By John Grindrod Guest Columnist The other day, I thought of a pleasant July 5 at Simmons Field watching the latest version of Lima’s boys of summer, our Locos, play host to the Xenia Scouts. My brother-in-law, John Whittaker, and I were seated in the bleacher behind the third-base line enjoying both the baseball and the zephyrs of summer. Now, if you’ve never been to a Locos game, you’re certainly missing a very affordable and fun evening.
Each time I go, I’m part of a lively crowd, several of whom I know, watching what most who attend consider to be the grandest of games. Those who’ve supported the Locos at Simmons know that beer drinkers like my pal Harry Johnson get pretty excited when the beer batter comes to bat. For those not familiar, there’s an opposing player selected to be that night’s beer batter and when that player’s at-bat comes around, over the PA, Locos PA announcer Todd Walker will play a snippet of Tom T.
Hall’s beer-drinking anthem, “I Like Beer,” after which, there’ll be an audible anticipatory uprising from those who favor the sudsy stuff. The reason for the uprising is they know that if the beer batter strikes out, a brew will cost a buck less for all who head to the concession window. Unlike the cost of a beer at a Major League game, which will set you back just shy of $10, the 16-ounce beers at Simmons are only $3, but, hey, a dollar off is money that remains in beer-drinkers’ pockets, so they tend to get pretty excited.
Well.