July 20, 2014
Frawley Stadium (Capacity: 6,532)
Wilmington, DE
Wilmington Blue Rocks vs Lynchburg Hillcats
Final Score: 5 – 6
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On our way back from visiting family in Northern Virginia, we stopped halfway home for a visit to see a second straight Carolina League team in the Wilmington Blue Rocks. As Delaware’s “largest” city at 70,000, Wilmington is in the northeast corner of the state and it sits squarely in the I-95 Megalopolis, just 30 minutes away from Philadelphia. For a relatively small population, the city’s unusually large and built-up skyline comes from the many banks and financial institutions headquartered here, due to relaxed tax and interest-rate laws. While driving around Wilmington, the legacy of the famed Du Pont family is quite obvious as their significant contributions and economic impact is visible throughout the city. The Blue Rocks arrived in 1993 via a franchise relocation and the team quickly became established in the league with 4 titles in their first seven years. However, they have not won any since 1999. Named after the former mayor who aided significantly in the project, Daniel S. Frawley Stadium anchors a rejuvenated section of the city. It only took 5 months to build this ballpark in the early 90s and while the shortcuts are evident in spots, there is enough personality for the Blue Rocks and the experience ranks surprisingly well.
Prestige Ranking: 3 out of 5
Location
Wilmington anchors the Brandywine Valley region of Northern Delaware and Southern Pennsylvania. Museums, mansions and gardens make up this very pleasant section of the country, which surprises visitors with how much there is to do. All within 30 minutes of the ballpark is Winterthur, the Hagley Museum, Longwood Gardens and Nemours Mansion. The city certainly has some grimy sections, but they should be commended on the development of the Riverfront neighborhood. This formerly blighted manufacturing/shipyard section has transformed into an area for visitors and a safe section for new residents living in high-rises. Frawley Stadium anchored the development and a healthy walk away is a riverwalk along the Christina River that includes a few restaurants (we ate at the Iron Hill Brewery which was awesome with its own beers on tap). The Delaware Children’s Museum is nearby and next door to the park is a performing arts center/hotel. While the area is a little quiet and the section is spaced out a bit away from Frawley, it is a pretty good spot nonetheless.
Location Ranking: 7.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Parking in front and behind the stadium is more than plentiful. Exiting I-95 requires a little work thru the city before getting to Jutison Street and to the Riverfront, but it’s not too bad. Getting back to the highway after the game is simple. While congestion is minimal near the stadium, traffic is a different story on 95 as that road often has issues in either direction.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Exterior
The Blue Rock nickname derives from the blue granite found in the nearby Brandywine River and if they really wanted some character, designers should have used something resembling this material for the layout. Instead, we are treated to another brick design (though to be fair, in 1993, brick was not all that common). At least the light red brick has a quarry-type design to it instead of standard brick and that is appreciated by me. Otherwise, the front look is decent and it is topped with blue trim at the top. Above the box office is an area housing team offices and includes a “Daniel S. Frawley Stadium” sign.
Exterior Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Concourse
A set of stairs and ramps leads upward to the entrance behind home plate and the subsequent concourse. Here, that color scheme and brick layout continues with ceilings painted the faded red and the support beams using the brick material. Space is alright and bathrooms are sufficient. Fans can see the field for most of the way (except around home plate) and when the overhang ended, open space continues for a little while, with a small kids play area on the third base side. “The Quarry” team store is behind home plate.
Concourse Ranking: 3.5 out of 5
Food
The choices for beer really got my attention as the craft options may have been the most expansive I have seen in the minors yet. I counted at least a dozen, with Delaware-made “16 Mile Brewing” leading the way. Food is sufficient with typical options highlighted by Botto’s Sausage or Meatball Sub, Philadelphia Water Ice and a Chickie’s & Pete’s stand. Pizza is done by Grotto’s, the main place for a slice in Delaware (wasn’t anything special when I tried it). Scrapple is a regional food consisting of…well many don’t know. Some like the rectangular block of porky meat and it is cool to see the ballpark offering a traditional sandwich of Scrapple with cheese, fried onions and peppers.
