The Can-Am League standings at the beginning of play on Monday, July 2nd, 2012. Note that the Bears were in fourth place, if only by percentage points.
The Newark Bears won both of their games against the New Jersey Jackals this weekend after an ugly series-opening loss on Friday night. They had actually climbed out of last place, if only by percentage points.
On Monday, they tried for a series victory over the Jackals and a half-game advantage over the Worcester Tornadoes. Unfortunately, they had to beat Jackals ace Isaac Pavlik to do it, and they weren’t quite up to the task.
Newark starter Brian Parker gave up one run on a sacrifice fly in the second inning, but the Jackals did him in with home runs by Matt Cusick, Nick Giarraputo and Francisco Carabello in the third.
Bears manager Ken Oberkfell was short-handed in the bullpen, so he stuck with Parker a bit longer than he might have on anther night. He was charged with nine runs (seven earned) on 13 hits and four walks in 4.2 innings.
The Newark Bears take the field on Monday night
Mike Richard hit a sixth inning solo home run to put the Bears on the board, but that just made the score 9-1. Each team added one more run, so the final score was 10-2 New Jersey.
The Bears added a new player, Kellon McFarlin, a 25-year-old switch-hitting outfielder from Chicago who played for the Carlsbad Bats in the independent Pecos League last season. He was in uniform, wearing number 18. McFarlin took the roster spot of reliever Luis Garcia, who was placed on the disabled list after leaving Friday’s game with an injury.
New Newark Bears third base coach Ben Fonseca didn’t have many visitors Monday night.
Newark also added a new coach, Ben Foseca, who had worked for the Somerset Patriots in the past. Here is the Bears’ press release:
The Newark Bears have announced the signing of Ben Fonseca as third base coach.
Fonseca is the general manager of Zoned Sports Academy in Bridgewater, N.J., where he instructs baseball players, from high school, college and the minor leagues.
The native of Illinois was previously with the Somerset Patriots organization for six seasons as a coach and Director of Baseball Operations.
Fonseca spent time as a scout with the Milwaukee Brewers organization. He also served as the Director of Player Development for the Jack Cust Baseball Academy in Flemington, N.J., and worked in the Atlantic League front office.
The team’s new third base coach is excited to join the Bears.
“Coming into the locker room and meeting the coaches—this is a big league staff,” he said. “The atmosphere in the clubhouse is really fun to be around.”
Bears manager Ken Oberkfell and his staff gladly welcomed Fonseca.
“He’s going to help us a lot,” said Oberkfell. “He knows a lot about the game of baseball, been around it a long time. He frees me up a little bit, allowing me to manage from the dugout. There will be a lot more communication that way. It’s a big plus.”
So Garcia,a pitcher, goes down, and they sign an outfielder? Does this make any sense? The team is struggling with attendance and playing so they sign another Coach, who has no coaching experience. The man is a front office guy which the Bears clearly need but that’s not what he is assigned to?
Paul how can you still go to those games? How many local guys do they still have, which they based their entire season on?
Garcia had been charged with 25 runs on 26 hits and 12 walks in 16.1 innings pitched, so he should pretty much have been limited to mop-up duty if he was healthy and going to be kept on the roster. Considering how shaky the outfield has been since Quentin Davis was injured, adding an outfielder may not have been a bad idea.
The whole push to emphasize local players was a bad idea – they haven’t performed well. Sean Campbell departed with an 0-4 record and an 11.08 ERA. I’ll be surprised if Pedro Rivera (1-5, 5.19) is still in the starting rotation when the Bears return from their road trip – in four of his eight starts, he’s failed to make it past the third inning. Ken Oberkfell has tried, without much success, to find a position for Burt Reynolds that his defense won’t hurt the team. And though he’s got a few home runs, Reynolds’ batting isn’t much to be happy about either – he’s struck out in nearly a third of his at-bats and he’s got a .280 on-base percentage.
Fonseca does have several years of experience as an in-uniform coach with the Somerset Patriots, which the Bears’ press release does not particularly emphasize. I would have preferred to see some upgrades to the roster rather than the coaching staff, but in early July I imagine that most players who are clearly better than the ones the Bears already have are employed by other teams.
Paul,
Looks like LuisVille Slugger beat me to the punch as I was going to say the same things.
