The second in a series of stories by the staffs of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette focusing on those involved in sports who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic
Both Kyle Stiles and Bill Rogers have been a part of Northwest Arkansas Naturals baseball from their inaugural season in 2008.
They've never swung a bat, thrown a pitch or wore a Naturals uniform. Fans have heard Rogers' voice over the Arvest Ballpark loudspeakers as the primary public address announcer for the first 12 seasons. On the other hand, Stiles is never seen, working behind the scenes in a variety of duties for the Class AA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.
Baseball was supposed to return to Arvest Ballpark in Springdale when the Naturals were scheduled to open the home part of their 2020 schedule Thursday against Corpus Christi.
But there will be no smell of peanuts and popcorn in the air or feeling the anticipation the start of a baseball season brings. Instead, it is on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, and nobody knows when or if it will return this season.
Head groundskeeper Brock White is the only full-time worker who spends much time at Arvest Ballpark these days, Naturals General Manager Justin Cole said. Everyone else on the 14-person staff is working from home for now.
Such is life for most of the 23-person full-time staff just under three hours away to the southeast in North Little Rock, where the Naturals' Texas League counterpart, the Arkansas Travelers, are experiencing the same effects of a delayed season.
The Travs, the Class AA affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, were supposed to open the season with six consecutive home games at Dickey-Stephens Park, including a three-game series last week against last year's Texas League champions, the Amarillo Sod Poodles. Another three-game series against the Frisco RoughRiders was supposed to start Sunday.
"It's weird, because usually this time of year we are just going crazy," Travs General Manager Paul Allen said. "We are flying, working tons of hours and just all fired-up and ready to go for some baseball, and it's just -- we're waiting."
The uncertainty has put some financial strain on some who only work on game days at the ballparks.
Cole said there can be anywhere between 70 and 140 part-time workers on any Naturals game night. Among those are parking attendants, ushers and concession workers.
Stiles, 38, has worn a variety of hats in 12 years, from running the scoreboard and sending play-by-play of the games to Minor League Baseball to serving as official scorer. In the later years, he's run the pitch-clock and the game-day stat program that allows fans to get pitch-by-pitch updates through an app on their smartphone.
A self-described baseball nerd, Stiles has been a familiar face around the park, working around 50-55 games a season over each of the last 12 years.
He works in human resources for Blue Collar Collective, a Northwest Arkansas-based company that deals with plumbing, heating and air during the day, but he admits to still feeling some excitement as he walks into the ballpark.
"You see the people coming in and smelling the grills going and the cotton candy," Stiles said. "Whatever happened earlier that day, whatever you were thinking about -- it stops. You see people are getting ready to watch a baseball game.
"You smile a little bit because you get to be a part of it in some small, weird way. It's a unique vacuum to be in. We're all here because we have some love of baseball."
Stiles said the fact there will be no baseball for some time hasn't become a reality just yet.
"Right now it's not hit me, but it will soon," Stiles said.
Stiles has considered the personal financial ramifications if a significant portion of the Naturals' season is canceled. He usually makes around $2,000 for the season, not an insignificant amount for most people.
"I usually pay off a big bill," Stiles said. "I paid for my knee surgery. I used the money to go on a cruise one year. It's like a financial backboard. I've been doing it for so long I kinda plan on it being there."
Stiles would likely seek other part-time work on weekends if the Naturals lose a significant part of their season.
Guy Smith, who's worked in a similar press box role at Dickey-Stephens Park the past four years, said he's still in a comfortable position financially without the Travs season going on and is optimistic that the games will return at some point.
"So that extra income will just come later," he said.
Smith works as an accountant full time for Arkansas Surgical Hospital, which is about 15 minutes away from Dickey-Stephens Park. Any night the Travs are playing, it's a quick trip over to the ballpark for the 54-year-old.
"It's a chance to see baseball every night that they're in town and ... have a good time with the folks up in the press box," Smith said.
Allen said the Travs would take a significant financial hit should the season continue to be delayed but that the club would be fine in the long run.
"Thankfully the Travs have been very financially responsible, so we're OK, but you want it to end shorter than later," Allen said. "We have told our staff that they'll be paid, so they and their families do not need to worry about being furloughed or laid off."
The Naturals are in a similar position. Cole said the club has no serious long-term concerns from a financial standpoint.
"Short-term we will face the same challenges as most businesses are right now," Cole said. "But we feel long term we are still positioned well to come out of it."
Rogers, who is Arvest Ballpark's PA voice, works for the Springdale Chamber of Commerce, which played a role in recruiting the Naturals to the area from Wichita, Kan., and getting the stadium built.
But baseball and working as a public address announcer are both in his blood. He served as PA for the Arkansas Razorbacks basketball team for several years when they played in Barnhill Arena.
"I love baseball because it's the only sport I played," Rogers said. "Now with the PA, I'm watching the sport I love and helping contribute to the enjoyment of the game for the fans. I don't do it for the money."
This is not the first time Rogers has been affected by the pandemic either. He also officiates high school basketball on the side and earned a state finals assignment. But that was also canceled because of concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
"The disappointment of the season cut short is hurtful," Rogers said. "It's time to turn to baseball and hope to get back out there pretty soon. It's a big part of summer and I can't wait."
Dan and Marilyn Bierwagen went to work at Arvest Ballpark in 2009. They have spent almost all that time working in the ticket office.
The couple has been married 47 years and lived in Northwest Arkansas since 2002. Since the couple have no children, the work at the ballpark fills their time and allows them to meet people.
"We're people people," Dan said. "It's a lot of fun to interact with the patrons of the ballpark."
"It's something to do in the summer. We look forward to it every year."
The Bierwagens, despite both nearing 70 years old, said they had no apprehension about returning to work at the ballpark if it's deemed safe and games begin again.
"I'm old but in good health," Dan said. "We'd go tomorrow if they needed help."
However, Jack Owen -- who's worked at the gates of Travs games scanning tickets for about six years and is less than half the Bierwagens' age at 32 -- expressed some caution about returning to the ballpark in the event that the season is able to start up.
"I wouldn't feel comfortable if I didn't have a mask or gloves on or something," Owen said. "Just to protect the other people mainly. Most of the regular customers are well over 65, so I'd be worried about them."
Trenton Daeschner of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette staff contributed to this story.
Sports on 04/13/2020