Howard Darwin made his way slowly into the Upper Deck restaurant at Lynx Stadium yesterday morning, right hand perched on the cane that steadied him.
The man who brought Triple-A baseball to Ottawa took his seat at a head table along side former Lynx players F.P. Santangelo and Derek Aucoin and former mayor Jacquelin Holzman as a group of about 50 fans gathered for a small celebration of the Lynx' 15th season.
Looking out from his seat through the big windows on the third level, the manicured field of the stadium that was part of Darwin's dream close to 20 years ago shone in the morning sunlight.
Darwin looked out over the field, looked out over the land that used to be a snow dump.
A few players took batting practice before yesterday's game against the Norfolk Tides. For anyone who has ever walked through the doors and caught that first glimpse of a field -- in any ballpark, anywhere -- you know what a feeling it is.
Darwin wanted that feeling for Ottawa.
His dream of a Triple-A team and a pristine park in which it could play was realized, but after the debut being as much, or more, than anyone could have expected, it has dwindled in a long, slow spiral to irrelevance in this city.
You could quibble with the way Darwin ran things before selling to Ray Pecor a few years ago, but the fact remains there would be no park, no Lynx, none of the last 15 years without him.
"It's really heartbreaking," said Darwin in a gravelly voice tinged with sadness, disappointment and frustration as he contemplated the Coventry Rd. ballpark likely going empty next season if the Lynx, as expected, move to Pennsylvania.
Hearing some of the stories of the early days from Santangelo, whose retired No. 24 is on the fence in the left-centre field gap, and Aucoin, who got the win when the Lynx won their first and only championship in 1995, stories from when Lynx Stadium was packed and the players were actually stars in this town, gave yesterday's celebration a melancholy feel.
The Lynx used to matter and the city's sports community was better for it.
Santangelo carved out a place as a personality in Ottawa's sports history with his hustle, hard work and dedication. Maybe it's because, as Canadians, those are the qualities we like in our athletic heroes, no matter what the sport.
When you talk about this city's favourite athletes -- among real sports fans -- Santangelo is in the discussion.
"In my three years here, everything was big-league here, except the paycheques," said Santangelo. "We were outdrawing the Expos some nights. We'd go out for dinner and have the cheques picked up. The way the fans treated us was surreal."
Darwin took some swings yesterday at a favourite target. What would a day for looking back be without Darwin taking on City Hall?
He blamed the city for reducing the number of parking spots in the area of the stadium from about 2,600 to just 600. On those few days when a decent crowd did show up, it only led to frustration for many.
He quoted the policy requiring one parking spot for every four seats in a facility.
"Basically, I think the city has broken their own rules," he said.
The stadium has been nothing but a good deal for the city, in his opinion.
"This ball park cost the city $16 million. When I left here, the city had received $17,600,000 in revenues generated from this park. From my point of view, the ballpark paid for itself ... and it helped this street (Coventry Road) develop," he said.
"It's sad for the people who are the real baseball fans. On the other hand, look right across Canada. There used to be four or five Triple-A teams, two major-league teams ... I don't know. I come to the park, I still have my box, I come to the park and I look at the people down below. I see people here that have been here since Day 1. There just haven't been enough of them."
The Lynx were awful yesterday in a 10-1 loss to the Tides, playing like a bunch of sloppy guys who don't care.
Too bad it was on a day when Darwin, the owner who made pro baseball here possible, and Santangelo, the player who embodied what being a pro was all about, were in the house.
It summed up what the Lynx used to be and what they have become.