Barely 1,000 TOTAL for the weekend. 427 last night. Averaging less than half of Worcester, who’s also stinking up the joint and generally a rotten draw, though stinking and drawing aren’t as closely related in the lower minors as at the MLB level. Averaging less than a quarter of Rockland, the best draw in the league. Then they hire another coach which, unlike the players, actually cost some money. Besides, most of the way through the minors, the manager is usually the third base coach. Is Newark, a team which can’t afford much (remember that, according to Dronet, she and Spiel are into their personal money now to keep the team afloat), somehow different than other minor league clubs in that the manager manages from the bench?
The Can-Am, if they’re still alive, will be a four-team league next season as Newark can’t keep running the way they are. And, if they’re down to four, it won’t be long until they’re down to none as a four-team league probably isn’t viable. Maybe the American Association (also at an odd number of teams) can lop off a team (Sioux City doesn’t draw well) and the two leagues–with the same commissioner–can run the way they’re doing this season.
Bottom line, and there are two: The decisions made by the Bears–not just the money-related ones but stuff like Leyritz and that MADD night at the end of last season–make no sense and the second is that there isn’t much to the Bears’ bottom line in the first place.
I’d love to see minor league ball viable in Newark. And, if the Mets didn’t get vindictive and put the kibosh on the Yankees for pitching their tent there this year, instead of becoming a sort of ‘nomad’ team while the Scranton ballpark undergoes renovation, we might have actually found out how viable it would have been. Now, we’ll never know and, except for Rutgers-Newark and NJIT and maybe some high school ball, the stadium will likely be empty next year.
Unless things change for the better, I don’t see how the Bears will be able to stick around long-term, either. I’m still going to games because I remember how much fun it used to be… (and still can be, on a good night.)
Paul,
A private screening is good for a movie. Doesn’t quite work for baseball and I’m not sure how much fun you can have in a place with 400-500 people in the stands.
I’m not sure what the average attendance number needs to be for a Can-Am League team to turn a profit, but I’m sure we can all imagine that it’s well north of the 742 people per game the Can-Am League website is reporting for Newark.
I don’t think any of us have anything new to say about the Bears’ attendance situation, so I’m really not interested in continuing to talk about it.
The ballpark atmosphere in Newark would be better with bigger crowds, no question. But give me a nice night and a competitive, fast-paced game and I’ll still enjoy a night at Riverfront Stadium with the ballpark friends I’ve made over the years. It’s not as much fun as it used to be – partly that’s because of the change in leagues, partly it’s because the close friends I used to go to games with moved out of the area – but it’s still not a bad time.
Paul, you can’t consider Campbell a local guy being from Trenton. Swift, and Seguen pitched well and in my opinion shouldn’t have been released. I read an article in the Jersey Journal I believe about Seguen being a starter and fighting for a rotation spot but was put u to the pen and released with a lower era then Almost the whole team now! And lead the team with one win. Hudson, Bergen and Essex County are local. Where are they now? Maybe we Resign them, since their families made up a good percentage of the attendance anyway.
The Newark Bears owners have money – the Bears are not going anyway.
That’s interesting….if, the Can-Am League folds maybe the Bears can rejoin the Atlantic League
Please go to Newark Bears on Sat., July 14, 2012 game at 3:30pm.
Clifford,
Not sure where you got your information from as the Bears owners are already into their personal stash to run the club. That’s already been admitted to by Danielle Dronet. And, at 700 a night, there’s not enough revenue there to sustain the club–players, coaches, utilities, rent. So, it doesn’t appear that their financial situation has changed any.
And, what’s going to happen on Saturday, July 14 at 3:30? The game is scheduled for 6:30.
There’s a pre-game “Broadway Meets Baseball” concert to benefit Covenant House. Tickets start at $20 and include both the concert and the Bears game.
Didn’t know that. Thanks, Paul.
Went to look at the website/schedule after you mentioned it. Maybe I missed it, but, except for a mention (with no time or other details) when you click on the date, there appear to be no other details on the team’s website.
Just to add… The “Community Events” and “Season Events” links on the website are blank. No info there.
They sent out a mass email last week.
Join the Newark Bears on Saturday, July 14th for a pre-game special event, Broadway Meets Baseball, composed by Neil Berg and is dedicated to support the Covenant House.
