Ron Phaup arrived at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock 3 ½ hours before first pitch Thursday afternoon, seeking autographs, conversing with fellow fans and soaking up the atmosphere of Opening Day.
Phaup drove 95 miles from Danville to catch the Arkansas Travelers' home opener against the Tulsa Drillers and he plans on doing it again 69 more times between now and Sunday, Aug. 25.
But there seems to be something special about the first home game.
"Everything's renewed," said Phaup, who has been a season-ticket holder for the past six years. "You start over. You start fresh. You get to watch new players and you get to rekindle relationships with people you haven't seen since the season ended last September. There's a lot of things to like about it."
"Opening Day should be a holiday," Travelers General Manager Paul Allen said. "I've been in baseball for 15 years and I still get goose bumps when I hear the national anthem before the first pitch. It reminds me of my dad and playing catch in the back yard, It's springtime."
[RECAP: Travs outlast Drillers in wild home opener]
The Arkansas Travelers have returned, starting their 54th consecutive season in the Texas League. And while the Travs are now the oldest team in the league they will be guided by the youngest manager in the league -- 34-year-old Mitch Canham.
The Travs played their first seven games on the road, winning three of four games at Tulsa and sweeping a three-game series at Northwest Arkansas. It's the best start for the Travs since 2015 and it has made some Travs fans optimistic for the rest of the season.
"I'm really excited about it. I really am," said Scott Bona, a season-ticket holder for the last four seasons. "I just hope they can keep it together."
Bona and Phaup are among a group of Travs fans who have already attended two games in Tulsa. Bona said he plans to make a road trip to Frisco and Amarillo later this season.
"It's our summer social thing," Bona said. "From April to September, we know what we'll be doing."
Allen said Travs fans will be treated to more fireworks and extra promotions, the biggest of which is the participation in the "Copa de la Diversion," which serves as the centerpiece of Minor League Baseball's Hispanic fan engagement initiative.
The Travs will have 10 Copa-designated games throughout the season, the first of which comes tonight.
And of course there will be traditional fan favorite promotions such as Clunker Car Night and midget wrestling.
"The fireworks have been really good, but I'm a baseball fan," said Bona, who mentioned that he and his wife Renee attended every game last season. "I enjoy a good game. I don't come here to walk around the park."
Prior to becoming a season-ticket holder, Phaup worked for the Travs, managing the teams' mascots -- Ace and Otey.
"I worked for the Travs for 10 years and I decided I just wanted to watch," Phaup said. "That's when I started buying season tickets.
"I just like baseball. I grew up in Chicago, eight blocks from Wrigley Field. I've had baseball in my blood ever since I was old enough to walk. It's my only vice."
Bona and Phaup are not alone in their love of the Travelers. Allen said there are approximately 40 season-ticket holders every year who attend every home game.
"That's not easy to do," Allen said. "If I didn't work here there's no way I could make all 70 games. While most of us schedule things around our lives, they schedule their lives around baseball. It is who they are."
Today’s game
ARKANSAS TRAVELERS VS. TULSA DRILLERS
WHEN 7:10 p.m.
WHERE Dickey-Stephens Park, North Little Rock
RADIO KARN-AM, 920, in central Arkansas
WEBSITE travs.com
PITCHERS Travs: LHP Anthony Misiewicz (0-1, 1.69); Drillers: TBA
TICKETS $12 box, $8 reserved ($6 kids), $6 general admission ($4 kids). Gates open one hour before first pitch.
PROMOTIONS Diamantes Night. The Travelers are one of 72 Minor League Baseball teams participating in the 2019 “Copa de la Diversion” which is an Hispanic fan engagement initiative. The Travs will play as the Diamantes de Arkansas (the Arkansas Diamonds) and will wear red, green and yellow uniforms and hats. … Magnet Schedule Giveaway and postgame fireworks.
THE WEEK AHEAD
TODAY Tulsa, 7:10 p.m.
SATURDAY Tulsa, 6:10 p.m.
SUNDAY Tulsa, 2:10 p.m.
MONDAY NW Arkansas, 7:10 p.m.
TUESDAY NW Arkansas, 7:10 p.m.
WEDNESDAY NW Arkansas, 11 a.m.
THURSDAY at Tulsa, 7:05 p.m.
Sports on 04/12/2019