The BP Experience
Cultivating an affinity for the game
The aura of a new baseball season is upon us once again. The belief that Philippine baseball is steadily emerging from the throes of a three decade stagnation has our collective imagination brimming with excitement.
If 2007 was a testament to the new state of the game in the nation, then 2008 is poised for an encore performance worthy of due diligence. The upcoming season is on the horizon and it promises to be bigger and better. As far as baseball is concerned, there's more for everyone in the nation.
So grab a soda, a hotdog, and have a seat for a thrill ride into the who, what, how, and why we are catching on to Baseball Philippines.
We begin with a tour through the ball clubs that evoke the beautiful regions and communities across the country. During Baseball Philippines' inaugural season, eight regions were represented: Cebu, Laguna, Makati, Manila, Negros, Dumaguete, Marikina, and Taguig. Today, part of that list has been replaced with the circuit's efforts to meet a growing demand for the game at large while maintaining competitive parity. Antipolo, and Batangas were among the nation's baseball hotbeds granted entry this year. Nevertheless, while the vast region of Mindanao and some northern provinces with a similar baseball following have not been tapped, major urban and rural areas can now identify with Baseball Philippines delivering the highest quality of community-based sports entertainment in the country.
BP is the next big thing in Philippine team sports. It is envisioned to have local players succeed internationally in due time. Currently, it is an affirmation of the country's Southeast Asian regional dominance, a stepping stone into Philippine baseball's old place among Asia's elite.
Beyond the competing teams is the cultivation of geographic affinity that defines the essence of community-building in sports. Rosters are laden with talent representing ties to their individual locales. BP is galvanizing a national response by means of grass-roots affiliation whereby Filipinos can identify with and pull for their respective teams. Some refer to it as nation-building through the diamond. Essentially, the game reaches out to people, young and old, novice and die-hards. It's root, root, root for your home team. It's a jigsaw puzzle with countless pieces gradually falling into place.
"We’ve started on the right foot and we’re on track as far as our main goal is concerned," said Chito Loyzaga, marketing director for Community Sports Inc. and a prime mover of the sport.
The game itself, while currently slated on weekends, is a prime avenue for a truly family oriented atmosphere. There is the mother who on the same day comes to watch two of her sons playing for the same team after being a little league mom to two more. Another two siblings grace the field in front of their parents in the stands. And still several more family combinations — clans with reclining seats in some instances — who have come for the sheer atmosphere of watching a live ball game and rooting for their heroes. On the field, there was a father and son playing together on one team while one father skippered his son on another.
While today's game is pretty much centered in the heart of metropolitan Manila, the playing venue is one of historic proportions. Built in 1934 and beckoning generations of Philippine baseball, the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium has long been the centerpiece of Philippine baseball as it continues to weather the ashes, making it among the most nostalgic places in the sporting world today.
Its hallowed grounds serve as a testament to the multitude of ballplayers who have roamed its field and circled its bases. The markings on the outfield walls commemorating homeruns of yesteryear provide a who's who glimpse of baseball immortals. Among them, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, John McGraw, Filomeno Codinera, Romeo Galang, Rodolfo Lugay, Raul Saberon, and Jaime Sta Rosa.
Aptly named in honor of national hero Jose Rizal, the stadium was also graced by other legends such as Armando Oncinian, Ernesto Adorable, and Teodulo Viray, all of whom have been enshrined in the Philippine Baseball Hall of Fame. On gamedays, a few of these heroes can be approached up close and personal for a lifetime of stories; what it was like during their heyday and why they still love the game so dear to them.
Adversity nothwithstanding and amidst those who walk through its turnstiles today, the Rizal ballpark as some have come to call it, continues to showcase the best Philippine baseball has to offer, especially now that it is home to Baseball Philippines.
For others, what is so enthralling about Baseball Philippines is the game of baseball itself in all its intricacies and subtleties or the novelty thereof. From the clueless to the backseat managers around the stadium who continue to opine and second-guess their team's plays and strategies. Speculation resounds equally among the media and fans during gamedays that leaves something to look back on and anticipate come midweek.
