HOF owners promote team unity with night at the park

PHOENIX -- It's not unusual for a softball game to break out during a company picnic. But when management also owns a Major League Baseball team, you can count on your corporate outing to be a little different.

Consider the case of Hall of Fame Racing's little get-together last month at Phoenix, hosted by new team owners Jeff Moorad and Tom Garfinkel. The team gathered at Chase Field on Saturday evening, expecting to take a routine photo. Instead, they were ushered into the visitor's clubhouse, where each locker contained a Arizona Diamondbacks uniform, complete with each team member's name on the back.

Charlie Brown makes the call.

And that was only the beginning of what turned out to be a once-in-a-lifetime event for the crew of the No. 96 car, as they not only got to experience what it feels like to be on the field at a major-league stadium, but to play a four-inning game -- including a public address announcer, scoreboard and video highlights.

Roger Staubach, who played baseball at Navy, even pitched one inning in a winning effort as his squad held off a furious rally by Moorad's team in the final inning, surviving by an 8-6 score.

It wasn't the prettiest game -- there were 13 errors -- although one team turned a rare triple play. The only thing missing was the fans, although a few folks were watching from the restaurant high over the outfield bleachers.

Garfinkel, the Diamondbacks' executive vice president and chief operating officer, said the outing served two purposes: to thank everyone for their hard work this season and to provide an opportunity to bring the team closer together away from the rigors of a race weekend.

"I think the special moment was when they first walked into the clubhouse and saw their jerseys hanging there, a full uniform with their names on it," Garfinkel said. "We purposely didn't tell them because we wanted to have that moment. They thought they were just coming out here for a team picture and we kind of surprised them with the clubhouse experience."

Phillipe Lopez, director of competition, said the team was truly surprised when they found out what lay in store for them.

"If you could have just seen the expressions on their faces, when they walked around the door into the locker room and saw their names on the back of these shirts, all lined up on all the different lockers, that was worth a thousand words," he said.

Members of the team were still in awe afterwards.

"This is probably one of the very best highlights," motorcoach driver Charlie Brown said. "I've been in NASCAR a long time and this is the most fun I've ever had at a gig like this. We were just blown away by it. Our new ownership group, they're really bringing us all together. It was just a lot of fun."

Just like the Diamondbacks, Hall of Fame's over-the-wall gang performs each week in front of thousands of fans. But Lopez said this was a completely different experience.

"We get jaded because we go to the racetrack every week," Lopez said. "And we see it when we invite guests for the first time. If they've never been to a race, you can see it in their face. Their eyes are all big and they're smiling from ear to ear. They look silly the whole time.

Mark Aumann with Phillipe Lopez

So what's it like?

PHOENIX -- Like many kids, I dreamed about playing major league baseball. Unfortunately, like the other 99 percent, I didn't have the talent. So getting to field a few ground balls at Chase Field was a unique opportunity.

Here are a few observations:

The infield dirt isn't dirt at all. It's comprised of very tiny spherical particles several inches thick. Depending on which ballpark you're in, they could be clay, brick dust or even recycled rubber tires. It does allow for more consistent hops, although based on how many times the ball glanced off my glove, you wouldn't have been able to prove it.

The infield grass is like a very firm putting green. One of the coaches said the grass hadn't been mowed since the playoffs, but you could have fooled me. It was barely longer than pool table felt and the base underneath felt like granite slabs.

One surprising thing. While you're in the dugout, the stadium looks huge and commands your attention. But once you're in position on the field and concentrating on the batter and the ball, your mind blocks out everything. You have to force yourself to look up to remind yourself of where you are. Otherwise, it's like fielding grounders at the local park.

The coach said the ability to block out distractions is a skill that major leaguers acquire. However, he also said the atmosphere created by 50,000 screaming fans does make it harder at times.

Interestingly, members of the Hall of Fame team said the same thing happens during pit stops in Nextel Cup races. They are concentrating so intently on their jobs that they can block out everything else happening around them.

-- Mark Aumann

"And it's a shame for us, because we do it 36, 37, 38 times a year and some of us have gotten jaded after 10, 15, 20 years. You take it for granted, what we get to do. What we do is pretty special, too. I think anything on a professional level, any kind of sport including us, it's an honor."

Moorad, chief executive officer of the ballclub, said there are similarities between the two sports.

"Anybody involved in sports is competitive by nature, whether it's playing baseball at Chase Field or being part of the crew out at PIR on Sundays," Moorad said. "It's an experience like none other in life. Especially the team sports, like racing, allow a sense of camaraderie that's unique.

"If we can just foster that even further and show these guys a little more of who we are and what our philosophy is about holding this team together as we move forward, that's good for everyone."

The real key, Moorad said, is to make sure the team understands the basic philosophy of the new ownership group -- and how something like this may pay dividends in the future.

"Putting the right people in place and letting them do their job is a philosophy that I've had throughout my career," Moorad said. "And I certainly believe that competing in the racing world is no different. We're interested in hiring the best-in-class talent, whether it be drivers or crew members, and putting them in place and giving them the resources that they need to do their job at the highest level."

Garfinkel, who impressed onlookers with several line drives during batting practice, agreed.

"One of the core things we want to do at Hall of Fame Racing is build an environment where people are valued and respected, and their ideas are valued," he said. "It's really a team, where people come to trust each other and enjoy spending time together. It's an opportunity to do a little team-building, get everybody together and have a little fun together in an environment that's very unique."

Lopez said the new owners have the ability to bring a fresh viewpoint.

"Our sport is 50-50, part athlete and part machine," Lopez said. "They bring perspective to our team, which is it's all about the people. That's what they want to focus on.

"They don't know anything about cars. They could care less. They told us, 'We're going to hire the best people to work on the cars, so we can't help you there.'

"But when it comes to team building, I think they can show us a lot."

Once dressed, the team stretched, then began a series of clinics, which included infield and outfield drills, batting practice and work in the cages beneath the grandstand. Then the game began.

It started off for fun, but the intensity level picked up significantly after one of Moorad's sons made a tremendous catch on a deep line drive in left field to end the first inning. When you get that many competitive people in one place at one time, not surprisingly, winning suddenly becomes important.

"We needed another three or four innings," said Kyle Coolidge, who handles pit support for Hall of Fame. "We're all real competitive, no matter what we're doing, and we carried it over to here. You don't want to lose."

Coolidge said if the goal of the evening was to build team unity, it worked.

"If that's what they were trying to do, I think they did a very good job at it," he said. "We had an awesome time. It was a blast. Not too long ago, they were playing the playoffs here -- and we're out there running bases. It's pretty cool."

Lopez said it was amazing to see the transformation of his crew from the time they hit the field.

"It's a lot of fun, especially when you haven't played the game in 30 years," Lopez said. "I felt like a kid out there. You've got Roger Staubach playing first. How great is that?

"They figured this would be a good team unity deal, and it worked. All these boys are smiling like they're 9 years old, playing Little League again."