Finishing touches placed on stadium before opener

A few Jackson Generals players play around with a sponsor's go kart while waiting before Fan Day celebration began Tuesday afternoon.(Photo: BRANDON SHIELDS/The Jackson Sun)Buy PhotoThe scene at The Ballpark at Jackson almost resembled that of a family putting the finishing touches on a clean house right before company was set Dt5FW6a9x to arrive.
The new portable reception area just inside the gate to the park was being completed. Portable small cranes that allow people to work on or clean places at the tops of walls like the wall in left field at the ballpark in front of the Jackson Generals' club house were slowly rolling in various places through the facility. Security personnel some experienced, some not as much walked around the concourse, speaking into their walkie talkies and preparing for the Generals' Fan Day. Professional baseball season hadn't officially begun just yet in Jackson, but it was close. "I'm looking forward to it," said Robert Jones, the generals' director of security. "The offseason is long because there's not a lot going on, so this is a good time of year." The Generals and team staff were on hand for it as well. The team gathered in left field for team pictures dressed in white jerseys, pants and caps, an unusual look for the club. "Some teams usually let the starting pitcher choose how the uniforms look on gameday," said Chris Kleinhanz Schulz, who is the new broadcast and media assistant for the team. "I'm not really sure how they chose to do it today when we're not playing but just taking pictures and meeting fans." Kleinhanz Shulz was helping Brandon Leibhaber, the radio broadcaster for the team as well as media relations director. He'd just returned from his first road trip with the team after getting back in the wee hours of Tuesday morning before the off day (kind of a questionable term because of the media/fan events going on in the afternoon) before the team's home opener on Wednesday.A Jackson Generals' staff worker finishes the new Fan Relations booth at the front gate to The Ballpark at Jackson on Tuesday. (Photo: BRANDON SHIELDS/The Jackson Sun) "It was fun and a learning experience for me," said Leibhaber, who's beginning his first season as the main broadcaster for a team. A man in a Seattle Mariners T shirt followed by a family with a couple of children and plenty of memorabilia to sign entered the park with smiles on their faces ready to welcome professional baseball to Jackson for its 18th season in its current form with the franchise that was once the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx. "That field is beautiful!" said one fan about the seemingly flawless outfield and infield in the park with plush grass all around. "Are they allowed to slide into bases in those wholesale sports jerseys uniforms?" said one child noticing the nearly all white apparel. In all, about 300 gambled with the weather with its low hanging clouds and cool temperatures to meet the current crop of Jackson Generals. Those fans met them with the enthusiasm that typically accompanies a perfect record at home. The Generals are set to open their home schedule on Wednesday with a series against the Mississippi Braves. They enter the series with a record of 1 3. The fifth game of their opening series in Jacksonville, Fla., won't count because there was no score when it was called in the seventh inning, but the stats will count for each player's season numbers. http://www.icq-help.de/index.php?page=Thread&threadID=1092284
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