Durham Bulls | Regencypkpartnership

IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT HOT DOGS, PEANUTS, AND CRACKER JACKS.

TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME

A BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK AT ALL THAT IT TAKES TO PLAY A TRIPLE-A BASEBALL GAME.

Mike Birling is vice president of baseball operations for the Triple A Durham Bulls Baseball Club. Mike joined the Bulls in August 1998 after a previous stint in minor league baseball with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. He is in his 26th year with the Bulls and 30th in MiLB. In his current role as Vice President - Baseball Operations, Mike oversees the Durham Bulls, Holly Springs Salamanders, and the Coastal Plain.

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CONTRIBUTOR'S OPENING REMARKS

Mike, before we talk about your ballpark in some detail, I think folks might find it interesting to know the story of how you got to where you are now. Can you please enlighten us?

I would be glad to, and what an interesting story to tell.

Going way way back, the Durham Tobacconists played their first game (exhibition) in April 1902. It was versus Trinity College at Trinity’s home field which is now part of the east campus of Duke University. In May they played their first home game versus New Bern. Things got a little shaky after that.

How so?

So in July of that year, Bulls owner Judge William G. Bramham refused to send the team to play at New Bern, stating he thought that the league was at an end.

As a result, professional baseball would not return to Durham until 1913. In 1926, the Bulls starting playing ball again, this time in El Toro Park.

El Toro Park was the original name of Durham Athletic Park, the historic baseball stadium in Durham. It served as the home of the Durham Bulls for almost 70 years. It was renamed Durham Athletic Park in 1933.

Good information and we happen to know that this same Durham Athletic Park also served as a filming location for the movie "Bull Durham".

Yes, that is correct, and on June 17th, 1939, the park burned to the ground, resulting in over $100,000 in damage. Remarkedly, after only a two-week construction period, it reopened – business as usual.

So this not where the Bulls play now, correct?

Correct, the Bulls move to its current location, the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, in 1995.

And I assume you wish to know why the move – this was due to a combination of factors. One thing was the increased attendance at the Durham Athletic Park where there were often sell outs. Because of this, a stadium with a larger fan capacity was desired and also a more modern facility as well. Also, the team wanted to be part of Durham’s broader vision for downtown revitalization.

Finally, Minor League Baseball raised their facility standards in the early 90’s and to be compliant with this standard new stadium for the Bulls was the best option.

And how would you say the moved worked out?

There is no question in my mind that the new stadium with its increased capacity help spur downtown development, and also allowed for MLB affiliation upgrades.

Renovations have continued since, keeping DBAP one of the finest Triple-A venues in America. We are proud that our stadium is an integral part of the American Tobacco Campus in downtown Durham

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We also have the Durham Performing Arts Center here, plus a host of restaurants, boutique stores, and meeting space for conferences as well.

Working together, local government and private sector leaders re-made the former American Tobacco factory, rejuvenating our unique city and setting a new live-work-play standard.

I am so glad you shared this remarkable history with us. Now we all know that baseball games are all about playing the game, and of course, as they say, about “hot dogs, peanuts, and cracker jacks: as well. But in your own words, at a high-level, how would you describe Minor-Leage Baseball?

My personal feeling is that Minor League Baseball is much more than just about the game of baseball. We genuinely feel that we are part of this community, and its tradition, and we also feel that a game can be a most pleasant escape from the stress of everyday life for many.

From a kid getting their first autograph to grandparents reliving memories, the ballpark is where life slows down. It’s a soundtrack of cheers, smells of grilled food, and a timeless ritual shared by strangers turned friends. It’s mascots and on-field promotions along with great baseball.

Anything else you want to add before we move on?

When I look out upon the field of play, I don’t look at the players on the field, the score of the game. My view is of the fans in the seats, families, friends, and neighbors, yes enjoying the game I hope, but also enjoying an afternoon or evening out in the company of others.

In my mind, this is really what a game at our park is all about. If the fans can have a really good time, this is a really big win for us. And if we can win the game, then it becomes a win-win for us as well.

What a wonderful perspective you have on things, thank you for sharing. Now the game is over, the fans are gone. Now it’s time to dust off home plate and get ready for the next home game. What does this really entail?

I am sure that anyone who has ever been to a professional baseball game realizes that a lot goes into getting ready for the game. And if one were to be able to stay after a game is over, they would likely see our massive clean-up crew swoop in and begin to make the stands and other fan areas as clean as they were prior to opening day of each season.

