Hank Aaron Coming to National Portrait Gallery

Hank Aaron by Ross Rossin (via rossinfineart.com); oil on canvas, 48x48in

Arguably the best baseball player in the world, ever, will be in DC this weekend. Hank Aaron, the former all-time Major League Baseball home run leader, will be at the Smithsonian Institution on Saturday. The National Portrait Gallery is hosting Aaron in order to formerly receive his portrait by artist Ross Rossin. Aaron, who recently celebrated his 80th birthday, will be interviewed by author and journalist Howard Bryant. The portrait is actually already hung, and is on the first floor of the Gallery.

Aaron held the MLB record for most home runs hit from 1974 until 2007, when the record was surpassed by San Francisco Giant Barry Bonds. Bond's record (762 home runs) appears safe for a while; the next closest active players are Alex Rodriguez (654), Manny Ramirez (555), Albert Pujols (492), and Adam Dunn (440). While I admire Bonds, his too-close-but-not-totally-verified links to performance enhancing drugs means that I personally consider Aaron, with 755, the greatest American home run hitter of all time.

From the Smithsonian:

What: Live interview with Hank Aaron hosted by Howard Bryant of ESPN and portrait of Aaron by Ross R. Rossin on view in first-floor gallery

When: Saturday, February 8, 2014 - 12:00pm - 1:30pm

Where: Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium, National Portrait Gallery, Eighth and G streets NW

The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery hosts a living self-portrait with baseball star Hank Aaron in celebration of his 80th birthday. ESPN’s Howard Bryant will host the interview in the museum’s Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium. A portrait of Aaron by Ross R. Rossin was recently installed on the first floor of the museum.

Aaron is senior vice president of Atlanta National League Baseball Club Inc. Before joining the Atlanta Braves’ front office, Aaron enjoyed a 23-year major league career. He holds more major league batting records than any other player in the game’s history. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982. Aaron has received numerous civic awards, including the Presidential Citizens Medal, awarded by President Bill Clinton, and the Medal of Freedom, awarded by President George W. Bush. With his wife Billye, he is the founder of the Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation.

Guest interviewer Howard Bryant is a senior writer for ESPN.com and ESPN the Magazine. He wrote The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron (2010). A journalist for 23 years, he was previously a columnist at the Boston Herald and covered the New York Yankees for the Bergen Record and the Oakland A’s for the San Jose Mercury News. He has also been the sports correspondent for National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition with Scott Simon since 2006.

Photos: Opening Day 2013

Players warm up while fans fill the seats.

There were several new "Division Champs" signs posted around the park.

Even with decoration, the parking lots are still the ugliest part of Nationals Park.

This was a surprise considering you could still buy tix the day before on the Nats website.

Bryce Harper, moments before hitting his second of two home runs.

Post game traffic on South Capitol Street.

Lots of red.

Opening Day!

See you there.

Photo: Full House

40,000+ all here to see the new guy. Last night was a fun night to be a Nationals fan. You can read the game report here, but being there was worth the price of admission, something I couldn't say just a few months ago on opening day. If you missed it, keep an eye out for June 18 or 19 vs the White Sox. You may get a second chance that soon.

Nationals Opener Hardly Worth the Wait, Money

If you've read the blog for a while, you know that I am a pretty big baseball fan. Growing up in Richmond, I was a Braves fan as a child. But, ever since the Nationals came to DC in 2005 I have been a big supporter of our team, even buying multiple game ticket plans the last three years.

Not this year. The opening game was really sad. The 11-1 loss, I can take that. The team has lost over 200 games in the last two seasons, so losing is pretty much a way of life for the foreseeable future. Some teams' fans have endured decades of losing. Even President Obama showed us up wearing a White Sox hat while throwing the first pitch. OK, he is the President, so he gets a lot of latitude.

At 41,290 in paid attendance, the game was a sellout. But the stadium was filled with Philadelphia fans. I don't mean just Phila fans who live in DC. It's normal to have the other city's ex-pats at Nats games; that's how it is in DC. But, literally, thousands of fans came down from Philadelphia, possibly with help from Nats sales staff and policies.

