After cheering on the parent ball club to its 11th World Series title, Springfield Cardinals executives are back in Springfield focused on off-season improvements.
While the St. Louis Cardinals were making an unexpected playoff run, Double-A club General Manager Matt Gifford reflected on the team’s economic impact on Springfield.
Consider the team has sold more than 3 million tickets to games at Hammons Field during the last seven years. In that time, fans from 46 states and all but a few counties in Missouri have come watch the Springfield Cardinals.
At an average ticket price of $10, sales taxes paid to the city in seven seasons amount to more than $2.28 million. And since the $32 million Hammons Field operates within a community improvement district, the Cardinals pay 25 cents per ticket sold plus 3 percent to the CID, according to Gifford.
The Cardinals employ 22 full-time, and its food services company, Sportservice Corp., employs five full-time. There are 20 interns in the operation.
On game day, the ranks swell to more than 200 people including food service, ushers, security, stadium operations and maintenance.
Then add 24 players, with an average salary of $1,400 to $1,600 per month for a five-month season. They rent apartments, purchase food, clothing and gasoline, and everything else a young guy needs to live in a town.
Most food commodities sold at the stadium are purchased through Sysco in Springfield. Beer, soft drinks and bottled water are purchased from local distributors. The team buys ice cream from Hiland Dairy, and has local partnerships with Domino’s Pizza and Buckingham’s Barbecue to provide specialty food items at the ballpark.
Gifford said the Cardinals buy water – the field takes a lot of irrigation – and power from City Utilities of Springfield. Those stadium lights burn a lot of electricity. The Cardinals partner with St. John’s Sports Medicine to keep the players healthy, and the team buys game-day meals from local restaurants. “These young guys can eat a lot,” Gifford said, “and they really like fast food.” The team contracts with Branson Shuttle for travel service.
Visiting teams account for at least 20 hotel room nights per game. They also pay the clubhouse manager to provide food for their players.
On the field, consider that a Texas League baseball costs $3 and has an average life of three pitches. The Cardinals go through at least seven dozen balls per game – 10 dozen if it’s rainy. That means almost $21,000 for baseballs for the 70-game home season. Hit or tossed into the stands, they become prized souvenirs for fans, but they’re an expense item for the Cardinals.
Since the team’s inception in 2005, 42 Springfield Cardinals have made major league debuts in St. Louis. On the last day of this year’s regular season, there were 15 former Springfield players on the major league roster, including World Series standouts Allen Craig, Jason Motte and Jon Jay.
The Springfield Cardinals operate programs to aid local charities with both fundraising and public awareness of their causes – efforts that Gifford said netted an estimated $250,000 in charitable contributions this year. Officials hosted a July 4 celebration with fireworks this summer and a kickoff for the Festival of Lights last winter.
During six games this season, the team auctioned game-worn jerseys to benefit charities with an average of $200 per jersey totaling $36,000. Gifford played golf in the Price Cutter Charity Championship this year and raised more than $20,000 for the tournament charities. The Cardinals support other charities in the community with donations of memorabilia, tickets and suites at the ballpark. Price Cutter has joined the Cardinals with a recliner chair program where local charities can get the 32-seat section down the first baseline to sell as a fundraiser.
Gifford is appreciative of the local fans. “To draw 3 million to a venue only open 70 nights a year, far exceeded the expectations of the Cardinals ownership,” he said. “The team brings people to visit Springfield, it draws people downtown and we now have a generation growing up with (the Cardinals) as what they know.”
Gifford said he is dedicated to finding ways to improve and recalled a trip to a meeting in St. Louis after the 2005 season. He called the Springfield office from his car to inquire about what the staff was doing. The staff reply was, “Nothing.” He said, “Call each of our season ticket holders, say thanks, and then ask them what they’d like to see next year.”
Calls are now being made in preparation for Season 8.[[In-content Ad]]