~Andrew Buchbinder, Director of Broadcasting & Media Relations

Let the countdown to the Home Opener (April 16 vs KAN with Fireworks Show, hint hint) officially begin, as we held our 2010 Hot Stove Banquet last night.  First and foremost, THANK YOU to everyone who came and helped make it such a fun evening, as well as, of course, Rock Barn Golf and Spa, who hosted the event again and cooked up all the delicious grub!

In addition to a social hour, silent auction and raffle, the evening included a complete cast of speakers, ranging from local area high school and college baseball coaches to Texas Rangers General Manager Jon Daniels.  All of the coaches provided program updates and 2010 previews, while Mr. Daniels spoke about his rise to the Rangers reins, steps the organization has taken to upgrade the farm system (which was ranked #1 in the big leagues in 2009) and the blossoming relationship between the ‘Dads and the Rangers.

Afterwards, Mr. Daniels opened it up to a question-and-answer session, fielding queries ranging from Rangers payroll and free agency explanations to a geography lesson on the island of Hispaniola, which includes the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

All in all, the evening was a blast and we certainly enjoyed seeing so many of the friendly faces that we’re accustomed to seeing at the ballpark during the season.

On that note, the Home Opener is coming up verrrry quickly on Friday, April 16.  As mentioned above, we’ll be hosting Kannapolis (always a fun match-up) and it will be our first Friday Night Fireworks Show of the season. 

Actually, the season itself starts eight days before our Opener, since we kick things off on the road in Hagerstown on April 8.  Not to worry though — all of our games will again be broadcast live on The Big Dawg 92.1 FM and Hickorycrawdads.com, so you can follow the team before you get to see them at L.P. Frans on April 16!

Again, a big thank you to everyone involved with the Hot Stove last night!  ‘Til next time, Go ‘Dads!

Andrew Buchbinder is entering his second season as director of broadcasting/media relations with the Crawdads.  He previously served in similar capacities with the Bakersfield Condors (ECHL) and the Bakersfield Blaze, the ‘Dads High-A affiliate in the California League.