Tag Archives: Hodgetown

local news, Sports news

How ’bout them ex-Soddies?

I just have to give a shout-out to my many friends in Amarillo and the surrounding area who have been spending many days and evenings at Hodgetown cheering for the minor league baseball team, the Sod Poodles.

You see, a lot of those former Soddies now are suiting up for the Arizona Diamondbacks of the National League; the Diamondbacks are the “parent” club of the Sod Poodles, so when a Soddie does well, he gets a chance to play in the Big Leagues. Thus, they have earned their way into the Bigs and starting Friday will be playing in the World Series … arguably the greatest sports event in the world.

I won’t join them in rooting for the D’Backs. My loyalty lies with the American League champion Texas Rangers, whose accomplishments have lit a fire under big-league baseball fans in the Metroplex, where I now reside.

I do think it’s cool, though, for Amarillo to lay claim as it will to one of the teams playing for the Commissioners Trophy. Therefore, I salute y’all and let’s hope for a World Series for the ages.

local news

New memories to be built

Some of my Texas Panhandle peeps perhaps thought I popped off to vigorously in cheering the demolition of Potter County Memorial Stadium.

If so, allow me to explain.

I admit to not having any of the memories of spending evenings at the rotten old ballpark watching teams named the Gold Sox and the Dillas play hardball. I attended a couple of events at the place but found it to be unsuitable for virtually any sort of public activity, given the deplorable condition of amenities such as, oh, restrooms and the like.

So, while visiting Amarillo the other day I took a moment to travel to the Tri-State Fairgrounds to see the rubble that is what is left of the stadium. I cheered its demise.

Then a friend of mine reminded me via social media that Amarillo voters had the good sense to endorse a municipal referendum to build the downtown stadium now called Hodgetown. It is a shiny venue, a state-of-the-art place to watch the Amarillo Sod Poodles play under the guidance of a Major League Baseball franchise.

The Sod Poodles opened the ballpark by winning the Texas League championship in their initial season.

Fans are continuing to pack the place. I suspect there will be plenty of new memories to be built over time as the Sod Poodles continue to enjoy successful seasons. They will welcome players who eventually will gravitate to the Big Leagues and, who knows, possibly craft Hall of Fame careers the way, say, the late Tony Gwinn did when he stopped briefly in Amarillo to play for the Gold Sox.

Therefore, I don’t think I popped off when I bid a heartfelt farewell to a rathole dump. I’m betting the best is yet to come for Amarillo.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news, Sports news

It’s gone … finally!

AMARILLO, Texas — What you see here is a pile of rubble that was too long in the making, but which — I hope — will be gone in short order.

It is what is left of what they used to call Potter County Memorial Stadium, aka the Dilla Villa.

It sat on the corner of the Tri-State Fairgrounds in Amarillo. It has been knocked down and will be cleared away soon (I will presume) to make room for more functional uses on the property owned by Potter County.

The former Dilla Villa was a rathole. A dump. An eyesore.

The Dillas once were an independent baseball team that played ball in Amarillo. They were among a lengthy string of teams that once called this place a “home field.” The Dillas eventually gave way to another organization, but the management couldn’t even play all their home games in this dump. It was that unsuitable. They split their “home games” with a stadium in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

It was a sad turn of events.

Now, to be clear, you may spare me the crocodile tears about the stadium being the source of so many memories, going back deeply into the 20th century. The county simply didn’t perform upkeep on the place to keep it suitable for athletic events.

Instead, this one-time sports venue gave way to the modern park that emerged in downtown Amarillo, where the Sod Poodles play AA minor league baseball under the guidance of the National League’s Arizona Diamondbacks baseball franchise.

They recently set a home-field attendance record at Hodgetown. Fans are flocking to the still-shiny ballpark. The Soddies, moreover, are playing some good hardball downtown.

So, is the demise of the Potter County ballpark a reason for tears? Hardly. To this former Amarillo resident’s eyes, it’s reason for cheering.

Thanks for the memories, Dilla Villa, but your time has been up for a long while.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Sports news

How ’bout them Calf Fries?

There must be a marketing genius working for Amarillo’s minor-league baseball organization. The Sod Poodles have announced that for six games in the upcoming Double AA season, they will play under the name of Calf Fries.

Yes, the Amarillo Sod Poodles will assume an alternative identity and suit up as the Calf Fries. What’s more, the team will serve the delicacy at its games to be played at Hodgetown, the stadium that usually fills up during the games played in the city’s resurgent downtown district.

We all know what calf fries are, correct? They come from the “jewels” taken from cattle. You roll ’em in batter and fry ’em up. As the team said in a statement announcing this notion: Also known as Cowboy Oysters, Prairie Oysters, and Rocky Mountain Oysters, the delicacy will be served during the six game nights to promote the entire Calf Fries experience at HODGETOWN. Other in-game promotions will accompany the alternate identity for fans to immerse themselves in the new brand.