3pm – Doors Open
3:30pm – Show
4:30pm – Meet and Greet with the Performing Stars
6:15pm – Opening Ceremony; Rita will sing the National Anthem, and Neil Berg will throw out the first pitch.
6:35pm- Newark Bears play Quebec Capitals
Both events; Broadway Meets Baseball and The Newark Bears home game, are included in admission.
Proceeds are tax deductible.
Event Pricing;
Box Seats $20
Picnic Deck or Prudential Picnic Den $40 per person
Luxury Single Suite $750, includes a $100 food and beverage credit (seats 20 guests)
Luxury Double Suite $1,000, includes a $100 food and beverage credit (seats 40 guests)
Contact us to today to reserve your tickets at info@newarkbears.com or call (973) 848-1000
http://www.newarkbears.com
Neil Berg is the co-creator and producer of “NeilBerg’s 100 Years of Broadway” the number one Broadway touring concert in America, will be bringing his show to Newark Bears Stadium for a special concert in support of Covenant House. The show, which will be hosted and musically directed by Neil, will recreate the greatest moments from the finest shows of the century featuring the actual stars of shows such as The Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, CATS, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Jekyll & Hyde. The performers will sing the songs they sang on Broadway along with classic Broadway show stoppers.
Cast:Carter Calvert – Star of “Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues” and “Cats”Robert DuSold – Star of “Les Miserables”Rita Harvey – Star of “Phantom of the Opera” and “Fiddler on the Roof”Andrea Rivette – Star of “Les Miserables” and “Jekyll and Hyde”Danny Zolli – Star of “Jesus Christ Superstar”and more…
Again, Paul, thanks for sharing.
You’d think the team would put this info on their website as not everyone is on blast email.
Thanks for the info Paul, sounds like it could be a fun night – think my daughters would love the first part of the night.
I just don’t see the Bears connecting enough with the fan base in NJ – they should be all over every little league program within 50 miles. Invite a town or town per night – have the kids wear their uniforms and get in free. Invite the kids to come early and throw the ball around with the players. They have a ton of summer interns working in the office just looking for things to do.
Dave
I would like to see the Bears expand their outreach efforts too, but I think they’re focusing on Newark and the neighboring communities.
Dave,
Last year, the Bears held a Pop Warner night and a hockey night. Hellloooo. Anybody home?
Bottom line is this: For at least the past few years, it didn’t/doesn’t matter who owned/owns the team or what league they play in as Newark is a drag, attendance-wise, on any league they play in. Being in the Atlantic League might have been worth an extra 500 fans a game. Might, as, having been their official scorer in 2009 and sending the box scores, including attendance info, to the league and knowing how they counted the house back then, even that 500 number is dubious.
And, Newark is a drag because it’s Newark. I wish it weren’t so, but a lot of people are squeamish about heading there for a game–even more so because they’re in a lower league and compete teams in that league who are a short ride away. At least the Atlantic League had some ex-major leaguers. What I don’t quite understand is why Camden is so much of a better draw than Newark, even when they competed in the same league as Camden is routinely among the most dangerous cities in America. Having seen where the park is (from the inside of an Amtrak train), maybe it’s very accessible to highways and in an otherwise safe part of town. Riverfront is accessible that way too, better still after 21 was rebuilt. But maybe the word hasn’t gotten out.
“Broadway Meets Baseball?” Nice thought, I suppose. Certainly unique as any baseball/concert type event usually features more current acts, acts geared to the younger crowd. But Broadway and baseball seem, to me, at least, to be two disparate crowds. Don’t know unless you try, I suppose.
Knock knock. Lets have a Pop Warner night and a Hockey night – I am sure they would be more interested in a Bears game then say the Little League teams from Elizabeth, Rahway, Roselle Park, Nutley, Hoboken, Jersey City, Union, Clark, Fanwood, Maplewood etc etc.etc. Connect your product to the fan base most connected to it – kids baseball and softball.
Reaching out to Newark community is clearly not working. Nice idea, nice try.
“Too many people refuse to set high goals for themselves, or even neglect selecting a career, because they fear the criticism of relatives and friends who may say, “Don’t aim so high people will think you are crazy” By Napoleon Hill – “Think and Grow Rich”
Clifford,
How does the quote you cited apply to the owners of the Newark Bears? Or is it one of those “just sayin’” things?