Thoughts from Lou and Charlie.....

from Marc Allard's Norwich Bulletin article today:

"Connecticut owner Lou DiBella said he is certainly pleased with the loyal fans who keep coming to Dodd on a regular basis and the increase is welcome, but it’s not putting money in his pocket nor is it necessarily keeping the wolves from the door.

“It’s not great,” DiBella said. “We’re still one of the doormats of the league, but went up in a year when almost everyone went down and that’s good. But in the long run, any business needs to make money to survive and that’s still not happening.”

DiBella felt the team was fun to watch and the entertainment value was terrific. which leaves little to improve.

“We’ve had this team awhile,” DiBella said “We changed the name, re-launched it, have made some major positive changes to the park and concessions. I don’t know. It’s largely going to be a matter of how badly the community wants to keep baseball and how much we’re valued.”

In a tough spot

DiBella said the biggest detractor to the park is something that will be difficult to change — its location.

“Almost every stadium in minor league baseball is built on a highway or something where traffic goes past it, and the stadium becomes the greatest advertising tool for the team,” DiBella said. We’re in the middle of an industrial park at the farthest possible point from civilization.

DiBella said he has a lease with Norwich that runs through 2010 or 2011, but there is an escape clause which he could invoke at the end of next season.

“There will be decisions that have to be made relatively soon, but it’s not simply a decision as to whether we want to be here,” DiBella said. “There are a lot of people in baseball that have a concern as to whether this market can sustain a Double-A (team) and I hope we can prove that it can.”

As much as the Defenders’ future as a whole is questioned, the affiliation with the Giants has been one that hasn’t produced a lot of good results.

“Baseball has a very prescribed methodology of how you go about either renewing or not and we’ll follow those guidelines,” Dowd said. “We’ll certainly talk to our partners, the Giants, and one way or another by the middle of October, we’ll have our situation squared away. Whoever it is, the Defenders will be here next April 16th at 6:35 p.m. throwing the first pitch.”


Pics are Jason Waddell and Adam Witter

***In a wierd twist the Reading pitcher opposing the Defs tonight is Adam Eaton who once upon a time when he was still a minor leaguer threw a 8 inning complete game no hitter that he lost on an unearned run 1-0 against the then Norwich Navigators at Dodd, a game I saw.