By Anthony DeAngelis
Correspondent

MANCHESTER — If you thought bringing a family of four to watch professional baseball wouldn’t be feasible in such hard economic times, think again.
The New Hampshire Fisher Cats minor league baseball team provides one of the most affordable and entertaining forms of family recreation in the Granite State.
Located just minutes off the highway, along the banks of the Merrimack River in downtown Manchester, are the comfy confines of Merchantsauto.com Stadium, home to the Fisher Cats, the Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays major-league club.
The Fisher Cats are one of only two Double-A baseball teams in New England, the other being the Portland Sea Dogs in Maine, the Boston Red Sox affiliate.
However, it’s not just the park’s location and the quality of play that draws fans, but also the family atmosphere that goes with the minor league baseball experience.
Whether it’s the low prices on tickets or the abundance of activities and games offered for both children and adults, the Fisher Cats provide a family experience that major league organizations just can’t match.
“People can afford this. Kids can play, get an ice cream and watch the game for the price of one ticket at Fenway Park,” said David McCarthy, executive director of the newly added Ted Williams Museum at the park. “You can come here for less. Now that’s not a knock on Fenway, but it’s a good alternative.”
The team is now offering an exclusive “Fisher Cats Four Pack” of four tickets, four hot dogs, four drinks and four bags of chips for $30, a perfect alternative for families.
Even if you don’t go with the “Fisher Cats Four Pack,” tickets to any game cost only between $6 and $12. And most of the food items available at concessions won’t cost you more than $5 each, unless you decide to order a “Kiddie Combo,” which comes with a hot dog, French fries and a small soda for $6.75.
If that doesn’t make your wallet dance, there is a many more affordable ticket packages that include games in which the Fisher Cats take on the Sea Dogs (John Smoltz pitched a rehab start for the Red Sox last week), to bobblehead giveaways, and games that feature an Atlas Fireworks Show.
Parking won’t set you back much either, as the varied lots around the stadium cost no more than $10.
“It’s affordable, convenient entertainment,” said Rick Brenner, president and general manager of the Fisher Cats. “Those three components go into what we do every night. We try to build layers of reason for people to come.”
So far, it’s worked, as the team drew a total of 373,227 fans to the ballpark in 2008. Their biggest game came when they hosted the 2008 Northeast Delta Dental Eastern League All-Star Game, which featured the top players in the Eastern League and drew a record-setting crowd of 8,762.
On June 16 of 2007, the team set a franchise single-game record when 8,227 fans saw the Fisher Cats beat the Erie Sea Wolves. Nine days later, the team established a franchise-record seventh consecutive standing-room-only crowd of 6,831 when the Fisher Cats hosted the Portland Sea Dogs.
Patrick Bettens, 32, of Concord attends a few games a year with his two sons. Unfortunately for him, his sons don’t enjoy watching the game as much as they like hanging out at the Bugaboo Creek Kids Area, where there is an inflatable giant slide and bounce house.
“My kids love it. They look forward to it,” said Bettens with a smile as his son Travis, 7, tumbled down the inflatable slide during a recent game against the Trenton Thunder. “I try to get them into baseball, but they only have so much of an attention span.”
Aside from the Bugaboo Creek Kids Area, the main concourse of the stadium has plenty of activities to keep kids busy. One of the most popular locations is the Prize Wheel, where kids can spin a wheel for a dollar and land on varied spots such as strike, single, double, triple, home run and grand slam to receive a prize. The better the hit, the better the prize, but the main catch is that contestants can’t lose, because even landing on a strike merits another spin of the wheel.
“He’s addicted to this wheel,” said Steve Janiak, 46, of Chelmsford, Mass., as he watched his 11-year-old son Eric rummage through the pile of mini-team pennants scattered across the table moments after he landed on a single. Eric settled on the Houston Astros, his little league team. “He wanted the team he plays for,” said his father.
Another hot spot is the Sullivan Tire and Auto Service Speed Pitch, which for the same price as the Prize Wheel allows children and adults alike to take a shot at lighting up the radar gun by seeing how fast they can throw a baseball.
One of the more intriguing additions to the concourse this season is the Ted Williams Museum, a smaller version of the main exhibit located at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. The exhibit highlights the lives of Williams and many other great hitters in baseball history. It is free and allows visitors the chance to view an array of artifacts and pictures of some of baseball’s best. It also pays to tribute to past Red Sox players and professional baseball players born in New Hampshire.
“We thought we’d bring a little taste of our museum down in Florida up here,” McCarthy, the museum director, said. “It’s a little touch of home, and it’s got a little bit of everything.”
The fun doesn’t stop there, as the varied on-field promotions keep the action going even between innings or during breaks. Accompanied by a public address announcer calling the action, fans can sit tight watching contestants battle it out in everything from sumo wrestling to musical chairs, with winners receiving prizes for their efforts. All the while, the team’s four mascots — Crazy Hot Dog, Rah-lee Llama, Fungo and Slider — are close at hand, cheering on the team and keeping kids and families entertained.
From promotions and giveaways to quality baseball at an affordable price, the Fisher Cats provide professional baseball fans an entertainment experience unlike what they would see at the major league level.
“Our whole thing is our customer,” Brenner said. “We want them to just have a good time and escape from the world.”

IF YOU GO
What: New Hampshire Fisher Cats baseball
When: Now through early September
Where: Merchantsauto.com Stadium, 1 Line Drive (off Exit 5 off I-293), Manchester
Tickets: $6-$12. To purchase, call 641-2005 or go to www.nhfishercats.com