Friday, December 27, 2013

DBAP Renovation Update


The $20 million DBAP do-over was front page news in today's Herald-Sun. Bulls' GM Mike Birling gave reporter Ray Gronberg a hard hat tour. Click here for the story. 

You can be a sidewalk supervisor - no hard hat required - via our web cam, live or time lapse

Dawn at the DBAP on Friday, 12/27. A giant sandbox! The new turf 
will be "installed" next week.

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Remembering Ben Ward


He was a very big man on campus at Duke. Professor Ben Ward died earlier this month. He was a regular at the DBAP.

The only thing "regular" about Ben was his presence behind the Bulls dugout, wearing his Duke and Bulls gear, accompanied by his headphones and radio to listen to the broadcast.
Bulls Head Groundskeeper Scott Strickland

Ben Ward was an expert in philosophy and languages. He had a gift for music…and a gift with people. Read more about him in this August post from Bull City Summer: The Adopter of the Bulls. It will be included in the Bull City Summer book to be published next year - a fitting tribute to an exceptional Durhamite.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Bull Durham to Broadway!??!


Bull Durham is the gift that keeps on giving! We celebrated the film's 25th anniversary this past summer, and now a musical is in the works. That announcement came last week at the Baseball Winter Meetings in Orlando. (MiLB.com story)

This isn't pie in the sky. The show has accomplished producers, a script and score. Casting is underway. It's off-Broadway debut will be in Atlanta next fall. That's where it's tweaked and readied for the Great White Way in 2015. Be patient. (Musical website)

At a reception hosted by the producers, Susan Werner - guitar in hand - performed a couple of the songs that she has written for the show. In my humble opinion, she has channeled Annie Savoy. It's uncanny! 

After talking with Werner, writer Ron Shelton and the producers, I'm predicting a raucous, southern fried extension of the beloved, iconic movie.

Speaking of gifts and Bull Durham, on Friday we received a shipment from Nike of the wildly popular Lollygaggers t-shirts. They are available online at our Ballpark Corner Store