproar at first. But I definitely think it's worked out. You know, and you mentioned several names. I'll throw in a couple more, because you mentioned the Rocky Mountain Vibes ---- which is also good, which I actually wouldn't mind getting a comment from you on that --- because that has a certain connotation given that it’s in Colorado. The Rocky Mountain Vibes are purple and orange. They have a s’more, right? Like, graham crackers and the marshmallow in it gives you a, sort of, evocative. It's implied, but if it is very evocative of, like, a marijuana-smoking culture. And then, you mentioned a couple. I think Rumble Ponies is a great example, right? But we have a couple others. I really liked; I want to say Alabama. Birmingham has the Trash Pandas. Now it's Raccoons, right? And so, there's been a lot of these, sort of, very hilarious names. I use this a lot when I get to the talking about team names, and what-not in my sports economics classes. I'll literally just hand out lists of, you know, what's the funniest minor league team. And that's --- there's Lug Nuts, and the Modesto Nuts. Like, literally, like, a peanut, right? There’s Iron Pigs. And yeah, there's just a ton of crazy names. I'm glad Amarillo is a part of that now. And, I think, was it Fox Sports had a Twitter vote for, like, best minor league team name? And, I think, Amarillo won.
Gerlich: We won.
Stitzel: And so, I think, sort of, inasmuch as minor league baseball can be nationwide, I'm --- the Sod Poodles have done that. If I go and I read, because I am a baseball nerd. I'm reading minor league baseball reports, and I'm keeping an eye on the San Diego Padres players, especially the ones that are gonna be here in Amarillo. And I'm, kind of, interested in that. Every time I read, there's somebody in the comments that says: Go Sod Poodles. Do you think those people are necessarily Amarilloans? Now, maybe they're like me, and they are therefore memorable. They want to see who they're gonna see. But I suspect a lot of those are people in California --- San Diego Padres fans that know that this is one of theirs and they're really attached to that name. So yeah. There was a lot of pushbacks on those initially around here. They did the right thing, and this, sort of, came out on that front. So, did you want to comment on the Vibes, or?
Gerlich: Yeah. The Vibes. Why they --- Colorado is proving to not take itself too seriously, especially being the first to you know have a big legal recreational marijuana market. And, you know, they become the model state I guess for all the others that are going in that direction. It is a big part of the local culture there. And I --- you have to be able to make fun of yourself just a little bit, and also realize that they brought in more than $300 million dollars in tax revenue last year…
Stitzel: Yeah.
Gerlich:…on legal marijuana.
Stitzel: Hmm mmm. So, I want to turn to the fonts, and the logo on the jerseys and hats. And so, I don't want to steal your thunder too much here. But I'm gonna, kind of, set this up. So, we've got, you know, very classic white, with the, sort of, classic blue stripes that come around the collar down. And then, you've got different jerseys. Some of them say Amarillo. Some of them say Sod Poodles on there. So, talk to us a little bit about two things in particular. One is the way that they've got the Sod Poodle, which is very obviously a prairie dog. And they put it --- the logo is on the hat. And then, it looks like he's sticking his head up out of the dirt. But they made the dirt in red. And then, they put, like, a little wheat stalk, I think, coming out of his mouth, if I have that right. So, talk to us about that, because I've had some people that were, like, it doesn't look good; because it looks like the Sod Poodles been decapitated because the dirt is red. So, talk to us about the logo, and then the fonts, including their, sort of, very classic baseball script type font. And then they're more like would you describe it as Western font? That's their alternate. You have comments on those?
Gerlich: Yeah. I think they've made some excellent choices here. Now, when it comes to putting mascots and logos and things like that on a cap, you got to be really careful. The number of threads is critical. You can't be too busy on a cap. And so, you don't want to go into such great detail that you wind up weighing down the hat with a logo that is nothing, but extra threads sewn into it. And so, you've got to keep it simple. And I don't have a problem with how it played out. I think they did a really good job. Less is more. And, I think, they got the point across. More importantly, I think, though is like you mentioned the fonts. I love the classic fonts. That is also another effective, yet very subtle, form of marketing. It harks back to the classic era of baseball. And in some regards, you could say that they are using nostalgia as a marketing tool.
