When the Sod Poodles open their season Friday at 7:05 p.m. at Hodgetown by hosting the San Antonio Missions, 25 of the 28 players who were listed on the roster prior to the season have at least had a cup of coffee in Amarillo. Many are highly familiar names from last season’s team which won the Texas League championship.
That could be a testament to the depth of talent in the organization of the Soddies parent club Arizona Diamondbacks, a young team who reached the World Series last season, featuring several players whose career paths took them through Amarillo. The manager who those players served under, Shawn Roof, has also moved on from Hodgetown and is now a bench coach with the Triple A Reno Aces.
After six seasons with the Washington Nationals, Tim Bogar will take over as the third manager in Sod Poodles history. Bogar was first base coach for the Nationals when they won the World Series in 2019 and spent the last four seasons as the bench coach.
Having also been an interim manager for the Texas Rangers as well as managing in both Class A and AA (not to mention nine years as a major league player), Bogar knows all about the process of advancing up the minor league ladder and into The Show.
“I think there’s time where these guys are still learning their craft and still trying to figure themselves out,” Bogar said. “Offensively they need to have game plans and understand how they can make adjustments from at-bat to at-bat. They’ve got to be able to do that consistently and as pitchers throw strikes and get ahead and win the 1-1 count.”
Finding consistency in a routine is what Bogar thinks will be most important to pitchers and hitters.
“I think one of the things in the pitcher’s mindset is that you can’t worry about the ballpark,” Bogar said.” You’ve got to just go out there and execute your pitches and whatever happens, happens. I’m sure they’re going to give up some hits they don’t think they should have.
“We play half our games here, but the other half are at different ballparks. We can’t change the way we pitch at home from when we go on the road. We can’t have two different mentalities.”
If there’s a player who knows all about how Hodgetown works on a day-to-day basis, that would be outfielder A.J. Vukovich. Last season Vukovich spent a full season in Amarillo and batted .263 while leading the Sod Poodles with 24 home runs and 96 RBIs.
Vukovich thinks concentrating too much on trying to hit one out to left field when the wind is coming out of the south is not the best approach at the plate at Hodgetown.
“I would say just trust your game and trust what’s gotten you here,” Vukovich said. “I find when I had the most success last year I was trying not to do too much or trying to hit home runs and that can get to you. It’s just staying within yourself and using your team. Coach Roof told me about working situationally and moving guys over with less than two outs.”
Bogar appreciates the fact that he’ll inherit a fairly full cupboard in his first season in Amarillo.
“I’m really excited because of the group of guys I have,” Bogar said. There were some guys who were here last year with a lot of success from the championship. Hopefully we can repeat what we did last year and bounce back from night to night.”
Of the 17 pitchers listed on the roster, all but one of them threw at least in limited duty for the Sod Poodles last season. Left-hander Yu-Min Lin, the organization’s No. 4 prospect who went 5-2 with the Soddies after being called up midway through the season, is expected to start the season opener.
The New and Improved Hodgetown
While fans attending the season opening series this weekend will see it as a work in progress, the changes at Hodgetown will definitely be fully tangible by the beginning of next month.
In the most obvious and visible addition, the City Federal Credit Fiesta Deck in right field will accommodate additional fans on an outdoor porch. That’s just the most prominent difference which will be seen this season at Hodgetown, including extended netting to protect fans from hard-hit foul balls.
“I don’t think we initially planned in 2019 that we were going to make these additions, but certainly with a lot of the new PDL agreements coming out of Major League Baseball the last couple of years it spurred a lot of this,” Sod Poodles president and general manager Tony Ensor said. “We’ve been working on designs and architectural drawings to figure out what we could do. It was a long-term development.”
PDL refers to player development licensing, which has come into play over the last three seasons as Major League Baseball has administratively taken over jurisdiction of minor league stadiums and their regulations. The Sod Poodles have made upgrades to the facility which Ensor said cost about $4.5 million as part of a partnership with the City of Amarillo in a capital improvements project taken from the city’s hotel occupancy tax.
The new deck in right field matches the one in left, only it will accommodate twice as many people, meaning that up to 150 spectators could be watching the game from there.
“We’ll be able to put out there about 150 new fans so our total attendance will be able to grow,” Ensor said. “It’s also providing restroom facilities for not only the deck but the suite owners on that side. We’re kind of going for a casual luxury out there.”
The deck is not expected to be fully ready for fans until after April 15. Word has gotten around about it and groups have already reserved dates on the deck.
“People are definitely curious about it,” said Jeff Turner, the Sod Poodles assistant general manager and director of ticket sales. “It comes down to the size of the groups who have had picnics before but now want to bring it upstairs.
“People love our Pepsi Party Deck (in left field). Every year we’re pretty much sold out there and we’ve lost some groups. Now that we have to capability of doing both it’s going to bring more people to the ballpark. I think it’s going to be a really cool view. On the first base side they’re going to be able to see downtown and more of the fans.”
Those fans who choose to sit in the seats closer to the action will now be able to do so with more safety. The netting around the seats in foul territory, from where most fans view the game, has been extended from foul pole to foul pole.
That was another MLB requirement as a safety issue, and Ensor welcomes it.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Ensor said. “It takes away the hot foul balls which go screaming down the baselines, but it still leaves the opportunity for fans to grab a foul ball that’s coming over.”
In the space above the fans seating and below the suites and party decks, the Sod Poodles have installed a 3-foot-tall LED ribbon which will feature animation and sponsorship between innings.
The new party deck isn’t the only area where fans can purchase and enjoy an adult beverage. A margarita bar has been constructed in the left field area which will be known as the Marg House.
On the field, all of the outfield wall padding has been replaced. Some sod areas have been cut out around the bullpen area and, as sprinkler heads have been removed. The pitcher’s mound has also been rebuilt.
Both the home and visitors clubhouses have been upgraded and the weight room has been expanded.
One change from last year has been expanded upon this year. Hodgetown went cashless last season, and this season there will be no more presale paper tickets available, as the only paper tickets will be issued if purchased at the box office the day of the game.
“We are now going fully digital with our tickets,” Ensor said. “There won’t be any more paper tickets. Fans will have access to build their own profile in the ticketing system, unless it’s at the box office. It gives our fans a lot more control over what they’re doing.”