Columnist Ron Kantowski: Stars of ‘87 were more interesting

Thursday, April 11, 2002 | 11:43 a.m.

Ron Kantowski's insider notes column appears Tuesday and his Page One column appears Thursday. He can be reached at ron@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4088.

Having spent the better part of Wednesday afternoon in the empty bleachers at Cashman Field, where I must have stood out like the birthmark on Aaron Neville's forehead, I tried to come up with a reason why the Las Vegas 51s of 2002 aren't anywhere near as popular as the Las Vegas Stars of 1987, my first year on the job here.

Oh sure, there were those sophomoric alien newspaper ads of a year ago, and the hot tub along the left-field line that was supposed to combine Charlie Sheen's two favorite pastimes -- baseball and bikinis -- that failed to pass inspection. In fact, I'll bet Bill Veeck is still looking down and laughing at the 51s for the way they botched their new affiliation with the beloved Los Angeles Dodgers.

Where's Eddie Gaedel when you need him?

On the field, the 51s and the Stars before them have been almost as inept. If you're among the minority who believe the success of a minor league baseball franchise is linked to its position in the standings, you may deduce that the reason the 51s can't draw flies is because they can't catch them.

To the best of anybody's recollection (as the team's media guide does not list such pertinent information) Las Vegas has won only two PCL championships in its 19-year history -- none since 1988. And this despite the dubious split-season arrangement that was used for many years that made it twice as easy to qualify for the playoffs.

Next to the perception that Las Vegas resorts have been hurting for business since Sept. 11 (I have yet to park at casino level since the attacks), the biggest myth making the rounds around these parts is that the 51s are wildly successful from a bottom-line standpoint.

But the only reason they're not pushing up daisies with the dozens of other sports leagues and franchises that have tried to make a go of it here is that their parent club pays most of the bills.

And yet, there was a time when Cashman Field was three-quarters filled for baseball on nights where they didn't offer fireworks, be it in the traditional form or 2-for-1 beers.

Which brings us back to soul searching in the bleachers, and why people aren't going to the games like they used to.

This is one instance where you can't blame the tourists. Very few come to Las Vegas to watch minor league baseball, especially when most have major league teams at home.

But regardless of how error-prone the 51s are in marketing the ballclub -- for instance, where were the senior citizens on Wednesday afternoon? -- I believe their biggest problem is the popularity and proliferation of neighborhood casinos.

Think about it: 15 years ago, when the Stars were making the turnstiles sing, their only competition for locals on the utility entertainment front -- you know, slots, blackjack, cheap food and drink -- was Palace Station. And it didn't have so much as a single movie screen, much less 18 of them, as is the case with many of their namesakes.

It's too late now, because he has decided to put a roof over his new sports project and play hockey rather than baseball. But what the 51s need to do is partner somebody like Michael Gaughan, and build a neighborhood casino around a ballpark. Or a neighborhood ballpark around a casino.

Of course, there's always Mayor Goodman's sports pipe dream -- er, plans -- for that parcel of land adjacent to the Union Plaza downtown.

Uh, what was the Cubs' magic number again?