The Phillies fans relentlessly booed the Nationals and cheered the Phils, naturally. Nationals fans a) hardly had anything to cheer for, and b) were literally outnumbered in some sections 2:1 by Phillies fans. What good is it spending my money to attend a game in which I can't even cheer for the hometown team. It is no good. Not worth the wait or dollar. I know a team wants to sell tickets and make a profit, but could the Nationals please be a better partner to the city?

I mean, really Nationals? Really? You were that hard up for ticket sales? I know DC residents who could not get tickets through the normal routes (buying online, day-of $5 seats). So there was still demand in DC. Even if there weren't even one more Nats fan who wanted to buy a ticket, the team couldn't give some tickets to local non profits to distribute to youth? Heck, not even the youth (it was a 1:00pm game!); just any DC fan interested in going. So sad. It can not be overstated: WE; yes, WE built a stadium for use of the team, a private entity. WE paid for the cost overruns, and WE, citizens of DC, put up with the team when they refused to pay rent in 2008.

I am biased because I love baseball so much, yes. And I support the team and think they will be good one day. A better team will make it easier to sell more seats in DC. But, opening day illustrated how bad a corporate citizen the team can be at times. Take the dollar, any dollar. Might as well be the Phila Nationals, or Boston, or New York. If they want to make it here, they'll have to try a lot harder, on the field and in the front office.

Strasburg: Ken Griffey Jr. or Todd Van Poppel?

I used to collect baseball cards. And hockey, basketball, football, even NASCAR and golf. But nowadays, trading cards are dead. And I doubt I'll ever recoup the value of what I paid over the years, even though that's wasn't the original point. I remember getting my hands on a coveted Todd Van Poppel rookie card. He was supposed to be the number #1 pick of the 1990 MLB draft. For different reasons, he was later selected at #14 by the Oakland A's. Anyway, he was supposed to be the next big thing. Just like NHL's Alexandre Daigle or NFL's Tony Mandarich. None of the three panned out like so many hyped stars-to-be do. Van Poppel's value as a pitcher faded quickly as did the want for his rookie cards.

Todd Van Poppel was such a fascinations of mine, in part, because his rookie cards themselves were so hyped. It wasn't so much his actual talent that was lauded, but his potential talent. Not the number of wins he'd produced at that point (in HIGH SCHOOL), but the number of wins he could potentially rack up. And if you got in on the ground floor with the rookie card of a potential legend, you'd be considered prescient, and maybe a little wealthier. I wanted in on the novelty and the few bucks that could possibly come along with cashing in on his potential stardom years down the road.

Enter Stephen Strasburg. The lowly Washington Nationals selected Strasburg as the first player in this year's baseball draft. That means they wanted him over everyone else that was available. The best of the best. And he's playing in DC.

The Washington Post offered articles with titles like The Future Starts Now and A Franchise, and a City, Pin Their Hopes on a Mighty Arm and (jokingly) All Hail Our Right-Handed Savior, Stephen Strasburg.

Who is the face of DC sports right now? Alex Ovechkin, Gilbert Arenas, Clinton Portis? Ovechkin is the most recent DC sports star to make even the non-sports fan pay close attention; to hockey no less. Maybe in time Strasburg will have that type of star power, but that's a high and mighty expectation. All rooted in circumstance and in his potential.

There was another first round draft pick whose rookie cards I also coveted. Chosen #1 overall just three years before Van Poppel. He played way out in the Pacific Northwest and had the same weight of potential talent hung on him, mostly based on his fathers name, Griffey. Junior Griffey has lived up to and exceeded that potential. Expectations surpassed. Did he change Seattle as a city? You could argue that. But no sane person could hold someone like Strasburg to those standards at this point in his pro career (all of three days old). Is it nice to imagine that one person can save a franchise? Yes. Realistic? Not really. That being said, the optimist in me is hoping that whatever he's got to offer, that he offers it sooner than later and give us DC sports chumps something to really cheer about.