Stitzel: Hmm mmm.
Gerlich: O.K. many adults, especially middle-aged guys and older I'm looking at --- I'm pointing at myself. I'm more than middle-aged. I'm whatever. But anyway…
Stitzel: [Laughs]
Gerlich: I have memories of going to baseball games with my dad. And I don't intend any of this to be sexist, of course. It's just that when I grew up, it was more of a father-son thing. But today, I take my daughters to Sod Poodle games. This is a family thing. It's not just a father-son thing. So, that gender division --- it's over. But I have many memories of going to Cubs and Sox games with my dad. And, you know, I couldn't tell you who won the game, but dad won the parenting competition.
Stitzel: I do love that. You know, I'm fortunate enough to have a young son and a young daughter, both of whom go with the game, go with me to the games. Not sure how much they enjoyed the baseball, but they definitely enjoyed the hot dogs and the cokes that I buy them. I was all over it. As soon as they put the hat out, I bought it. That's about the only ball cap that I wear. I'm a guy that wears ball caps all summer long, when I'm not up here at the University performing my own professorial duties. And that Sod Poodles has become my staple. You know, and in part because like you mentioned earlier, it's that civic pride. This is my team. That's an Amarillo team. I'm going to watch. I’m keeping track of them, but it --- the hat just looks good. I love the hat. I got the standard blue. And then, my kids loved it too. So, got my son a little red, of the red version. So, the primary alternate hat. And my daughter has never been one to wear hats, and the last summer we didn't get her one. And then, I don't know. A week or two ago, we were traveling, and I put my hat on. And my son saw that. He's --- where's my hat? Where's my hat? So, he goes, and he finds it. And then, my daughter's like --- where's my hat? And we were like --- really you never wanted a hat before. So, like, she's gonna pick one out next time we go to a ball game there at the Sod Poodles. Either --- if she wants one, she can definitely have one. And so, I think, that appeals. They did a good job combining that. Sort of, it is nostalgia. It is well done enough that an adult can wear it and like it. But it definitely is that whimsical that's going to appeal to the kids. So, I think they hit it the park with the logo and the font. So, we're around the hour mark now. So, I kind of want to bring this in for landing. And, I think, we've done --- we've come a long way from, you know, how do they get the team? Where’s the stadium? How is the stadium? All that kind of thing. I, kind of, want the jumping off point for this to be --- you mentioned they brought in (I forget what you said) $3 million in revenue or whatever. So, they set the Texas League attendance record. They won the Texas League championship there. Talk to me about how Amarillo is receiving this. The team, you know --- is that just a honeymoon effect? It's a new team. And you, kind of, think things are gonna die off this year going forward. Is it gonna become a staple? Is downtown reviving, and the Sod Poodles are at the center of that? You know, how do you view the future of Amarillo and its baseball team?
Gerlich: I think the future is very bright. I can't say with absolute certainty if they'll break the attendance record again this year. But, I think, the odds are good. They're gonna have a full house most of the time. Amarillo already showed that it has great pride in this team. A total newcomer. You know, we hadn't had pro-baseball since the early 1980s. That's a long time. That's a long drought. And we were hungry for some real entertainment, not, you know, some guys who just want to come play ball, you know, for fun, like, you know, Sandlot League. This is the real deal for Amarillo. So, we just moved up a few notches in everybody's eyes, and probably, most importantly our own. So, I think it has many good years ahead of it.
Stitzel: My guest today has been Gerlich. Nick, thanks for joining us on the EconBuff. Thank you for listening to this episode of the EconBuff you can find all previous episodes on YouTube at EconBuff podcast you can check out our website at www.econbuffpodcast.wixsite.com. You can contact us at econbuffpodcast@yahoo.com.
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