Manatees update

Published on September 1, 2006 under Florida State League (FSL1)
Brevard County Manatees News Release


The Brevard County Manatees have had a couple player moves in the past 24 hours.

Last night Steve Sollmann was activated off the Disabled List before the Manatees game at Daytona Beach against the Cubs. The Manatees defense had solid in a 2-0 victory that put the Cubs playoff chances in the Intensive Care Ward. A loss tonight by the Cubs with a win by Palm Beach and it'll be on life support.

A few more player transactions are happening today:

Catcher Carlos Corporan and Pitcher Mike Jones have been promoted to Hunstville (AA, Southern League). Landing on the Manatees roster is catcher Mike (JR) Hopf, called up from Helena (High Rookie, Pioneer League). Hopf will join the Manatees tonight in Daytona Beach.

Back to the FSL Playoff picture...The Cubs trail first place Palm Beach by one game, but, because of all the rain outs Palm Beach has played two less games, the Cardinals are slightly ahead in percentage points. The Cubs need to have one less loss than the Cardinals down the stretch if they want to win the division; e.g., if the Cardinals go 2-1 in the final three games, Daytona will have to win all four over the Manatees. If the Cardinals win all three remaining games, the Cubs season is over. Very simply put, the Cardinals control their own destiny, the Cubs need help. It gets better for the Cardinals...they play Jupiter at Roger Dean Stadium and it doesn't matter who the home team is, they're both playing on their home field a la the New York Jets and the New York Giants in the NFL. The Cubs have one remaining home game (tonight) and then head into Space Coast Stadium for a DH tomorrow and Sunday's noontime game, in what could be the deciding game for post-season play.

Last season the situation was reversed and the Manatees headed into Jackie Robinson Ballpark needing to win one game. It was those same Cubs that took a DHG from us ending our playoff chances. Nothing says payback like a home DH with fireworks tomorrow with the Cubs rolling into town.

Here's the remaining 2006 FSL Schedule:

Friday, September 1st
Clearwater at Dunedin (7:00)
Lakeland at Tampa (7:00)
Vero Beach at St. Lucie (7:00)
Brevard County at Daytona (7:05)
Jupiter at Palm Beach (7:05)
Sarasota at Ft Myers (7:05)

Saturday, September 2nd
Fort Myers at Sarasota (5:00 DH)
Daytona at Brevard County (6:00 DH)
Tampa at Lakeland (6:00)
Palm Beach at Jupiter (6:05)
Vero Beach at St. Lucie (7:00)
Dunedin at Clearwater (7:05)

Sunday, September 3rd
Daytona at Brevard County (12:00)
Fort Myers at Sarasota (1:00)
Dunedin at Clearwater (1:05)
Palm Beach at Jupiter (2:05)
St. Lucie at Vero Beach (3:00 DH)
Tampa at Lakeland (6:00)

Now, what's on tap for the final two home openings for the Manatees:

Saturday, September 2nd
- 6:00 am: Gates open (that's not a misprint, six-o-clock in the morning, oh-dark-thirty for you fellow military types)
- World Record First Pitch Event, sponsored by Imperial's Hotel & Conference Center will begin promptly
- 3:00 pm: Early arriving fans will receive a diamond sample or a cubic zirconium (two are real diamonds)
- 5:30 pm: Pre-Game Bank of America Neighborhood Champions ceremony
- 6:00 pm: Game #1 of the DH will begin
- End Game #1: Kickin' For Chicken, Deal or No Deal, Who Let the Dogs Out
- TBD: Game #2 begins
- End Game #2: Grand Finale Fireworks Show, sponsored by Wachovia
- Post-Fireworks: Sara Lee Bread Giveaway, Launch-a-Ball

Sunday, September 3rd
- 11:00 am: Gates open
- 12:00 pm: Game begins, season finale
- Post-Game: Kickin' For Chicken, Deal or No Deal, Launch-a-Ball, McDonald's coupons handed out at gate

That's a lot of activity built into a 36-hour window. Our staff will go with little or no sleep beginning tomorrow morning thru to Monday morning, because when the season ends Sunday afternoon we still have to close down the stadium, help pack equipment, drop players at area airports for flights home, etc.

But I'll give you a promise that this staff will be going 100 mph to ensure that everybody walking in the gates at Space Coast Stadium will have a very memorable weekend.

The fireworks show is going to be very unforgettable. Forget about long drawn-out shows with the oohs and aahs, all the time in between fireworks bursting in the sky and think about how cool it was when the grand finale started. We're going to eliminate that boring part of the fireworks show when one shell goes up at a time and wire all of our shells together to do one huge grand finale...same amount of shells as past shows, but now all of those explosions packed into a three-minute window to give you a grand finale like you've never seen before at Space Coast Stadium! Don't miss this show, because our friends at Pyrotechnico have it wired for effect and if you're one of those people that say, "You see one fireworks show, you've seen 'em all," well, this time you're wrong. Don't be wandering the concourse, don't visit the restroom post-game, just stay in your seat because we're not going to waste any time firing this show. As soon as the players clear the field, it's show time. We'd like to thank our friends at Wachovia for sponsoring this show, our season finale.

There you have it, a weekend of fun, giveaways, a pennant race, fireworks and a world record event. Make your plans now to attend 36 hours of a season finale.

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Florida State League Stories from September 1, 2006


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