CELEBRATION BEGINS: Biscuits open 20th home season tonight

Mason Auer and the Montgomery Biscuits open the home portion of the 2024 season tonight against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. It begins a celebration of 20 seasons of the franchise. (File Photo)

By TIM GAYLE

Twenty years and counting!

The Montgomery Biscuits hold their 2024 home opener on Tuesday at Riverwalk Stadium, setting off a celebration of 20 years of Biscuit baseball in the Capital City.

“You can’t go wrong with the home opener,” Biscuits shortstop Carson Williams said. “That’s where you’re going to be playing every other week, that’s where your fans are. It’s where everyone loves you. So I always think it’s special when we get to do that first home opener.”

Williams is the most highly rated Biscuit prospect on the team, but as usual, there are plenty of future Major League players on the roster. Pitchers Keyshawn Askew, Jeff Belge, Antonio Menendez, Evan Reifert, Austin Vernon and Alfredo Zarraga are among those who will join returning Biscuit hurlers Logan Workman and Cole Wilcox, along with former first-round and Tampa Bay pitcher Brendan McKay.

Catchers Dominic Keegan and Kenny Piper, along with Williams and Willy Vasquez in the infield, give the Biscuits a talented lineup that should have the team in contention for a ninth consecutive trip to the postseason.   

“This group is special,” Williams said. “This group jells really well. We’ve been coming up (through the ranks) with each other since 2021, since we all got drafted. This team is going to be really good this year and I’m really excited to see what they do.”

The team will be managed by first-year skipper Kevin Boles, who will replace Morgan Ensberg (2019-2023) as the Biscuits’ manager.

“This is a league I’ve never experienced,” Boles said. “A lot of these players are coming up (from Single A) -- some have been at this level -- but it’s always exciting. Opening Night with the crowd and the vibe, I hope we can continue that throughout the year.”

 The Biscuits are 1-2 after a pair of one-run losses to Biloxi and will open the first homestand against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, the team that defeated the Biscuits in the 2023 divisional playoffs.  

“You want to play well in front of your crowd,” Boles noted. “Especially your home opener, that’s a special night, but we want the fans to come out and enjoys themselves and watch quality baseball. They’ve got a choice of what their entertainment is and we don’t want to disappoint them.”

First pitch is 6:35 p.m., with gates opening an hour earlier. The first 1,000 fans will receive a free rally towel on “Tacos and Tallboys” night. The first of many MAX fireworks shows will take place after the game.

The entire homestand will feature promotions each night, including “Military Wednesday” with admission, food and drink discounts for active, veteran and retired military personnel; the weekly “Thursday Thursday” with discounted draft and souvenir sodas that will include a “20 Years of Biscuits” T-shirt giveaway to the first 1,000 fans; a Riverwalk Stadium replica giveaway on Friday to the first 1,000 fans; a “Flashback to 2004” night on Saturday that includes a postgame fireworks show; and a Lil’ Crumbs “20 Years of Biscuits” T-shirt giveaway to the first 500 kids 14 and under on Sunday.