The minor league team reliably drew a few hundred
to the stately stadium with the brick facade
and a seating capacity of over six thousand.
Some nights, the park was half or more full,
but not because of last season’s title, the new Japanese pitcher,
the new division rival or the new home jerseys with the new color scheme.
It was the promotions that always packed them in:
dollar hot dog night, Star Trek night, The Office trivia night,
dig up a diamond in the infield night, and of course the fireworks on the Fourth.
This year, the Independence Day game got rained out in the third,
deluged in a downpour as lightning lit up the sable sky,
providence preempting the tawdry artillery with its own fireworks show.