St. Paul Saints always have the last laugh

June 8, 10:50 AMSouth St. Paul ExaminerRob Shirk

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Al Franken and Norm Coleman photo by minnesotaindependent.com

A guy is getting a haircut while elsewhere a woman is getting a massage. A pig appears bringing game baseballs to an umpire between innings and gets a treat.  Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. There's a baseball game going on.

St. Paul has always had a love affair with baseball and the St. Paul Saints in one form or another go back to 1884. There has not been too many breaks in time where there has not been minor league baseball in the Capital City.

In a gem of a ballpark under the sun and sky baseball is being played in it's unadulterated form. Baseball takes second place to the experience, however, of the over the top humor and promotions that occur at every home game. There is always something going on.

In May of this year the Saints had a giveaway of bobble-head dolls in the form of Count von Count (Sesame St.) with Al Franken and Norm Coleman as duo heads. Fans were asked to spin the heads and attorneys scattered throughout the stadium "counted" the votes. You could appeal the results at the Fans Service desk throughout the game. The score of the game with the Sioux Falls Canaries will not be officially counted until the Minnesota Supreme Court rules on the interminable U.S. senate election.

A couple of years ago, The Saints gave away dog chew toys after the Michael Vick dogfighting case was becoming known.

The Sen. Larry Craig affair at the Twin Cities' airport involving allegedly homosexual acts in one of the airport bathrooms prompted the Saints to give away bobble-feet dolls at the game, two feet visible under the door of a bathroom stall. It was National Tap Dance Day, after all.

Other targets include Bud Selig, the Minnesota Vikings "Love Boat" scandal, Randy Moss hood ornaments, and well, you get the idea. The games are affordable,  the baseball is pretty good, the food is OK, and with the Minnesota Twins holding down the major leagues in Minneapolis, those who want a different flavor to the grand old game can amble over to my neighborhood and catch a game against the Wichita Wingnuts or somebody else in the Independant American Association and have just a really good time. This is not to say you can't have a great time watching the Minnesota Twins, but you know...

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