TOLEDO, Ohio — Mud Hens Opening Day is a chance for thousands of northwest Ohioans to come to Fifth Third Field, a stadium that's now been around for 20 seasons.
Many fans have been coming to the ballpark from the very beginning.
"We started coming the first year the park was here, so 20 years. I remember when the park first came in place it was just awesome. They made some changes along the way but it's a great venue to come to," Dennis Swary said.
It's a day to not only watch baseball, but to celebrate a city that's on the rise.
"Just to come back and realize how good the city of Toledo is and how prosperous it is, is really astounding. They've really put a lot of money into what they have going on downtown here, and that means a lot to me as a Toledoan," Austin Gibbs said.
More bars, restaurants and people are downtown than ever before.
"I live right down the street so I get to look at the stadium every day. I really enjoy it. And I look forward to attending many games this summer," Rob Cavalear said.
So are the thousands of other baseball fans in Toledo hoping to move past the days of COVID-19.
"It's so much fun to come down here. There's so much going on downtown. There's more and more all the time. It's nice to see the energy coming back to what it was before a couple of years ago," Kathy Atkinson said.
It's been almost a quarter-century of fans coming to see the Mud Hens play.
What started as a baseball stadium is now the heart of downtown Toledo, breathing more life into the Glass City.
The Mud Hens continue their homestand versus the Rochester Red Wings through Sunday.
First pitch on Wednesday is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
