When Saltdogs second baseman Eduardo Rios, a Venezuelan immigrant, looked into the stands at Haymarket Park on Saturday, he saw a welcome sight - hundreds of Hispanic faces staring back at him.
ZACH PLUHACEK / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Friday, June 27, 2008 7:00 pm
When Saltdogs second baseman Eduardo Rios, a Venezuelan immigrant, looked into the stands at Haymarket Park on Saturday, he saw a welcome sight — hundreds of Hispanic faces staring back at him.
“They got one day for Latinos,” he said during the game. “I think it’s nice. … I’m happy because there’s a lot of Latinos here in Lincoln.”
Rios and some of his teammates signed autographs and met with fellow members of the Hispanic community before and after the game as part of Latino Night at Haymarket Park.
Many of the kids and parents who showed up at the game were there for free, courtesy of individual and business sponsors who purchased 750 tickets to give out at a festival at Cristo Rey Catholic Church earlier this month.
The Saltdogs then sold tickets to friends and family members of the free ticket holders for $5.
Marty Ramirez, an active member of the Hispanic community who helped Saltdogs president Charlie Meyer organize the event, even brought 10 kids down from the stands to meet with players on the field before the game.
Words were few between players and the kids, but the smiles were beaming.
“They love it,” Meyer said of the players. “It’s a way for them to outreach to their community.”
The idea for the Latino Night came about at the end of last season, after Meyer and a fan discussed the seeming lack of Hispanic fans in the stands.
Antonio Almazan, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln student the team hired in June as a Hispanic marketing liaison, said the number of Hispanic attendees has been low since the team was formed.
“Even the players noticed that,” he said. “We wanted to make Latinos come here more.”
Free tickets certainly did the trick Saturday, but whether that gets more people to pay for tickets in the future is yet to be seen.
Almazon’s job might depend on it. He wasn’t sure how long the team plans to keep him around, but he hoped success Saturday would lead to a more permanent position for him.
“Saltdogs are for everybody,” he said.
Reach Zach Pluhacek at 473-7306 or zpluhacek@journalstar.com.