The Boise Hawks minor league baseball team opens its season tonight against the Tri-City Dust Devils. It’s the first season Boise will play as an affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. Until last year, the Hawks were part of the Chicago Cubs' farm system.
For team president Todd Rahr, that change is just one of many that represent what he calls “a new era” in Hawks baseball. Rahr says the team's new Georgia-based owners have been focused on improving fan experiences, which has meant dealing with an older stadium that hurt attendance in recent years.
“We hadn’t put any money into this ballpark and we hadn’t put any improvements into this ballpark for probably five years, six years at the most," says Rahr. "And you know, that gets noticed.”
Rahr says they’ve added more seats and improved the stadium's sound system. He hopes the fans will notice the changes and be excited to attend games. So far the buzz seems to be helping: season ticket sales, the team says, are up.
Rahr says he’s happy to be working for owners who are willing to invest in the facility today – but hopes that a new stadium will happen someday.
Find Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
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