Richmond Debating Similar Stadium Issues as DC

Travel about 110 mile south of here on I95 and you'll see a familiar process unfolding. A city which had and lost a beloved baseball team wants to lure another. But standing in the way is the no so hidden elephant in the room: the stadium issue. Richmond, VA was home to the Richmond Braves form 1966 until 2008. The team had been playing in a stadium built in 1985, which once was considered the best in minor league baseball. Fast forward 20 years and not so much. The stadium, named the Diamond, was like our RFK. Serviceable, but with dark, narrow concourses, leaking locker rooms and a lack of revenue producing amenities like bars and quality food outlets. Long story short, the team (and its parent, the Atlanta Braves) wanted the city to construct a new stadium or else. The "or else" happened over the course of late 2007 and early 2008 when the Braves decided to move to Gwinnet County, Georgia, where, surprise, the county was building a new stadium for them at tax payers expense. It actually was a surprise to many.

The Richmond community was left stunned and the mayor (Douglas Wilder), who had not pushed the stadium issue, was partly blamed for the team's departure. Now there is a call for constructing a new stadium for a new team. Many Richmond residents residents are split, just as we were in DC over the construction of Nationals stadium. I would say most DC residents were against spending public funds for stadium construction. The jury is still out in Richmond; the main battle there is over the location of the new stadium. Build on the Boulevard (compare that to our Stadium-Armory area: near the old stadium, not much residential development directly next to the stadium, not downtown). Or, build in Shockoe Bottom (compare to our Near Southeast: will have to destroy a few historic properties, will probably make use of imminent domain, much closer to downtown and next to residential areas). All this to attract a new team, any team.

The team that looks like it will move to Richmond is far from MLB quality. It is a AA team from Connecticut. The former Richmond Braves were a AAA team that saw the likes of Tom Glavine, Ron Gant, Dave Justice, Deion Sanders and Chipper Jones performing during their prime. AA baseball is great, but the team may have to work harder to foster a decent fan base. Sound familiar?

I'm curious to see how the Richmond situation turns out. Occasionally Richmond, my hometown, is good at turning left when it obviously should turn right, missing a golden opportunity. That said, its often difficult to know when walking away from a big commitment will pay off more than taking a chance on a developer's grand plan. Usually a grand plan for a not so small fee. Condos, street cafes and bustling sidewalks around a sparking new stadium? Looks great in the renderings, but as we are learning, that vision may not materialize right away. Or at all. On the other hand, a civic investment on behalf of a private entity (the baseball team owners) could pay off in obvious ways. In regional cache, resident morale and ideally in increased taxes on new business dollars.

Richmond should look to DC, as a case study. Not because we made the right decisions at each turn, but more so to not make the same mistakes that we made along the way. Stadium or no stadium, Richmond will still be Richmond, as DC would have still been a great city without Nationals Park. We had been around since 1790 without Nationals Park and will be around for centuries after it is torn down. Richmond has been around for even longer and a new ballpark will not make or break the city. Just remember that hometown, and good luck.

Season in New Park Ends Painfully

Yesterday the Nationals completed one of the most futile seasons in recent baseball history, on the field and off the field. In what ended up being the last home game, last Wednesday's loss to the Marlins drew 23,299, barely half of capacity. And the string of sellouts predicted by team president Stan Kasten never materialized; the lone sellout was opening night. Nationals Park hasn't seen 35,000+ attendance (about 85% full) since June 29 and ended up hosting 2,492,000 fans this year. They should have hit the 3 million mark in a new park, in this market. There are reasons they did not.

I can forgive head coach Manny Acta and some of the players for their performance. For the most part, they acted professionally and tried as hard as they could. Many were young and the original line up was destroyed by injuries. For sure there were plenty of unforced errors and mental lapses. There were too many bad and mediocre players to amount to much of anything. 100+ loses was foreseen by some, but not locally. We expected better. The Nationals fired 5 coaches last night, but they alone did not account for 102 loses.