Food Ranking: 6 out of 8
Interior
The single bowl style set-up is the biggest in the Carolina League and it extends about half-way into the outfield. A needless walkway splits the bowl into a lower section (1-28) with about 8 rows and an upper section (A-P) with 10-12 rows. The several bleacher sections cheapen an otherwise comfortable ballpark with the wide chairbacks including cupholders. Lots of blue in the seating and walls try to liven the place up. Suites and the Diamond Club are above the concourse, while the press box is below and behind home plate. Unfortunately, there is no cover to any of the fans as the suites do not hang over the seats. Two picnic pavilions complete the seating in the upper side of each end. A rather odd addition made in 2001 is the general admission bleachers set way back behind the concourse on the third base side. These seats don’t fit in with the park and are quite far away. However, they do actually provide a nice vantage point, which includes the best outfield view as downtown Wilmington makes up the skyline. Not so nice of a view is on the other side where over center and left field, the cars can be heard and seen rumbling on I-95. It feels like a ballpark built in 5 months, but some things are done to provide a better feel to Frawley Stadium.
Interior Ranking: 6.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
A pair of scoreboards are found in the outfield, each one near a healthy amount of advertisements. On the left side is a box score with the inclusion of a digital clock and there is a nice color display that shows messages and player stats. Out in right is a video board that is OK in clarity and minimal in use. Ads are on the screen much of the game and the only video shown is for a close-up of the on field between inning contests.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2 out of 4
Displays
Wilmington recognizes people and team history quite well and there are many places this is visible. Starting on the outside, a plaque is found for the stadium’s namesake, Daniel Frawley. A rock garden honors a couple Wilmingtonians, while former Negro League star Judy Johnson has a statue near the entrance. The field is also named after him. Yearly representatives of Blue Rocks that made the Major Leagues can be seen in a couple places throughout the concourse, while team honors are found inside the ballpark. Each Division and League Championship has a small baseball or pennant on the face of the suite level. There are even retired jerseys that can be found on the outfield wall, a rarity at this level. Honorees include Robin Roberts, Mike Sweeney and Johnny Damon. Frawley Stadium could have scored higher if the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame attached on the outside of the ballpark was open. The museum has limited hours (Tuesday-Friday, 12-5 PM) and when I stopped by during that time, it was closed with no explanation. This is such a key attraction, boo on them for not making this more accessible while the game is going on.
Displays Ranking: 4 out of 6
Cost
This is the rare city ballpark that features free parking, which is an excellent start to the ballpark experience. Tickets run $9 – $11, while the far away general admission seats go for $6 (note all prices increase $2 on the day of the game). Programs are free, while the concessions vary in price. Hot Dogs are only $2.50, but bigger items like a Chickie’s Chicken or a Scrapple sandwich go for $7. A medium soda is $4. Overall, cost is pretty darn good.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support
The Sunday 5 PM game did not have a great draw as I estimated about 1000-1500 on hand (about 1/3rd of the announced number). The most complete seating section was about half-full. Despite being deceptively in the top half of the league attendance standings, the Blue Rocks have only averaged 773 fans for their last three playoff home games.
Fan Support Ranking: 3.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
It was nothing out of the ordinary for a minor-league baseball game. Most people came to be entertained with limited focus on the outcome. I did spot maybe a few dozen in Blue Rock apparel and about the same amount that really seemed to follow the game. Cheering for runs generated some noise and when the team rallied in the ninth, each hit produced a little more volume.
Atmosphere Ranking: 5.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
That Blue Rock nickname explained earlier was also the name used for a minor-league team that played in Wilmington during the 1940s and 50s…..Before the ballpark was named after Mayor Frawley, it was briefly called “Legends Stadium”…..For most of Wilmington’s Carolina League life, they have been affiliated with Kansas City…..Mascots are pretty big at the game as Rocky Bluewinkle is active and even part of the logo. Meanwhile, Mr. Celery comes out for about 30 seconds after the team scores a run. It is meaningless and random and I have no idea why it is popular…..A few days before my visit, the Blue Rocks made the great gesture and thoughtful honor of leaving an open seat for POWs/MIAs.
Game
I think I want to check out the Carolina League more often! For a second straight game, the 9th inning provided plenty of excitement. Lynchburg took a 4-2 lead into the eight and a key fielding error by Ramon Torres ended up being important as it led to runs by Jose Martinez and Kevin Aherns. That pushed the lead to 6-2 and those runs mattered as Wilmington staged a rally in the bottom of the 9th. They made it 6-5 thanks to base hits and some wild pitching. The bases were loaded with two outs for Michael Antonio, however he grounded out to second and the Hillcats survived. Wilmington’s Bubba Starling went 3 for 5.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
