Cats fans have shot at redemption on ‘A-Fraud’ day

When Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez admitted that he used steroids while he was playing for the Texas Rangers, baseball fans across the nation groaned.

For those in North Texas who have jerseys, T-shirts, playing cards and other now-tainted pieces of memorabilia, there is a chance for a bit of redemption, courtesy minor league baseball.

The Fort Worth Cats, a team thatÂ’s been playing ball since 1888, is offering fans a chance to trade in their A-Rod memorabilia for tickets to a Cats game during the upcoming 2009 season. Team officials say they have not yet decided what to do with the memorabilia collected at the event.

March 14 will mark Cats Fest, an annual celebration in anticipation of the season, and this year the festival also will feature A-Fraud Redemption Day, for “all fans who were a victim of A-Fraud between 2001-2003” to have a bit of vindication as well as pick up baseball tickets. If you donÂ’t have memorabilia, no problem; Cats Fest also is the beginning of individual ticket sales. 

To Cats fans, it may be no surprise that the concept of A-Fraud Redemption Day came from a fan. The team as a whole always has belonged to its fans and the citizens of Fort Worth, said Executive Vice President and General Manager John Bilbow. The concept was embraced for its meaning, he said.

“It’s not so much the incentive behind it as the statement behind it,” he said.

Cats players, like other players in the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, play because they love the game and they might get a shot at being spotted by someone affiliated with Major League Baseball. Players donÂ’t earn much money, and there isnÂ’t the same pressure to be the best at any cost, said John Dittrich, president and COO of the Cats. A minor-league game is friendly and approachable in a way that major baseball may not be at the moment.

“The main message we’d like to get across is that minor league baseball is still a clean, wholesome sport,” he said.

“Some would say that it’s because they can’t afford the steroids,” he added jokingly.

Not only is the teamÂ’s management mindful of the playersÂ’ image, but they are also mindful of what is happening across the country in peopleÂ’s own homes. As the recession shows no signs of stopping any time soon, more families are looking for a way to get the most bang for their buck, said Carl Bell, chairman and CEO of the Cats. Dittrich said minor league teams historically have done well through economic downturns, and Bell said itÂ’s because it meets peopleÂ’s desires for entertainment.

“We certainly wish the Rangers the best and we’re baseball fans, too, and we catch a Rangers game when we get the chance, but people want something that’s affordable and they want something at home — meaning their home towns,” Bell said.

A family of four can get parking and tickets to watch the game from the berm seats on the levee in left field for less than $20. Bilbow said he recently went to a Dallas Stars game and some individual tickets were going for $120 or more.

“You could almost go to a whole Cats’ season for that,” he said.

This year the team is offering season levee tickets for $99 and general admission season tickets for $149. Bell said while the games always have been affordable, the management knows times are tougher now, economically, and the team wants to respond to that.

For those who might be ambivalent about baseball itself, LaGrave Field is still a pleasant place to spend an evening near Fort WorthÂ’s downtown, Dittrich said. The team will still be doing special promotions and events, like fireworks for the Fourth of July weekend. At Cats Fest, children will have the chance to run the bases, play catch on the field and meet Dodger, the CatsÂ’ mascot, and Maury Wills (who played for the Cats in the 1950s and went on to be an outstanding shortstop and switch hitter for the Los Angeles Dodgers) will sign autographs. Bell said that as a kid, watching Wills play for the Cats, he would have loved the opportunity to interact with the team.

“Those are the kinds of things that make coming to LaGrave an experience,” Bell said. “It’s not just the baseball.”