Spike the Dog
Retired former mascot of the Massachusetts Mad Dogs
|  |
| 2005
|
Spike the Dog finally acquired a Wiffle-ball bat that matches his collar.
But Spike's alter ego this year busied himself on the public address microphone
in two amateur summer leagues, and so the dog got out less often.
Nashua Pride
The Nashua Pride acquired additional, out-of-town owners in 2005. A casual
approach to selling to groups and to past season-ticket owners had many fans
thinking the primary asset of the club, in the minds of the new owners, was
the notorious lease clause that let the club leave Nashua at the end of 2006
if attendance is bad. Despite a first-place team, games in springtime and in
midweek often put under 500 fans in the grandstand. But the team did reach
out to fans with a modest price reduction, free scorecards and stat sheets,
and both mascots.
The small and very civil audiences created the perfect place for an uninvited
retired mascot to stroll around, sometimes even without a bodyguard. The
ratio of adults to interns in the usher staff was a key factor. However,
Spike the Dog never remained for more than a few innings, as it only took that
long to greet everyone.
The Pride tested its bench in a game on 5-May-05. It was not pretty on the
field, and it was freezing in the stands, so Spike the Dog appeared in the 6th
inning and personally greeted the 300-or-so fans who remained, thanking half
of these again on their way out of the park. On 16-Aug, there were perhaps
500 in the park to see the Long Island Ducks, including many Ducks fans who
came up to Nashua. Spike appeared an hour before game time, and greeted many
on their way into the park, but left after 3 innings.
The team did not print player trading cards, but amateur photographer Bob
"Bluto" Ducharme did a set of his own, barely making them available before the
end of the season. As a separate exercise, he devised the first ever Spike
the Dog trading card, pictured above.
Sanford Mainers
Spike the Dog rooted for the visiting Mill City All-Americans, with which his
alter ego became affiliated, and stood behind the bullpen catcher to distract
a reliever who was warming up. The catcher fetched a wiffle ball from his bag
and pitched to the Dog.
Extracurricular Activity
On 29-Oct-05, Spike the Dog got service (Rolling Rock light with two straws,
end-to-end) at each of two Karaoke bars in Hampton, N.H., though unfortunately
not totally by pantomime. He didn't do any Karaoke, though.
The Future
The Nashua Pride, for whom Spike the Dog is the premier unofficial, uninvited
mascot, switched to the
Can-Am League, with a shorter season,
more local opponents, and a world of possibilities for 2006. The Brockton Rox
are always ready to be outrageous and their new GM issued a warm invitation
"with or without the dog suit." The creators of Spike the Dog now run the
franchise in New Haven and might welcome him back, or at least not throw him
out. So the Dog might follow the Pride on the road--except back to his
birthplace, where he is still not welcome, the North Shore Spirit GM saying at
the end of 2005 that a visit "might not be the atmosphere we're trying to
create." It might not indeed.
Text and images Copyright © 2005 by Spike, Brentwood, N.H., All rights
reserved, except: The dog logo is an adaptation of a trademark of the
Massachusetts Mad Dogs, and the Spike the Dog trading card is Copyright © 2005
by Bob Ducharme.
Return to the Spike the Dog intro page
Return to the Puerto Rican Ballparks home page
Return to Charlie's Big Baseball Parks Page