I cannot let ownership off the hook. I was a season ticket holder this year, and the economy withstanding, I likely won't be next year. I think the owners need to fulfill some DC resident wish list items before getting the support everyone seems to think they deserve for just existing. We do pay attention not only to how well the team is performing, but in what regard the owners hold the paying customer, many of whom live in the District. Here's my two cents:

1. Pay rent. During a mortgage crisis, in a market where a decent one bedroom rental can approach $2,000, the millionaire owners of the Nationals are on a rent strike. They refuse to pay since the stadium wasn't substantially complete on opening day. The city contends that for all intents and purposes the stadium was delivered on time, March 30. The team even competed in a nationally televised, sold out, opening night, drama filled, presidentially attended, gem of a game that night. I was there! The owners still contend the stadium wasn't complete. I'll repeat my previous offer: If the stadium was "partially incomplete," I'd like a "partially incomplete " refund on each ticket I used this year.

2. Respectfully name the stadium. The team stands to make upwards of $5.0 million per year on naming rights, which they have yet to secure. (In relation, yearly ballpark rent is $3.5 million). Many teams sell naming rights. Its a legitimate revenue stream. However, the owners should name the stadium carefully. ExxonMobile field is not a place I want to see a game. Financial sector names (Deutsche Bank Field, PNC Stadium) seem less and less likely as this bank crisis unfolds. One possibility for RFK naming rights was Army Strong Stadium, or something like that. That didn't fly with DoD, I assume. There are a ton of possibilities, but please, for the love of baseball try to pick a company that's at least in neutral public regard.

3. Show goodwill when working with the City. I know working with DC government officials is hard. Even Fenty can drive a tough bargain, change his mind on an issue, or be stubborn. But when said hard headed entity has already spent more than $600,000,000 on your behalf (building the stadium), you should be jumping through all sorts of hoops for them. Even aside from the rent issue, the team has had a contentious relationship with the city regarding tickets/suites for the council, use of the stadium outside baseball season and infrastructure and enhancement responsibilities. When revenues are down at the park, the city sees less tax dollars. Its in the interest of both to be as efficient as possible when working together. The owners of the Nationals wouldn't have had a chance to even own a team if the city did agree to build a park for Major League Baseball.

4. Spend money to make money. Last place teams are most often at the bottom of payroll rankings. That's true of the Nationals. They ranked 26 our of 30 teams for payroll at $54,166,000 this year. On the flip side, the biggest spender, New York Yankees ($207,000,000) didn't make the playoffs either. We don't have to spend that much, as the Yankees have a dozen or so all-star caliber players. We only need to spend enough for one all star caliber player! One big batter, or one ace pitcher, would give us real baseball fans a reason to come to the park and give the team a reasonable chance to look respectable. No one is expecting a World Series appearance any time soon. But to not be at the absolute bottom of the standings would be nice.

Are Nationals Tickets Too Expensive?

Earlier this year ads placed by the Washington Nationals declared Nationals Park to be "Washington's Newest Monument." It may be a little premature to declare it a monument to baseball, with Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium and Fenway all having slightly more history in the books. It can, however, be declared a monument to capitalism. Its a money making venture to be sure. With 41,888 seats that range from $325.00 to $5.00, three tiers of luxury suites, 4 full service clubs, Build-a-Bear, several local restaurant chains, and beer, beer, beer. And oh yeah, I bought in. Full disclosure: I own a partial ticket plan. I love baseball, and believe it can work in DC. I disagreed with the all-out public financing plan for the stadium; $611,000,000, give or take $10 million depending on who's supplying the numbers. Despite fear-mongering, we weren't close to ending up like Seattle. The Nationals' owners, the Lerner family, are entertainers first and baseball folks second. They know how to make bank, but are still learning how to plan for success on the field.