Charlie Labrador, the nation's premier right-handed hurler, may be on top of his game today baffling hitters with an array of change-ups and downballs. Joseph Orillana just whiffed fifteen hitters in one game against Taguig. Edmer Del Socorro may be banging out a couple of extra-base hits in the afternoon. Alden Lozada knocked in four runs the other day. Some ask whether Miggy Corcuera has flirted with the outfield fence again. Bacchus Ledesma just missed a homerun by inches. Jon "Speedy Gonzales" De Ubago stole two bases in an inning uncontested while Joey "The Flash" Guerrero stole two bases the entire year. Do Jon-Jon Robles and Alejandro Velasquez bring their temper to the field and cause their respective teams to lose? Now if only talented hitter Joseph Apura and his Shoemakers teammates fielded those grounders flawlessly, hmmm...
Ah, the game within a game.
There was that one time when Makati Mariners skipper Jeffrey Santiago, among the country's most heralded, went on a coaching frenzy systematically pulling a player from the game for every error committed. It turns out that a couple teams fell victim to the "seven a.m. curse" when even the most ardent fan can take in a game that early.
And catch umpires Bong Ocampo and Olan Arceo waving the thumbs out for ejecting a player.
Perhaps the one moment that electrified the stadium last season belonged to Virgilio Roxas. The Manila Sharks first baseman took Taguig ace Ernesto Binarao deep for a tie-breaking walk-off homerun in the bottom of the tenth inning of a run-starved Series 2 game. Binarao has been the nation's foremost pitcher this past decade, but it epitomized the competition in today's game. Players who comprised the national team are now squaring off against one another, a by-product from a league policy that ensures competitive parity and sheds each player's true colors.
Fans can also see a few celebrities display their athletic prowess. Celebrity actor Richard Gomez of the Cebu Dolphins had one of the sweetest doubles in the 2007 BP Championship Series. Co-star Gary Estrada also saw some action.
Highly anticipated pitching match-ups, particularly among left-handers such as Binarao, Orillana, Robles, Valdimir Eguia, and Darwin Dela Calzada are sure to find their way into journalists' columns and fans' heads. There is the mystery behind the ongoing trend of southpaws dominating the local mound.
Still, the game would not be complete without its share of foreign talent taking the field. It is a tradition that harks back to the game's early years when American servicemen introduced baseball here at the close of the nineteenth century. While the ranks of foreigners have diminished, many still play in the recreational circuit. DeUbago (Australia), Seung Jun Ha, and Chun Wang Song, both from Korea, were among those who took the field in BP. For good measure, an organized Korea Red Devils Baseball Club periodically scrimmages with local teams, rekindling those days when foreign squads from the United States and Japan would field crack lineups of varying caliber. And there is a further slew of ambassadors making their way to BP in 2008.
Off the field, the casual fan can be treated to ballpark staples of hotdogs, pizza, and sodas as well as the snacks by vendors roaming the stadium. Interactive moments with BP marketing present themselves as well. Team merchandise are on sale and raffle prizes are awarded regularly. Between innings gives way to contemporary and up-tempo music while the endless barrage of roof-knockers at the stadium add to the experience of the crack of the bat, the sound of leather popping, and the game-barking of Butch Madrigal and Santi Ledesma.
Quite interestingly, new acquaintances can be made and friendships cultivated with those who come to watch during gamedays. After all, baseball is a people-oriented sport and the game provides them a gimmick of sorts.
The one thing that defines BP or Philippine baseball for that matter though is that it is the one game where Filipinos can identify themselves not just with their home towns, but with the players. Most of the latter look like the casual fan and are very approachable. Such moments of interaction between player and fan are countless.
For the more observant, there is the fatherly figure clad in the yellow vest fielding looks and queries at his direction. And that former basketball standout on the opposite pole. In addition, various team owners and representatives, dignitaries such as Senator Richard Gordon, Mayors Alfredo Lim and Roy Loyola, and magnate Jose "Peping" Cojuanco have made their presence felt at the games. United States Ambassador to the Philippines Kristey Kenney threw out the ceremonial pitch during the Series 1 finale. Boxing hero Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire was likewise a welcome sight for the Series 2 clincher. And the list is long for the upcoming season.
From a fan's perspective the game itself is unadulterated in most respects, perhaps one of the few occurences in the world where baseball remains pure sport and entertainment. And the game will only get better.
Cebu Dolphins owner Jose Cabarrus summed up the future promise of the game in the region.
"This is the beginning of a new era for Philippine baseball," he said.