Cardinals Open Preseason with Scrimmage, Leadoff Dinner
January 27, 2018 | Baseball
Annual event featured message from Dan McDonnell, interview session with featured guests Adam Engel and Kyle McGrath
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The 13th-ranked Louisville baseball team officially opened preseason practice for the 2018 season Friday with an afternoon scrimmage at Jim Patterson Stadium, while the 22nd annual Leadoff Dinner presented by Republic Bank later that evening capped an entertaining opening day of activities.
The Cardinals, ranked in the top 25 in five preseason national polls, used the first day of practice on the diamond to conduct an eight-inning scrimmage under sunny skies on a warm day at the corner of Third and Central. Following the scrimmage, players and coaches made the short drive from the ballpark to the Louisville Marriott Downtown where a crowd of more than 650 fans attended the Leadoff Dinner. Louisville baseball alumni Adam Engel (OF, Chicago White Sox) and Kyle McGrath (LHP, San Diego Padres) were the featured guests for this year's event after both players made their Major League Baseball debuts in 2017.
This year's edition of the Leadoff Dinner included a season-opening message from Cardinals head coach Dan McDonnell as well as remarks from UofL interim director of athletics Vince Tyra. The event began with the introduction of the 2018 Louisville baseball team while later in the evening, Lonnie Ali introduced junior lefthanded pitcher Adam Wolf as the recipient of the third annual Muhammad Ali Leadership Scholarship. The Leadoff Dinner also featured a video tribute to Todd Esser, a beloved friend and supporter of the Louisville baseball program who passed away unexpectedly in July 2017.
The 2018 Louisville Baseball Leadoff Dinner presented by Republic Bank was the 12th under the guidance of McDonnell, who has placed the Cardinals among the nation's elite programs with four College World Series berths, seven NCAA Super Regional appearances, 10 NCAA Regional bids, eight regular season conference championships, two conference tournament titles, 34 All-Americans and 509 wins overall in his 11 seasons.
Since its debut in 1996, the Louisville Baseball Leadoff Dinner helps launch the baseball season by bringing some of the biggest names in the game to the Derby City. Last year's event was headline by a quartet of Cardinals alumni in New York Yankees pitcher Chad Green, Los Angeles Angels pitcher Cody Ege, pitcher Dean Kiekhefer from the Seattle Mariners and pitcher Matt Koch of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Other previous guests include Adam Duvall, Jose Bautista, Josh Hamilton, Andy Pettitte, Joe Girardi, Derek Jeter, Don Mattingly, Alex Rodriguez, Tino Martinez, Scott Rolen, Tommy Lasorda, Chris Coghlan, Jeff Francoeur, Sean Green, Nick Swisher, Adam Wainwright, Chris Burke, Chris Dominguez, Justin Marks, Trystan Magnuson, Zack Cozart, B.J. Rosenberg and Rick Sweet.
The No. 13 Cardinals will open the 2018 season on Feb. 16-18 in Charleston, South Carolina with a trio of games at The Charleston Crab House Challenge hosted by The Citadel at Joseph P. Riley Park. Louisville will face Richmond on Feb. 16 at noon ET, The Citadel on Feb. 17 at 3 p.m., and George Mason on Feb. 18 at 11 a.m. The 2018 home-opener for Louisville is set for Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m., ET at Jim Patterson Stadium against Eastern Kentucky.
2018 LOUISVILLE BASEBALL SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2018 Louisville baseball season are on sale now and can be purchased online at GoCards.com/bsbtickets, by calling 502-GO-CARDS or by visiting the Louisville Cardinals Ticket Office, located near Gate 2 at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium (2800 South Floyd Street) on weekdays from 9 a.m., until 5 p.m.
Reserved chairback ticket packages are priced at $150 for adults (less than $4.50 per game), $120 for senior adults/youth (less than $4 per game) and $480 for a Family 4-Pack (less than $4 per game per ticket). Season tickets for the Left Field Berm are also available at $100 for adults (less than $3 per game), $80 for senior adults/youth (less than $2.50 per game) and $320 for a Family 4-Pack (less than $2.50 per game per ticket).
Single game tickets for the 2018 season will be priced at $10 for reserved chairback and $5 for berm and will be available for purchase at a later date. Season ticket packages include all regular season home games at Jim Patterson Stadium with the exception of the annual Elementary School Day game, played each March during a weekday afternoon. For Elementary School Day, season tickets will provide admission to the game but will not include a reserved seat.
With a listed capacity of 4,000, Jim Patterson Stadium has hosted six crowds of more than 6,000 fans in the last two seasons, including three in 2017. Fresh off a fourth trip to the NCAA Men's College World Series and third straight ACC Atlantic Division Championship, Louisville baseball has become the must-see event for Cardinals fans in the spring.
FOLLOWING THE CARDINALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter (@UofLBaseball) at http://twitter.com/uoflbaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
