Patch Picks: 5 New Things at Coca Cola Park

The Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs opened its season Thursday against in-state rivals, the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees. If you go to the ballpark, there are several new things to watch for:

1. Manager: The new manager of the Phillies’ Triple-A farm team is former Hall of Fame second baseman , a product of the Phillies’ farm system who enjoyed a Hall of Fame career playing second base for the Chicago Cubs. Now, a rising managerial star, many believe he is being groomed to be Charlie Manuel’s replacement in Philadelphia.
2. Concessions: A new stand called the Bier Garten will sell 16-ounce draft beers from commemorative IronPigs beer steins. It will be located in the former food court area on the first base side of the concourse. The Gyro Company, which recently opened a new restaurant in the Airport Shopping Center, will also have a new stand offering traditional gyros, chicken gyros, veggie sandwiches, falafel and a giant gyro sandwich, “the Zeus.”
3. Food: The IronPigs are touting a much broader ballpark menu selection this year, highlighted by the “3 Little Pigs” sandwich, which we have already renamed New items highlighted on the team’s website include thicker hamburgers (25% larger), a four-ounce Black Angus slaw dog served on a steak roll, bacon-cheese fries, Old Bay fries, a spicy chicken sandwich, Digiorno pizza and waffles and ice cream. The team has also expanded what it calls its Capital BlueCross Healthy Family Fun Menu with some new options including the Buffalo Chicken flatbread and a chicken Caesar wrap.
4. Smart Phone Apps: The team is offering free for iPhone and Android, apps that can enhance the ballpark experience, including pitch-by-pitch descriptions, live audio streaming of the team broadcast, schedules, IronPigs news, a ballpark diagram, social media integration and the ability to order food from your seat.
5. Players: This year’s roster features lots of new names that may be unfamiliar to the casual fan. But seamheads may recognize some of these guys as former big leaguers who are trying to work their way back to “The Show." Pitchers Eddie Bonine, last year a Detroit Tiger, and Jason Grilli, a four-year big league vet working his way back from knee surgery, are on the roster. Veteran big-league outfielders Brandon Moss, Cory Sullivan and Delwyn Young are also on the team. Perhaps most interestingly to Phillies fans, are three experienced big-league second basemen who may be called upon by the big club should Chase Utley not return and the Wilson Valdez thing not work out. We are talking about Kevin Frandsen, formerly of the Giants and Angels; Josh Barfield, formerly of the Padres and Indians; and 10-year veteran Ronnie Belliard, who played for the Dodgers last season.