For fans and management alike, with so much of professional sports now indistinguishable from other high-powered enterprises, where can one turn for an affordable and quality sports experience? Ask Frank Burke (MBA '87), owner of the Chattanooga Lookouts Double-A minor league baseball team, who keeps two live camels wearing Lookouts baseball caps behind his centerfield fence and finds life just fine far from "The Show." "The minor leagues are everything I love about the sport and its ambiance," Burke explains. "Here, I do everything from popping popcorn at the concession stand, to dragging the tarp out on the field when it rains, to greeting the fans as they enter the park. "Our parent club, the Cincinnati Reds, pays our players," Burke continues. "That leaves us free to concentrate on optimizing the ballpark experience rather than the won-lost record. From the point of view of management, that's the biggest difference between us and the major leagues." Part of the optimum ballpark experience, Chattanooga LookoutsÐstyle, means children pay $2 for admission to historic, 7,500-seat Engel Stadium, and fans can enjoy an all-you-can-eat picnic dinner for $6.50. Although quality baseball remains the centerpiece, virtually every game has something extra going on - Burke calls it "promotion and commotion" - to lure fans to the park. "We offer an affordable evening of family fun that's perfect on a warm summer night," says Burke. Burke and his partners bought the Lookouts for an undisclosed sum in 1994 (at the time, Double-A teams were going for $3.5 to $4 million; last year, two new Double-A franchises were awarded for $4.5 million each). The Lookouts' revenues, divided roughly in thirds, stem from concessions and souvenirs, advertising, and ticket sales. "It's not the Fortune 500, but our financial picture is healthy enough," says Burke. "Besides, I get to go to work in a ballpark every day. What could be better than that?" by Garry Emmons |