Hartford Business Journal

6 Hartford Business Journal • April 2, 2018 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By John Stearns jstearns@HartfordBusiness.com T he Hartford Yard Goats return to action at Dunkin' Donuts Park on April 5 on the hooves of a stellar inau- gural season that included being named 2017 Team of the Year by BallparkDigest.com out of 160 minor league squads. Last season's 41 sellouts in 70 games and attendance of 395,196 — most ever for any professional baseball team in Connecticut — will be a hard act to follow for Yard Goats President Tim Restall and his management team. "Someone said, 'Well how are you going to top that in 2018?' " Restall said. "And I'm like, 'Well, you'll just have to come out and see.' " The team is continuing much of what it did last year, but also tweak- ing and honing, and adding some new ingredients. "You want to make it new and fresh and exciting for people to come back," said Restall, who was promoted from general manager to team president for the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies after last season. Look for some new promotions and giveaways (including goat yoga bobblehead night featuring a goat perched on a player's back); four new food options at the Neighborhood Flavors Cart that rotates local res- taurants and food truck operators; two new mascots, Twirly — a "Whirly Bird" — and Goofy Goat Herder, to join Chew Chew and Chompers; and nights when the Goats will play as the Steamed Cheeseburgers, Whirly Birds or Los Chivos de Hartford, "The Goats of Hartford," in recognition of the region's Latin culture. There will also be two on-field per- sonalities (up from one last year), one doing more sideline reporting, another doing overall presentation during the between-innings promotions. Sponsorships are strong, Restall said, with three sponsors dropping from last season, but 36 new ones coming aboard, giving the team 139 total. Sponsorship revenues have exceeded goals, he said, but wouldn't disclose numbers. One new sponsor is TineDale Electrical Contractors of Newington, owned by longtime business partners Tony D'Alessandro and Joe Tine. "Joe and I both grew up in Hartford, we've seen our share of disappoint- ments," D'Alessandro said, including the Hartford Whalers leaving and the New England Patriots coming, then not coming, to Hartford. The park is good for the city and hopefully development around it takes off, attracting more businesses, he said. "In the big picture, it looks like there's some excitement there; we want to be part of it," D'Alessandro said. TineDale's sponsorship exposure includes a decibel meter on the score- board, electronic banners and direc- tional signage. The company has already done some electrical work at the park and hopes its sponsorship helps land it more jobs there, in addition to exposing its name to the general public and other busi- nesses, he said. Another new sponsor, Petro Home Services, has signage sponsoring a left field seating area and returning sponsor Hanging Hills Brewing Co. of Hartford increased its visibility with a new bar and signage on the right field porch. Restall said the team plans sponsor appreciation events similar to last year, which included a day for sponsors to take the field for batting and shagging grounders and fly balls. More events will be added this season, he said. Higher ticket prices Restall has seen a number of compa- nies that held 18-game ticket packages last season increase those to 70 games this season to better accommodate staff, their families and customers. Ticket prices were raised $1 to $2 for some seats this season, but not all. Tick- ets are $6 to $18 in advance, or $8 to $20 on game day. Prices increased $1 for field box and The Hartford terrace seats, and $2 for high top swivels, with all other sections the same as 2017, Restall said. Season ticket sales are running ahead of expectations, up 24 percent in number sold, he said. When nature calls, the Yard Goats also have installed foot stools in a stall of each concourse bathroom to, ahem, assist in bowel movements. Apparent- ly, raised feet improves key colorectal performance. The so-called Squatty Potty gives the Yard Goats another top billing, Re- stall joked, "No. 1 in the No. 2 business" by supposedly being the first ballpark with the potty perk. There's no relief, though, for Restall and his busy staff of 30. "We never take our foot off the pedal, so we're always looking at ways that we can improve and keep things going," he said. Second Act In season No. 2, Yard Goats are back with more entertainment, sponsors Nectar of the Goats beer to be sold in stores By John Stearns jstearns@HartfordBusiness.com Nectar of the Goats, the popular pale ale beer sold at Dunkin' Donuts Park, is coming to store shelves. Thomas Hooker Brewing Co. in Bloomfield, which brews the beer, hoped to get cans in stores by around opening day, April 5. "There's a lot of craft beers out there and we're hoping that there's a lot of stores in the Greater Hartford area, anyway, that will carry it," said Curt Cameron, president of Thomas Hooker. It's the first time Nectar of the Goats has been made available in package stores, but it was available on a limited basis in some bars and restaurants last season, albeit the park absorbed most of the beer. "We're really looking forward to seeing how well it does both in bars and restaurants, as well as package stores," Cameron said, noting the brewery can ramp-up production as demand dictates. He said he was pleased by its pop- ularity at the ballpark last season, ranking second best-selling beer behind Bug Light, which had more tap lines, Cameron said. The beer "sort of dances on the line" between a pale ale and India pale ale (IPA), he explained. It's labeled as "deceivingly flavorful," using Cascade and Centennial hops that give it "sort of a piney-citrus aroma." It's purposely kept at 4.5 percent al- cohol to be responsible, Cameron said, noting the stairs in the ballpark. The trick to a really flavorful beer at a lower alcohol percentage is the blend of hops used, he said. Tim Restall, president of the Hartford Yard Goats, said the beer represents the team and brewer well, noting the colorful Yard Goats label screams fun. "We have a good partnership with them," Restall said of Thomas Hooker. Cameron said it's hard to put a value on his brewery's sponsorship of the team, but there's an intrinsic value being coupled with it. "It's one of those things where we're invested in Hartford and this is sort of a new iconic brand of Hartford and we look at ourselves as a brand of Hart- ford," he said. Tim Restall, president of the Hartford Yard Goats, is counting down to opening day this season at Dunkin' Donuts Park, where grounds crews already have the field in tip-top shape and front-office staff are preparing for another entertainment-filled season. HBJ PHOTO | JOHN STEARNS

• Cover