Old ballpark To Be New and Improved For First Season

The new owners have already started work on $2 million worth of improvements. Sports memorabilia are being collected for a baseball museum in complex

Hannibal has its bases covered for the return of America?s pastime.  More than 200 dignitaries, sports enthusiasts, parents and kids joined the Hannibal Baseball Group in breaking ground Tuesday at Clemens Field.

The yet-to-be-named Hannibal team next year will join the Central Illinois Collegiate League, an amateur summer circuit.  The event included skydivers, fireworks and friendly cajoling of an expected rival, the Quincy Gems.  ?It?s a great day in Hannibal and a real pleasure to have everyone here,? said Mayor Roy Hark.  ?It?s been an unbelievable opportunity to bring baseball back here,? said Bob Hemond, one of seven investors.  ?As America?s Hometown, what fits better than baseball?? asked Beau Hicks of the Hannibal Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Investors plan $3.7 million of improvements to Clemens Field, the 70-year-old, city-owned ballpark along Warren Barrett Drive south of the downtown area.  Most of the money would come from their own pockets.  They?ll supplement baseball operations by hosting concerts, sports tournaments and other activities with city approval.  But developers have an agreement that obligates the city and county to provide up to $1.5 million for the work.  The entities are counting on more than two decades worth of sales tax revenue from ticket sales, concessions and memorabilia purchases to cover the cost.  All involved said the agreement has assurances so the city and county won?t be left holding the bag.  ?We expect this to be positive economically,? Hark said. ?I think these people know very well what they?re doing. It?s a good thing for them and for us.?  ?We?re certainly contributing, but we?re keeping it in focus,? said City Manager Jeff LaGarce said. ?They?ve got to bring a lot of up-front capital.?  Hemond and Larry Owens, who make up about 60 percent of the ownership?s financing, have an extensive background in baseball, and said they?re committed to making the team work.  ?This is a long-term investment,? Owens said.  CICL Commissioner Frank Pergolizzi praised the group.  ?These folks clearly know what they?re doing,? Pergolizzi said. ?You?re talking about experienced baseball people.? 

Gems General Manager Rob Ebbing, who attended Tuesday?s ceremony, said selling amateur baseball has ?been a little tough with the economy the way it is.?  The Gems, who suffered five years of financial losses before making a slim profit last season, have a budget of $198,000 in 2008.  The team has sold sponsorships on all of its outfield signs at Quincy University Stadium and has corporate backing for all but four of its 27 homes games.  Ebbing said the Hannibal group is ?on the right track.? 

Just over $2 milion of the $3.7 million of stadium improvements is what investors call historical? upgrades.  The term refers to the old superstructure that covers the stands on the south side of the park.  Plans call for a considerable makeover, complete with new restrooms. There will also be six suites and two party decks.  Conversion of a former parks department building in left field to locker rooms and offices for the team is nearing completion.  The site also will feature a baseball museum and kids? area. Owens said work on the field will begin within a month.
?We?re on schedule,? he said.  Once renovations are done, Clemens will be the most up-to-date park in the league.  ?We think this is going to be one of the most unique facilities,? Hemond said.
The DuPage Dragons play at Benedictine University?s Sports Complex, completed in 2004, and the Dubois Bombers call 12-year-old League Stadium in Huntingburg, Ind., home.
Stadiums in Springfield, Quincy and Danville were built in 1928, 1938 and 1946, respectively.
Owens said investors may eventually discuss with the Army Corps of Engineers what can be done about flooding near Clemens Field.

The Hannibal group promises affordable entertainment, with tickets ranging from $5 to $10.  And there?s the added attraction of a rivalry with the Gems.  ?We?re looking forward to playing Quincy,? Hark said. ?I think the rivalry will help both teams financially,? Ebbing said.

Hannibal and Quincy already are talking about a grudge game or series, in which the mayor of the town that loses would have to wear a skimpy swimsuit and sit in a dunking booth.
Hemond said investors have narrowed the name for the Hannibal team to three.
He declined to elaborate, but said the moniker would be announced by July 1.  Hemond?s father, Roland, said player recruitment is going well. He said response already is coming in from some of the 350 college coaches nationwide who were sent letters about the Hannibal team?s plans.
Roland Hemond is a former executive with the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles, and currently is a special assistant to the president of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
?I know Hannibal is going to be proud? of the team, he said.  The CICL is one of 10 summer circuits for college players. It was founded in 1963, and gets some financing from Major League Baseball.

Dozens of players who once were in the league have gone on to professional careers, including Kirby Puckett, Don Kessinger, Art Howe, Joe Girardi and Gary Gaetti.

"We're looking forward to June of '09 when we throw the first pitch out," said Bob Hemond, a part of Hannibal Sports & amp; Entertainment, LLC.  Hannibal Sports & Entertainment, LLC, plans to make about $2 million worth of improvements to the field. An agreement with the Central Illinois Collegiate League for a baseball franchise is expected later this month.

Hemond and co-owner Larry Owens unveiled some of the sports memorabilia to be displayed in a baseball museum, including a large autographed photo of Roy Sievers, a slugging outfielder/first baseman who broke into organized baseball in 1947 with the Hannibal Pilots of the Central Association.  Sievers led the league in hits (159), runs (121), RBIs (141) and home runs (34) that season. He joined the American League St. Louis Browns in 1949, and hit 318 career home runs in a career that spanned until 1965.   

Antique baseball mitts donated by local resident Tiny Davis also evoked conversation.  "There's no greater memory in my childhood than coming down to Clemens Field and watching the professional players," said Roger L. Wasson of Hannibal.  He told Hemond that early exposure spurred him to train as an umpire. "That's what we're trying to tap into," Hemond said.

The city has approved a 39-year lease with Hannibal Sports & amp; Entertainment. It will lease Clemens Field for $12 a year.

Earlier this week, the City Council heard the final reading of an ordinance that would grant Hannibal Sports & amp; Entertainment a 50-percent sales tax rebate for up to 25 years. The money will be used to make infrastructure improvements at Clemens Field.

The agreement calls for the rebate, which is matched by the state, to cover 100 percent of the costs of those public infrastructure improvements or accrue up to $1.5 million.

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