It's Summer Time, But There's no Pro Ball in Richmond

As the summer begins and the dog days of August come into view, the city of Richmond lacks the summer's daily and familiar sounds of bats of cracking bats and pounding gloves.

Spending the year without a professional baseball franchise, after the Braves AAA ball club moved on to Georgia following last season, Richmond's lack of support for professional franchises threatens to send the city into professional sports obscurity.

The question is why though?

Virginia is a more than adequate producer of athletic talent. Players from the Commonwealth are littered throughout the 4 major professional sports, from Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers to Allen Iverson and the more infamous Michael Vick.

Perhaps athletic talent doesn't breed an interest in professional sport, but then what can we see that makes Richmond different from other sports towns?

There are two glaring reasons among others. One is geography, and one is population. Together these two factors are what have made Richmond a sub-par home for even AAA baseball.

It's just a fact that the best sports towns in America are in the north. These areas of the U.S. that deal wit harsh winters are just more interested in professional sports. It looks much more appealing to go to a basketball or hockey game rather than play a pick-up game when the temperature is 25 degrees outside.

Also, the combination of the cold air and dense population seems to breed professional success for sports franchises. The majority of athletes are bread in the not so densely populated and warmer parts of this country. From the incredible amount of Dominicans in the Major Leagues, to the afore mentioned Verlander (from Goochland), the list goes on and on. Athletes are born from the opportunity to play. And while there are success stories from the inner cities, there is just not as much opportunity to get involved playing a sport when suburban areas are packed so densely, with the exception of basketball.

In the end, one of Richmond's best qualities may prove to be a glaring weakness. The amount of opportunity to take part in athletics in the beautiful surrounding communities makes supporting a professional franchise difficult here. Parents, children and the local communities are too busy supporting their own dreams as little league as they may seem (All puns intended).

Their is no doubt, that given the right attention by the city government, and given the right marketing and advertising niche, a franchise could be successful in the Richmond area. But the work is cut out for the team that hopes to succeed.