Dodgers Holding Armenian Heritage Night

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Through a promotional code (ARMENIAN), the team is offering a ticket special for See More the honorary night. Left field pavilion tickets will be $14 (original price $20) and preferred field box seats will be $26 (original price $40). text by MANOUK AKOPYAN When the ownership group led by Magic Johnson purchased the Los Angeles Dodgers back in March, they promised to bring back the product and brand fans had grown accustomed to over the last 54 years. In a five-month span since, they have made leaps and bounds on the field – they acquired nine players and added over $300 million in additional payroll for a pennant run. Now, they have moved their efforts to the community. For the first time in franchise history, the Los Angeles Dodgers will be holding Armenian Heritage Night against the defending World Series Champions St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, September 14. Through a promotional code, the team is offering a ticket special for the honorary night. Left field pavilion tickets will be $14 (original price $20) and preferred field box seats will be $26 (original price $40). After the game, as has been customary for Friday night home games this season, fans will be able to walk on the field and enjoy a fireworks show. newsletter signup E-MAIL CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS Glendale City Clerk Ardashes Kassakhian became one of the principle organizers involved in the project once he found out the original date was moved towards the end of the season. “The game is going to be a great night for families and all of our Armenian baseball fans,” Kassakhian said. “Through the great Armenian grapevine, I hope to see a lot of them come out with their family and friends on September 14.” Afton Kurth, Manager of Group Sales for the Dodgers, said that the Dodgers have been planning Armenian Heritage Night for the last couple of years, and are happy its finally seeing fruition. “Our main goal is to honor the Armenian community in Los Angeles and have them thinking about baseball, and the Dodgers,” said Kurth. “We want to give our fans a new and different family-friendly environment.” The Dodgers are not the only Southern California sports franchise in recent years to honor the Armenian populous in Los Angeles. Since 2009, the Los Angeles Kings have had Armenian Heritage Night four straight years. The Los Angeles Galaxy and the NCAA Men’s Pac-12 Basketball Tournament have held versions of the night as well. Before the Dodgers were purchased by a group of investors largely financed by the Guggenheim Partners, the team was in bankruptcy. In protest, fans were glaringly missing in a half-empty poll stadium, the product on the field was meagerly competing, and their community relations had taken a severe hit under the McCourt regime. Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.

converted by Web2PDFConvert.com Now, they have reason to return to Dodgers Stadium. In a month’s span, the Dodgers bolstered their roster by acquiring proven veterans with infielder Hanley Ramirez, outfielder Shane Victorino, along with pitchers Joe Blanton, Brandon League and Randy Choate. Then, in a blockbuster waiver-wire deal with the Boston Red Sox, they pulled off the largest trade in franchise history by acquiring first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, center fielder Carl Crawford, right-handed pitcher Josh Beckett and infielder Nick Punto. In a statement released through the team, General Manager Ned Colletti said, “We continue to do everything in our power to strengthen our team for the stretch drive in an effort to reach the postseason. This trade today exemplifies ownership’s commitment to making the team as good as possible not only for 2012 but for many seasons to come.” With both the Cardinals and Dodgers still in contention to win their division titles or one of two wild card spots, Dodgers Stadium will certainly play host to a playoff-like atmosphere. Tickets for the September 14 game can be purchased through the Dodgers website by clicking on the link here. The offer code is: ARMENIAN. There is also a Facebook page for the event and a website, created by Shant Sahakian of Sedna Solutions, a marketing and design firm. For more information on Dodgers Armenian Heritage Night, call (323) 224-4285 or email [email protected].

— [email protected] Your Trusted Source for Armenian News — ARMENIANS IN BASEBALL Steve Bedrosian The most notable Armenian to ever play professional baseball was pitcher Steve Bedrosian, a fourteen-year veteran who saved 40 games for the Phillies and won the 1987 Cy Young Award. As a member of the Twins in 1991, he was also a World Series Champion. He made three relief appearances in the series. Bedrosian retired in 1995 with a career record of 76-79 in 732 games, and 184 saves. Chuck Essegian In a six-season career with five teams, Chuck Essegian hit .255 with 47 home runs and 150 RBI in 1018 games. His most significant accomplishment came when he hit two pinch-hit home runs in the 1959 World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers, a record that still stands today. Essegian also hangs his hat on being one of only two men to have played in both the Rose Bowl (Stanford, 1952) and the World Series. Essegian has remained active over the years in various Dodgers community related programs. Tim Kurkjian Tim Kurkjian is one of the individuals featured on the “Armenian Faces” of the website. Kurkjian, an ESPN analyst and lifelong baseball reporter, was interviewed for a feature story in the May/June 2011 issue of Yerevan Magazine. Matt Vasgersian Matt Vasgersian is a play-by-play announcer and studio host for MLB Network. Prior to joining MLB Network, Matt was the Padres’ lead play-by-play announcer for seven years. Vasgersian previously manned the Brewers’ broadcast booth for five seasons as well. Since 2005, Matt has been the voice for the video game MLB The Show.

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