Fans take in 1st night of baseball at Wild Things Park

There’s nothing like the crack of a bat or the pop of a mitt on a warm summer night in Western Pennsylvania, and a brief rain shower didn’t stop fans from experiencing the first night of baseball at Wild Things Park.

After the Frontier League canceled its 2020 season last month, the Washington Wild Things coordinated a four-team league that will play two games a night Thursday through Sunday each week. The Baseball Brilliance Sox, Road Warrior Black Sox, Steel City Slammin’ Sammies and Wild Things kicked the league off Thursday.

A small crowd attended the 3 p.m. opener between the Brilliance Sox and the Black Sox. But a larger group of fans occupied a decent portion of the lower-level seating for the night cap between the Wild Things and the Slammin’ Sammies, which featured 11 former WPIAL players.

Canonsburg resident Douglas Krantz, who has been attending Wild Things games since 2015 and has been hosting baseball players the past four years, attended both games.

Krantz is an avid Wild Things fan and has had season tickets the past three years, but baseball at Wild Things Park means a little more to him. He caught on to the team after having a bad experience at his first day of work in Pittsburgh.

“My company told me I picked the wrong hotel, so I moved to the Comfort Inn right behind the park,” Krantz said. “That night I decided that I wanted to get out of the hotel because of the bad day. So instead of turning left, I turned right towards the park and I drove into Wild Things Park and thought, ‘I guess I’m going to a baseball game.’ ”

He went to three games that week and has been coming ever since.

Krantz knew he was coming to Wild Things games this summer, and when he first heard they were thinking about restarting the season, he was excited. But he also was happy about the players being able to play.

“I know these guys, and I know what some of these guys are going through,” Krantz said. “They are such nice guys, and they are all grateful to be in baseball.”

The Wild Things took several precautions. Hand sanitizing stations were placed throughout the stadium, and fans wore masks and used every inch of the stadium to spread out and follow social distancing protocols.

Hopewell resident Don Cox, who was at the game to see his son, Ryan, play with the Slammin’ Sammies, was surprised with how well organized and safe the stadium looked.

“I’m really impressed, actually. I just took a picture to send to my wife because she was wondering what it was going to be like,” Cox said. “We were here every home game last year, so we wanted to see what it was going to be about.”

Rather than high-fiving after a solid play, players resorted to elbow-fives or glove-fives. Some also wore masks to and from the dugout before the game.

But the most important aspect of Opening Day at Wild Things Park was that baseball was back. Cox was happy to see that.

“If you’re a baseball fan, this spring has been rough,” Cox said. “So, it’s nice to see that it’s back, especially with these guys. I mean, they are going crazy. They are like caged animals until they get out onto the field, so hopefully they are staying safe and doing the right thing.”