At the same time, the ground crews are already beginning to prep the field. And if you were to go into the concourse areas, you would see a frenzy of activity as well with all inventories being re-stocked.

While this is all going on, tickets are being sold for the next home game, and in just a few hours, we begin the reset for the next show.

The way that I and all of the staff at the ballpark look at these activities is that every game is Opening Day for someone, their first game at the DBAP. We want them to enjoy their first visit and leave with the knowledge that now they are part of our family and hopefully will visit us again.

Well said and your commitment to make the park as if it was opening day for someone is quite commendable! Now that we understand what happens right after a game is over, what about the activities that occur on a game day, before the first pitch is ever thrown?

We often have a 6-game series that run from Tuesday – Sunday, so generally every other week we have a homestand. Sometimes we do back-to-backs, so 12 games in 13 days.

As one might imagine, what we do is always like a well-timed orchestra behind the curtain. Everything must be executed according to a well-designed and finely tuned plan, otherwise confusion would reign, and we would not always be the best that we can be.

Can you give us a few examples?

It takes hundreds of people across dozens of departments, both full-time and seasonal employees to do what we do to prepare for the next game.

Field prep starts early in the morning. Gates and security systems are checked. Promotions teams start rehearsing. Food will be cooked fresh. Our broadcast crew is running sound and camera checks. Many other activities, but these are some of the major ones

Then, for an evening home game, the team will arrive a little after noon and go through many different stages from batting practice to strength work, to pitching drills.

We have not yet talked much about food and beverages. As we said earlier, watching the game is even better when we can have our hot dogs, peanuts, and cracker jacks at the same time. What can you tell us?

I would like to start by just saying that we are not only talking about food and beverage that is for the fans in the stands. I am almost certain that anyone who has visited with us realizes that there are reserved picnic areas and party decks, and suites as well. And there is food and beverage at these locations too.

As soon as the final out is called, inventory counts and equipment sanitization begins.

And if there's a game the next day, prep starts immediately – things like thawing meats, receiving deliveries, and resetting stations.

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How about food and food-related replenishment, when does this happen?

While there may be some lesser replenishment of non-spoilage items the day before a game, more typically, deliveries are scheduled in the early mornings. Interestingly, some very large homestands may actually necessitate mid-series restocking depending on sales.

What is done at a ballpark to keep food safe for consumption?

Our staff that have the overall responsibility for food safety, storage, and preparation are certified in these areas. They insure that food is properly stored, and that all related equipment, like refrigerators, and cooking apparatus are in good working order.

They regularly conduct internal audits and make sure that every food service station has logs and backup systems.

We welcome the routine checks that the health department performs multiple times a season as testimony to our efforts. We want all of our fans to drive safely to and from the game, and we want them and their families to be safe while they are with us – food safety is something that they should not have to worry about whenever they are our guests in our house.

While we are on this subject, I will briefly cover our non-food related sanitation procedures as well.

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Before every game we perform full restroom sanitization, stadium seat wipe-downs, and we have a concourse scrubber as well. And during each home game there are always restroom attendants, trash removal, and quick spill cleanups as needed. There is always a stadium-wide deep clean overnight.

Fan safety, health, and enjoyment are our top priorities.

It is certainly good to know what you are doing here, and I hope your fans do not ever need to think about food quality, safety, and hygiene while they are in your house. Speaking of food, and more specifically food consumption, how many things like hot dogs, pretzels and beverages are typically consumed during a game?

That is a very good question, and these figures are averages.

For very well attended games and sellouts, the figures are much higher, and remember that in some cases we actually have to replenish some of these items in our inventory during a game.

4,500 beers, 568 bottles of soda, 1,500 bottles of water , 600 Bavarian Pretzels, 3,000 Hotdogs, and 800 bottomless soda cups.

Anything else you want to tell us about food and beverages?

Just that we are one of a small group of MiLB teams that do our own concessions. Most teams outsource Food and Beverages to large third party companies. This does not in any way imply that outsourcing is less safe, it just that this gives us a more overall control and responsibility in this area.

Mike, this brings us to the next logical question – what happens to food and beverages that are not sold during a game?

We usually will retain things that the health code says are safe to store, things like unopened beverages, shelf-stable items, and properly refrigerated meats/produce. These are stored in either the individual stands or in the many storage areas throughout the ballpark. This largely depends on the type of items and the type of storage equipment in the various stands.

What about the food items that you cannot retain?