Amarillo Unveils “Calf Fries” as Alternate Identity (milb.com)

Who am I to question the genius of this notion? Yes, I thought initially the name of Sod Poodles was a bit weird when the team first announced it prior to its maiden season. Then the name grew on me.

Now? I like it!

Now we have the Calf Fries. I acknowledge it, too, sounds a bit strange. But, hey, the name Sod Poodles has been recognized as Minor League Baseball’s most recognizable brand. Is Calf Fries next?

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news

Will this action rile ’em up?

For the nearly 18 years that I worked for the Amarillo Globe-News, I learned something about the population of the city where my wife and I lived during all that time … and then some.

It took a whole lot to rile folks up enough to take strong political action against local government.

That brings me to my point: Will the city council’s decision to pile on $260 million in debt to build a new civic center and relocate City Hall be enough to fire up the masses?

I don’t live there any longer, so I don’t have a dog in that particular fight. Thus, I’ll reserve judgment on what I believe my friends who remain there will do.

Amarillo voters cast ballots en masse during the November 2020 election in rejecting a bond issue to build a new civic center. It was roughly a 60-40% “no” vote. The council, though, decided to go after something called “anticipation notes” totaling $260 million. The debt will boost the municipal tax rate about 59% over a period of time.

If you own, say, a $250,000 home in Amarillo, the tax bite will be substantial.

I’ve already implored Mayor Ginger Nelson and City Manager Jared Miller to get ahead of this matter. Explain the thinking behind what appears to the untrained eye to be a slap in voters’ faces. I am casually acquainted with Nelson; I don’t know Miller. I cannot predict what they are thinking or pondering.

If they do not explain themselves, though, there might be enough latent frustration in the city to spur some sort of political uprising. Perhaps it will come in the form of a recall election. Or perhaps it will occur at the next citywide municipal election when a slate of candidates could run against the current council and, well, give ’em the boot.

It happened just a few years ago when some residents disliked the push to build the downtown baseball park now known as Hodgetown. That tempest turned out to be all for naught. The park rose up and they’re filling the stands most nights at Hodgetown with fans cheering for the Sod Poodles minor-league baseball team.

This dust-up won’t dissipate anytime soon.

Just remember that voters throughout the land are angry at government at all levels for reasons that at times make no sense. Raising people’s property taxes, though, over their expressed desire against it seems to be cause for some turmoil.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

business news, local news

Herring rumbles persist

I keep hearing the rumbles from up yonder on the Texas Caprock about a landmark structure in downtown Amarillo.

It’s the Herring Hotel building. I need to add the term “building” because it hasn’t been an actual hotel since the 1970s. It has been rotting for decades.

Along comes a firm that is trying to market it to investors. One of my spies in Amarillo tells me the firm specializes in historic hotel structures. It is working, my snitch tells me, on the Le Meridian in Fort Worth. The theme of whatever happens to the Herring will be to honor the heritage of the region.

OK. Let’s see. That would be cattle, railroads, oil and natural gas exploration. Let’s throw in medical research and development, along with nuclear weapon assembly and disassembly, and — oh, yes! — with aircraft manufacturing and assembly.

That’s a varied history, don’t you think?

The Herring used to be the place to see and to be seen. It was the site of extravagant parties and was a gathering place for the rich, famous and those who aspired to be, um, rich and famous. These days it’s a place where homeless people seek shelter from the frigid Panhandle winter.

I want life to return to the Herring. The city has turned several important corners in its efforts to revive its downtown district. It has restored old buildings (turning two of them into hotels), built a baseball park, welcomed a glitzy new hotel near City Hall.

I am not going to predict that the Herring site is going to turn into shiny new jewel that towers over the north end of Amarillo’s downtown district. However, the rumbling just won’t stop. It leads me hope there’s something to what I suspect might be about to occur.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

local news, Sports news

Play ball … in Amarillo!

Hot diggedy, doggie! They’re going to play hardball in these United States of America. My friends up yonder in Amarillo are a happy bunch of folks, as their beloved Sod Poodles are commencing another season playing Double-A baseball.

The Sod Poodles are affiliated with the National League’s Arizona Diamondbacks. They won the Texas League pennant in their first season since moving to Amarillo in 2019 from San Antonio. The COVID pandemic wiped out the 2020 season; the team resumed play this past year, but finished out of the running for a second-straight pennant.

Now we have begun the 2022 season. Hodgetown, the shiny baseball park in downtown Amarillo, will be bustling once again with fans cheering and chanting their support for the Sod Poodles.

Once again, I will join my friends who will populate the ballpark watching the team play baseball.