That being said, what's the value of a ticket? Is paying for a ticket worth the stretch? Are Nationals tickets too expensive? Last week we sat in Section 109U. Its on the field level in the lower bowl (more than half of the seats are in the lower bowl). Third base side and about 50 rows back. Under an awning, about a 2 minute walk form the main gate and a 20 second walk to Ben's Chili Bowl which is located directly behind the section. The massive scoreboard is clearly visible, as are the mostly empty Diamond and Presidential seats (note the blue patches behind the plate in my photo). The walk up price for a seat in Section 109U is $36.00. Where does that rank us among prices for comparable seats around MLB? Glad you asked. I did some research and came up with this chart. These are walk-up prices for regular-priced games in each Major League Baseball park. Since each park has a different configuration, I chose the seats which most closely matched the location Nationals Park Section 109U.

PNC Park: Pittsburgh Pirates Sec 129 $20.00
Tropicana Field: Tampa Bay Rays Sec 131 $24.00
Chase Field: Arizona Diamondbacks Sec 135 $25.00
Progressive Field: Cleveland Indians Sec 175 $26.00
Oriole Park: Baltimore Orioles Sec 70 $27.00

Dolphin Stadium: Florida Marlins Sec 107 $28.00
Angels Stadium: LA Angels of Anaheim Sec 204 $28.00
Kauffman Stadium: Kansas City Royals Sec 137 $29.00
Metrodome: Minnesota Twins Sec 137 $30.00
McAfee Coliseum: Oakland Athletics Sec 129 $30.00

Rogers Centre: Toronto Blue Jays Sec 130C $30.00
Comerica Park: Detroit Tigers Sec 141 $32.00
Rangers Ballpark: Texas Rangers Sec 112 $33.00
Great American Ballpark: Cincinnati Reds Sec 108 $34.00
At&T Park: San Francisco Giants Sec 132 $35.00

Turner Field: Atlanta Braves Sec 126 $36.00
Nationals Park: Washington Nationals Sec 109U $36.00
Miller Park: Milwaukee Brewers Sec 129 $36.00
U.S. Cellular Field: Chicago White Sox Sec 154 $36.00
Coors Field: Colorado Rockies Sec 147 $38.00

Minute Maid Park: Houston Astros Sec 107 $39.00
Busch Stadium: St Louis Cardinals Sec 167 $39.00
Citizens Bank Park: Philadelphia Phillies Sec 138 $40.00
PETCO Park: San Diego Padres Sec 122U $43.00
Safeco Field: Seattle Mariners Sec 148 $44.00

Wrigley Field: Chicago Cubs Sec 104 $50.00
Shea Stadium: New York Mets Sec 258 $56.00
Dodger Stadium: Los Angeles Dodgers Sec 47 $60.00
Yankee Stadium: New York Yankees Sec 24 $60.00
Fenway Park: Boston Red Sox Sec 163 $90.00

Average price for these seats is $37.80. The Nations are right in the middle of the pack. Not surprisingly, teams in larger markets have higher prices. The most expensive seats also belong to teams whose stadiums have attained iconic status within pop culture. Fenway, Wrigley and Yankee Stadium will survive as enduring images long after most of their players have come and gone. Only time will tell if the Nationals will ever get to that place.

Here's another comparison; payroll. While the Nationals rank 18 out of 30 in this ticket pricing exercise, they rank 26 out of 30 for MLB payroll. Which teams have a cheaper payroll? You guessed it, teams which charge less for tickets than the Nationals.

Where it counts; the record. Last year the Nationals finished 73-89, 21st out of 30 teams and next to last in the division. As of today they are 9-17, the worst team in all of baseball.

We do live in a wealthy market. And while I don't buy the idea that $325 seats are necessary anywhere in a baseball stadium, I know that the competition for the sports and entertainment dollar in DC is intense. Good local reviews continue to roll in and even out of town critics have been generally positive about the stadium. As for Section 109U, it seems to have decent value for the price. A good seat on the field level with an average price in relation to the other MLB ball clubs. No Capitol views, but all of the field is clearly visible and you're shielded from the intense sun and any sprinklings of rain. Easy access to Ben's Chili Bowl: I'll let you decide if that's a blessing or a curse...

From the Cheap Seats