We actually compost most of the leftovers from the buffets. The compost goes to a company called Compost Now that diverts food waste from landfills and uses the compost to create nutrient-rich compost for our community.

If we have a really large event, with a lot of leftovers, then most of these are donated to the Durham Rescue Mission. The same kind of thing happens after the end of the season when items like peanuts or chips are donated before they expire

Mike, we have talked about so much already, things like the rich history of the Bulls, fan safety and enjoyment. But we have not yet actually gone down onto the field of play in any great detail. Let’s start with what happens soon after a game is over.

There are many things that we do starting right after the game is over for the overall health of the field and to insure that it is ready for the next game, day after day, night after night.

Here are just a few of the major ones:

The field is dragged, all of the lines are erased, the bases pulled, and the mound and plate areas are repaired. Additionally, all of the edges are blown, the dugouts are cleaned and any turf wear is addressed. And after all of that and any other repairs have been made, the sprinklers are finally turned on

And on the next game day or evening?

There are things like early morning mowing, line chalking, setting the bases, and watering the infield dirt (multiple times each day). And after that there is the checking of the mounds and plate for safety, and then of course, setting things up for batting practice.

And during the game?

We have a trained crew that manages the in-game dragging of the infield between innings. Then we check on bullpen care as well, and we have staff that watches for changing weather or serious field conditions that might need to be immediately addressed during a game.

Would you like to know about tasks that are not necessarily done between each game, and things that are done in the off-season as well?

Yes, please do.

We have weekly mound and plate rebuilds, turf management, fungicide/fertilizer treatment, and irrigation system checks. And field aeration, verticut, top dressing, and edging are all done between homestands. Usually some resodding at different parts of the season. There may be some resodding in-season as well.

In the off season, there is no rest for many of us. The field gets deep aeration, overseeding, and sod replacement (if needed). And everything is re-edged at some point. Off-season is all about long-term turf health.

You mentioned earlier that you have trained staff that watches for changing weather conditions. What can you tell us?

We ensure that are field tarps are always ready and fit for action.

Our head groundskeeper is responsible for monitoring weather conditions. If needed, the grounds crew will spring into action and a complete tarp pull can be executed in under 2 minutes if needed.

What about things like fan safety and having to call off a game before it starts or during the game?

Fan safety is of the utmost importance to us.

We have extended netting down each baseline, so that foul ball injuries are limited.We have police officers and EMT’s at every game focused solely on our fans.We do walk-thru’s each day to make sure anything we see that may add risk to an injury is fixed before our gates open.

Very rarely do we call a game off before the gates open.But if this should ever happen we automatically email all ticket buyers about the postponement.

We may have to occasionally delay a game that is already in progress due to adverse weather conditions,and in rare cases we may need to eventually call the game – again, fan safety is always our primary concern.During the delay we are updating the fans on progress every 15 minutes or so.

We have an emergency plan in place for different situations that could occur at our park.

It is certainly good to know the provisions that you can take for the field of play and for fan safety as well. I think it is time to move onto media.

As you may suspect, we have television, radio, and our in-stadium broadcasts (public address system), but there are also things like our scoreboard videos, our team social media, and league-required statistics broadcasts.

And where are all of your media facilities actually located?

We have a large and high-tech press box for TV and radio and that also houses our scoreboard operators, PA system and print media such as newspapers (online and printed) and blogs. The press box is located on our club/suite level but down the 1st base line.

We also have a trained media relations team that works before each game in order to ensure communication will be ready and available as needed. They do a full equipment test of things like mics, cameras, and fiber lines before each game. We pre-load content into video board system, and sync the scoreboard to MLB data feeds.

Are there any interesting “behind the scenes” things about media coverage that you want to mention?

Yes, just one thing, and I think you will find this most interesting.

All of our broadcasts are done by Explorer Post 50, which consists of high school and college students interested in TV production as a career. You would never know our games are produced by high schoolers as good as they are.

Can you tell me anything more about this Post 50, and do they do tv and radio broadcasts as well?

We are most proud about our Explorer Post 50 Program that was created in1998 to provide youth with a positive and productive opportunity to gain exceptional experience in the field of television broadcasting.

The post is responsible for our home game television broadcasts throughout Durham Bulls Athletic Park, WNGT 34.1 WRAL Sports +, and MiLB.com, as well as providing highlights for FOX 50 and WRAL news programs.

