Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
In late May, I embarked on a South Carolina-based road trip that began at Fluor Field, home of the Greenville Drive -- High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. The plan was to see a game, of course, but a heavy rainstorm just prior to the scheduled first pitch put a kibosh on the evening's South Atlantic League action.
I still have plenty to share, however. I always do.
I arrived at the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport earlier in the day, realizing that it was the rare airport to represent two Minor League cities in its name. (I visited the Hub City Spartanburgers, currently in their inaugural season, the following month.)
The airport's allegiances are currently tilted toward the Drive, as this display attests.
That ballpark in miniature makes it clear that not only are the Drive a Boston affiliate, but that Fluor Field is modeled after Fenway Park. The team arrived in Greenville in 2005 after relocating from Columbia, S.C., where they were known as the Capital City Bombers. They played as the Greenville Bombers that inaugural season, changing their name to the Drive in '06 (the same season that Fluor Field opened in downtown Greenville).
The Drive moniker references Greenville's rich automotive past and present. Another name that was strongly considered at the time was the Joes, in honor of native South Carolinian and longtime Greenville resident Shoeless Joe Jackson.
The Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum, located in a house built by Joe and his wife Katie in 1940, is across the street from the ballpark on its first-base side. The house, which Joe lived in until his death in 1951, was originally located approximately two miles away.
I've visited the museum in the past, but these days its hours are very limited (Saturday, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.). Hopefully this will change soon, especially given the increased interest in Jackson's career following his removal from baseball's permanently ineligible list.
You'll find the museum within an area now known as District 356, whose name references Jackson's lifetime batting average. The Drive now host "Saturdays on the District" before every Saturday game, featuring live music, kids' activities, food and drinks.
Going deeper into downtown Greenville's Russian nesting doll of Shoeless Joe references: The centerpiece of District 356 is .408 Jackson, a 227-unit apartment building. (Jackson hit .408 in 1911, the highest mark of his career.)
I toured .408 Jackson with the building's business manager, Emanuel Dudley. There is a baseball theme throughout the building, he said, "to match the aesthetics of the community."
Baseball art adorns the walls, for example, and 12 baseballs are hidden throughout the building's common areas. The pool is even shaped like home plate.
The units with less obstructed field views are occupied, but the view from this empty apartment was still pretty good. Decent place to live if you’re a fan of postgame fireworks.
Might as well enter the ballpark instead of peering into it from across the street.
This is the vantage point from Fluor Field’s Green Monster seats.
And, even better, this is the view from The Rooftop. It can accommodate groups up to 90 people and has a private bar, concessions and restrooms. I'd love to watch a game here.
New locker rooms were added to Fluor Field in 2023. The hallway leading to them still had that new locker room smell.
Out on the field I ran into my old pal Reedy Rip-It, who was born 20 years ago on the banks of the Reedy River.
A mascot on the field is generally a harbinger of a baseball game soon to come. That was the plan, and everything looked to be on schedule and then…never mind. A storm was a coming, that was the word, and the tarp was put on the field.
As the skies grew more and more ominous, it occurred to me that I should track down my Designated Eater, and fast! Fortunately, he was easy to find, for he was the man wearing a hot dog suit.
The man wearing a hot dog suit, his name is Tyler Leinbach. He lives about an hour south of Greenville, in similarly named Greenwood, and wears a hot dog suit to every game. He started doing this over a decade ago when he was living in Asheville, thinking simply that it would be a fun thing to wear at a Tourists game.
"It was a big hit, and people were asking to take my picture, so I thought, 'This will be my thing now,'" he explained. "I have multiple costumes, but this one [I'm wearing today] is the OG. It has Reggie Jackson's autograph on it."
A beautiful array of ballpark food was hastily assembled for us in the right-field picnic area. The storm had arrived, the game had been called and the kitchen would soon close, so this all came together in the nick of time.
First, Tyler tried the Double Pimento Bacon Smashburger.
"The hot dog loves a good burger and this is a good burger," said Tyler. "This is a very Southern burger with the pimento cheese, and who doesn’t love bacon?"
Next up, a Philly Cheesesteak.
Tyler: "I like how the steak is nicely thinly shaved, and the cheese, onions and peppers all blend together well. I don’t know how authentically Philly it is, but it’s very tasty."
Finally, the moment that just had to arrive. The man in the hot dog suit, eating a hot dog. This one was topped with baked beans.
"Hopefully this isn’t a direct relative of mine," said Tyler, and then he took a bite. "Cannibalism never tasted so good."
And with that memorable quote, my night in Greenville ended. The rain had stopped and it had turned into a pleasant evening, but no baseball would be played.
Good night from Greenville and thank you for reading the only newsletter that will give you extensive coverage of a Minor League Baseball rainout.
For more on Fluor Field and every MiLB stadium, check out our Minor League Ballpark Guides, presented by Wyndham.