Thousands show up for Werner Park open house

Storm Chasers' broadcaster Mark Nasser
poses with Vortex at the open house

More than 5,000 anxious fans showed up yesterday for the open house at Werner Park, even though temperatures were in the mid-20s and the wind was quite stiff at times.

“Today we were overwhelmed by the number of people who came,” said Rob Crain, assistant general manager of the Omaha Storm Chasers. “It was great support by the community and how excited they are to see Storm Chaser baseball at Werner Park. We’re excited – it’s just 83 more days until we open the season and open Werner Park for real.”

Fans munched on free hotdogs, posed for pictures with Vortex and Stormy (the new team mascots) and browsed the newly opened souvenir shop. They also had a chance to take a quick tour of the ballpark, learning about its nuances while taking refuge in one of the temperature controlled suites that will be available during the season.

“People have been very positive about the facility and we’re looking forward to a warmer day here at Werner Park,” Crain said.
Crain went on to say there was a line outside the door of the ticket office earlier in the day. A press release from the team later in the day contained the following information about ticket sales:

Perhaps the biggest news of the day was that the Storm Chasers ticket office sold out its full allotment of Diamond Club seats, the most exclusive area of the ballpark in front of the private club. This continues a growing trend at Werner Park, which has seen 7-game and 12-game mini plans sell out in December and the first batch of 20-game mini plans sell out on Saturday as well. In fact, the Storm Chasers had to open up new 20-game mini plan sections during Saturday’s event to accommodate the heavy demand.