Buffalo lifer to attend 25th straight All-Star game
The game was to take place in Columbus, OH. The significance to Mike? His son Frank lived in Columbus, so he made the drive down to mid-Ohio for the contest.
Then the next year? Las Vegas. Not even a second thought.
"How could we not go to Las Vegas?" Connors said.
And so it went.
Twenty-five years later, Connors is still at it. The baseball lifer is gearing up for the 25th annual Triple-A All-Star Game, back in Buffalo for the second time. When the first pitch is thrown at Coca-Cola Field, the Buffalo native will be watching from a familiar location - at the game. Connors has never missed a Triple-A All Star Game, and he is one of only seven adventurous souls who can make that claim.
And when he learned this year's edition would take place in Buffalo, he couldn't have been happier. Considering the year 2012 represents the quarter-century mark of the annual tradition (having first taken place in 1988), Connors figures it just made sense to return to the site of the inaugural contest.
"I was really happy," Connors said. "Twenty-five, that's a big hallmark year for you. I think it would've been bad not to go back to the place where you had your first one."
Connors grew up a Bisons fan, listening to the game broadcasts every night on the radio. Born and raised in the Fruit Belt, he played baseball throughout high school, and then coached Little League when his kids were little - maintaining a connection to the game as the years went on.
Now a Cheektowaga resident, Connors attended the first All-Star Game as a Father's Day gift from Frank, who made the 5-hour drive from Columbus for the game. The experience was a positive one, and it left father and son looking for more.
"We enjoyed it," Connors said. "It was a nice experience. The park (Coca-Cola Field) was new then."
So the next year, Connors and his wife returned the favor - making the drive to visit their son, and attending the game.
And after making the near cross-country migration to Las Vegas the following year, the tradition was set.
"(That was) the key year," Connors said. "Now Frank and I had kind of got to the point where this was our getaway vacation. So then we went to Louisville, and then we went to Richmond."
After making five trips to locations scattered around the country, Connors and his son had reason to wonder if they were the lone All-Star Game veterans.
Their question was answered at a bar in Albuquerque (the sixth year, 1993), when they overheard conversation at a hotel bar.
"We were sitting in the bar, when we heard these two guys saying, 'Can you imagine we've been to all six of these All-Star Games?' " Connors said.
'I'll bet you there's nobody else in this stadium tonight that's been to all six,' the guys went on to say.
That's when Connors had to intervene.
"We said, 'Hold it, hold it' " Connors said. " 'Wait a minute, guys'."
The comrades introduced themselves, and a relationship developed between the two groups. Connors and his son would find the other two at each game, and Frank began to stay in contact throughout the year, making plans to - you guessed it - go to the All-Star Game.
"It just became the summer thing to do," Connors said. "We had a great time."
All these trips, despite the fact that Connors doesn't consider himself much of a hardcore traveler.
"No, not really," Connors said. "I don't do much. I go out to Las Vegas once in a while, but I'm not a guy that wants to get into an airplane and fly someplace."
But the annual All-Star showcase serves as an exception. Connors' career as an attorney for Kaleida Health gives him the opportunity to make it to the game each year. As associate general counsel for Kaleida, he maintains flexibility with his schedule - always sure to allocate the time to make the All-Star trek.
And when he takes time off sometime in mid-July, it comes as no surprise.
"The people I work for, they all know that I attend these on an annual basis," Connors said.
At its core, Connors finds the annual trip as the perfect way to spend some time with his son. As Frank lives and works in Columbus, the two live fairly close to each other, but not close enough where it's easy to see each other all the time. The All-Star Game, conveniently scheduled in the middle of summer, serves as an enjoyable way to bring the two together for a few days - in a low-stress, relaxing environment.
"Really, what it became, it was just a great reason for he (Frank) and I to take a few days off," Connors said. "Discuss the past year, and have a couple of drinks with some nice people."
Twenty-five years in the making, and nothing has kept Connors from making the trip. The biggest challenge came when he thought floods in the Midwest might keep him from getting to Albuquerque in 1993, as his itinerary called for taking the train to New Mexico.
But he made it, and nothing has held him up since.
"We thought (the floods) might be difficult," Connors said. "But other than that, we've pretty much been able to fit it in. You pretty much know a year ahead of time when it's going to be, and you just kind of work your schedule into it."
Sometimes he drives - to Pawtucket, Rochester, Toledo - and other times he flies. Either way, if you're at a Triple-A All Star Game, you can be sure to find Mike Connors - if you look for him.
He has never been to the MLB All-Star Game, but come Wednesday, Connors will take his seat at Coca-Cola Field for his 25th go-round at the Triple-A showdown.
It's just what he does. He recognizes that cities across the country appreciate hosting the game, and he enjoys visiting the cities in return.
"It's a nice affair," Connors said. "When you go to the smaller towns, they make a real big deal of it, and it's great to see. Like Scranton, who would think you'd go to Scranton, PA and have a great time? We did have a great time there."
When Connors arrives in a city for the game, wherever it may be, he finds the community enthusiastic - happy to be hosting the game, and ready to put on a show. And it keeps him coming back, year after year.
"The community gets behind it," Connors said. "Everybody's friendly about it, everybody's dressed up in team shirts. They run things at the ballpark for the kids. It's really a good thing, it's fun to be around - and for the most part, the baseball games have been pretty good."
Connors plans to keep up the trip, year after year, for as long as he can. As for the rest of the All-Star veterans, he isn't sure - but he figures he will find out next week.
"My guess is that Frank and I will continue to go," Connors said. "I don't know whether the other people, what their plans are. I guess we'll have to discuss that while we're having a few drinks at dinner."
Come Wednesday, twenty-five down. Maybe, just maybe, there will be twenty-five more to come.