There is much more that I could tell you but those that are interested in learning more can do so at https://www.milb.com/durham/ballpark/explorer-post

And now to move onto what for many of the fans (at least the very young ones) are the most important thing at your ballpark – the in-game promotions and activities. It seems like these are always seamless transitions and just happen automatically. Of course, this is not nearly the case.

Yes, I do agree that most fans take these in-game activities and events almost for granted.

But the simple truth is that the planning for these begins months in advance — with scripts finalized days before each game. Each activity (first pitch, mascot skit, in-game contests) has an assigned point person, timing, cue sheet, and contingency plan.

Weekly and daily promotions are decided and scheduled during the off-season. As the season progresses our promotions department are constantly tweaking to make sure we are putting on the best possible show for our fans of all ages.

What about all of your game day events and promotions?

And we have so many promotions and game day activities that I am hesitant to mention just a few and leave others out. Best to visit our Schedule and Promotions web page to learn about things like Camp Out Nights, Education Days, Bark in the Park, Field of Dreams, and so much more.

These are all part of our ongoing commitment to provide an atmosphere of enjoyment for members of our Bull families of all ages.

Can you just describe one that has remained a fan favorite over the years?

Our post-game firework show readily comes to mind. We have these immediately after every Friday night home game, and on some Saturday nights as well.

Once again, fan safety is always our top priority and we work closely with the Durham Fire Department and our contracted fireworks company to make sure all the necessary permits are complete and a safe environment is had. We can’t shoot until we get the ok from the fire marshals on-site.

Mike, you have so many members of your teams with so many and far-reaching tasks and responsibilities. This like a little city to me. Can you give us an idea of how many people it takes just to run an actual game?

It actually may take between 200–300 seasonal employees to run a game. The bulk of them are in the food & beverage area. Then there are parking attendants, seating bowl hosts, ticket takers, ticket sellers, merchandise associates, the promotion team members, media personnel, sanitation workers and many many more.

The bulk of these are our employees, but we do fill in with contract workers in food & beverage if we are short.

Can you share just one interesting facts about your employees?

I am proud to say that we have seasonal employees who’ve worked here 30+ years, and several families with two generations on our staff. I think that things like these go a long way in explaining how important our employees are to us and how we treat them.

What kind of support do you get from the parent organization?

Our parent is the Tampa Bay Rays and it is responsible for suppling all the players, coaches, trainers, etc. The have been great partners of ours since 1998.

Are there any issues that your park faces that most other parks may not? What about advantages?

I would say that our urban location, with its many advantages, does somewhat limit parking opportunities. There are several nearby parking garages, Rideshare pickup/drop zones, and some limited street parking. Best to get here early and enjoy some of the other amenities that this downtown campus offers before the first pitch.

And although we have gone thru several stadium renovations over the years, this is still a 30 year old ballpark with some storage issues and is one of the few MiLB stadiums that doesn’t have concessions stands and concourses facing the field.

Advantages? I would say these include our unbeatable walkability, skyline views, and our modern amenities.

As we are now close to the end of our Conversation with you. I wanted to ask you how does the Bulls park compare to other Triple A parks when it comes to things like seating capacity, amenities, and player facilities?

I am thrilled to tell you that we are regularly voted among the best in Triple-A.

In large part, our superior ranking is due to our seating capacity of 10,000 (7,900 actual seats, but with the lawn, picnic, and premium areas we have a capacity of 10,000), our urban downtown location, our modern player development facilities, our Unique “Blue Monster” wall, and of course our most famous Bull in left field

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Mike any final words or thoughts for us?

I just want to again say that community has always been very important to the Bulls. We have done lots of things over the years, but our Durham Bulls Youth Athletic League (DBYAL) and Post 50 have been longstanding projects we have supported. Others include Wool E. Bulls anti-bullying campaign, youth clinics, charity jersey auctions, etc.

We always have special packages for schools, companies, birthdays, etc. that often include food, signage, and an in-game experience. Roughly 33% of our attendance are groups.

Its community first and community at a home Bulls game is the best of all worlds and all that we really strive to accomplish.

CONTRIBUTOR'S CLOSING REMARKS

THE DURHAM BULLS ATHLETIC PARK

Address: 409 Blackwell St. Durham, NC 27701

General information: 919.687.6500

Ticket information: 919-956-2855

Website: https://www.milb.com/durham

Schedule: https://www.milb.com/durham/schedule/2025-05

Parking: https://www.milb.com/durham/ballpark/parking

Tickets: https://www.milb.com/durham/tickets/single-game-tickets