Today was the annual Hot Stove event at Nationals Park for season ticket holders. This was different from the second we arrived. Gates were not supposed to open until 1:30 pm, and they opened up gates at 1:10 pm since people arrived early — and the weather was cold. We were expecting snacks (as advertised) and were pleasantly surprised that they were serving lunch — and not just any lunch — this was an assortment of gourmet hotdogs wrapped in bacon, barbecue brisket sliders, and Asian chicken dumplings. Each food item was from new vendors that we will see at Nationals Park in 2025.
There will be 10 new food vendors – all of them are local restaurants and offerings. They had a selection process (think of a Shark Tank competition is what they said) where they invited folks to make a presentation. Five of them will be available to anyone inside the ballpark; the rest might be limited to specific club seating areas. As mentioned above, three of them provided food for the event. DonH sampled all three and declared the Sonoron Hot Dog as his favorite.
The format for the event set general manager Mike Rizzo with former-Nats pitcher Gio Gonzalez in a look back at favorite moments in the Nats’ 20-year history. They spoke for a while then the stage turned over to manager Dave Martinez and Dylan Crews. The moderators were the Nats radio voices of Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler. We also heard from the business side of the Nats with Chief Revenue Officer Mike Carney, Chief Marketing Officer Kimberly Bolt, and Director of Ticket Sales, Ryan Bringger.
For this event, they did not take audience questions. The moderators asked the questions, and we learned from Rizzo that he does not believe he is done with the roster; however, he said it was a slow-moving offseason, and he could be making some moves into Spring Training. That would fit his blueprint from last year when he signed Eddie Rosario in early-March of 2024.
While we are just 18-days before Spring Training camp opens at the Cacti Park at the Palm Beaches, Rizzo mentioned that we are just 61-days to Opening Day. Martinez said there are 15-or-16 players already working out at the West Palm Beach facility.
Martinez spoke about how improving the defense because “defense makes our pitching that much better.” Martinez wants smart aggressive baserunning, and that will score more runs. He wants his players to be more selective at the plate with pitch better recognition which will get the team more walks to get those extra baserunners. Martinez wants his batters to be more productive with runners-on-base and try to get the ball up in the zone — and if you can’t get a hit — make sure the out is a productive out.
Gonzalez talked about his shoe contract with Jordan Brands, his playing time with the Savannah Bananas, his final talk with A’s GM Billy Beane when Gonzalez was traded to the Nationals, and how Gonzalez liked being traded to Milwaukee because there was a roof on the stadium, and Gonzalez said he hated rain delays and wishes there was a roof on Nationals Park.
Crews said that when he went to Italy to get engaged that “she was giving me a bunch of crap” because he wanted to get into the batting cage and work-out in the gym. Martinez said that Crews forwarded him workout videos, and he was happy to see him working hard this offseason.
Martinez said that he had a pipe burst at his farm in Tennessee, and the original plan was to fly to West Palm Beach tonight, but instead he has to take care of the broken pipe then he will fly to Florida on either Tuesday or Wednesday.
There were several raffles for attendees. A signed Rizzo hat, signed jerseys from Gio and Dylan and more. The final one was a behind the scenes tour that Davey offered. Visit his office, batting practice all the background prep that goes into getting ready to play the game. When the person who won she (Iris Henley), came up to the stage to collect it, Davey got down on his hands and knees to talk to her. A very nice moment.
After the event Andrew, Don and others had conversations with Mike Carney (Head of Revenue) and Ryan Bringger (Director of Ticket Sales) about a number of ballpark experience issues. They commented that there will be more post-game concerts, and more effort for better service with the concession stands. The details on how many concerts and the final details are still being worked on. They were very happy with the results in 2024 as they saw the concerts were bringing new fans to the ballpark.
We also discussed the whole issue of the ballpark experience. Carney asked if it was better in in 2024 and appeared to be a bit surprised when Don said no, adding that taking 2-3 innings to get food was a bad thing. Carney added that they have visited other parks and are working on improving the experience. Petco Park is one they have visited. If that is their target, that is a very good thing.