Amarillo has proved itself to be a baseball community, given its support for the Soddies. The city response to this franchise has been gratifying to watch.

Play ball, Sod Poodles! I am rooting for you.

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Sports news

Ready for baseball

OK, let me be clear about something. My baseball-loving days are behind me. I don’t follow the Grand Old Game with nearly the fervor I did as a youngster.

However, I am kinda getting ready for teams to report for spring training. I say that as we’re still enduring a winter blast in North Texas and as I read about the chilled bones among my many friends in the Texas Panhandle.

My many friends who are devotees of the Amarillo Sod Poodles no doubt are waiting, too, for the first pitch of the season. I don’t blame ’em. Not one single bit.

The Sod Poodles were unable to defend their Double A league pennant last season, having been shelved for the 2020 season by the COVID-19 virus. No worries this year. I’ll cheer for them from afar. I hope to get back to Amarillo one day next season to see a game at Hodgetown. Or … I might yell for the Soddies when they venture to nearby Frisco to play the Roughriders.

But … that will occur in due course.

The Big League season will commence, too. I have one favorite player. Albert Pujols wants to play one more season. The future first-ballot Hall of Famer finished last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers. No word if he’s returning or if he’ll shop himself around for a final fling with someone else.

Still, the football season is almost over; they’re going to play that big game soon in LA. I cannot say I am all that dialed into the pro basketball season, nor with the college hoops players.

Baseball is still out there, waiting to commence. Bring it!

johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

business news, local news

Hotel signals a potentially shiny future for city

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

I was unable to attend the dedication of a new hotel in downtown Amarillo, given that I now live about 360 miles southeast of the city.

The opening of the Barfield Hotel, though, has been on my radar for some time, dating back to my days as a journalist covering downtown Amarillo’s rebirth, revival and its renaissance.

The city has crossed what looks to me — even at some distance — like an important threshold.

The Barfield sat vacant for more than 30 years. It was a rotten hulk of a structure. Homeless people would sleep on the ground floor, freezing during winter nights. Then through a series of ownership changes, some fits and starts and a hiccup or two along the way, the city managed to cobble together a development package that resulted in the opening of what they call a “boutique hotel.”

Marriott Corp. is the lead company in this deal. I haven’t yet seen the newly revived Barfield building. I hope to get back there soon to lay eyes on the structure at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Polk Street.

Why is this an important event? Because it signals to me that the city’s downtown rebirth is continuing. The Barfield is just the latest in a series of triumphs that businesses and the city have scored along the way.

Hodgetown still welcomes fans flocking to the ballpark to cheer for the Amarillo Sod Poodles baseball team; the Embassy Suites hotel is up and running nearby; various storefronts have opened along Polk Street; the city is offering some additional entertainment venues for residents and visitors to enjoy.  Downtown hasn’t become Nirvana. That parking garage downtown is still lacking sufficient business activity to pay for itself, from I have been able to discern.

Still, downtown Amarillo, as near as I can tell, bears little resemblance to the moribund district I discovered when my wife and I moved there in early 1995.

Is the city done? Has the work been completed? Oh, I doubt it strongly. City Hall might be relocated. The Civic Center is slated to get some major work done. They’re building a new courts building to serve Potter County downtown. Oh, and then there’s the Herring Hotel building … another rotting structure that cries out for some tender loving care.

All in all, I am happy to see the progress being made in a downtown district where I used to work and which I once lamented about its future. I worry far less these days about the future of the city. It’s looking brighter all the time.

local news, Sports news

Soddies have firm grip on fans

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Amarillo’s Central League baseball team, the Sod Poodles, are struggling a bit on the field this year. They are in last place in their division.

But … there’s some good news to report on the team that won the Texas League pennant in their first year of existence in 2019.

The fans are still flocking to Hodgetown, the shiny new ballpark that sits along Buchanan Street in downtown Amarillo. How do I know that, given I now live in Princeton, a suburb of Dallas?

I get the Sunday Dallas Morning News each week. I went out this morning to pick it up off my driveway. I opened the sports page and turned to the Central League box scores. I saw that the Sod Poodles had lost a game Saturday night at home to the Frisco Roughriders. However, they played before a packed house at Hodgetown.

This is good news on at least one important level. It tells me that the Sod Squad — a social media group — isn’t just a gaggle of fair-weather fans who cheer the Sod Poodles on only when they win. They’re with ’em through thick and thin. Let’s face it, they’ve hit a “thin” patch this season after sitting out all of 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

I remain proud of the baseball community in Amarillo, where my wife and I lived for 23 years before relocating to the Dallas ‘burbs.

Retired Amarillo College President Paul Matney, a vocal proponent of bringing minor-league ball back to Amarillo, once referred to his hometown as a “baseball city.”

That means they’re in it for the long haul with the team that many folks fought hard to bring to the High Plains.