Love Baseball Amarillo? More Of It Is Coming To Hodgetown

Spring is here, which means baseball is right around the corner. As things start to get more back to whatever 'normal' is, It will be nice to get out and enjoy a ballgame. For me it's not just the crack of the bat, it's the whole experience of Minor League Ball. The Hot Dogs, beer and whatever wacky promotion it is that brings you out is all what makes it great.

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This year might just be a little busier for the field crew at Hodgetown, a job that is definitely not for the faint of heart. There's more to it than keeping those chalk lines straight. It's about manicuring what is basically the best patch of grass in town and keeping the base paths nice and smooth for every inning of each game; and doing it day in and day out even when the mercury pops over 100 degrees. It's a tough job.

While that's enough on one's plate with an 82-game Sod Poodles season coming up (which by the way you can hear on our sister station News Talk 940 KIXZ) Turns out, the Texas Collegiate League will also be sharing the field at Hodgetown.

If you haven't heard of the Texas Collegiate League, don't worry; you're not alone. Amarillo does have a team with the Sod Squad (not too far off from the big boys) and they do play against the likes of the Round Rock Hairy Men, The San Antonio Chanclas (Spanish for flip flop, think of a mom chunking one at your head when you misbehave), among others. What this league does is it provides a summer league for college ball players who have major league ambitions. For these college players, this is the chance to start using wooden bats over the typical aluminum they are used to. (Yes, there is a big difference).

Sod Poodles owner Tony Ensor admits there is definitely some careful coordination of the schedules for both teams to make it work and even went on the record as saying:

“You can’t compare the two but we had such great players out here last year with the TCL,We want to give them an opportunity to get to that next level and hopefully get signed in professional baseball someday.”

This is where you come in. Support both teams, it's a great chance to get out of the house and if you have little ones who love the game or play, you already know what it means to them to see it live in person.

The Sod Poodles kick off their season May 4th against the Tulsa Drillers.