As Minor League Baseball has blossomed into a thriving sport an entertainment industry with over 42 million fans each season, it has achieved so much of its success building on the innovations of its most storied franchises. With their proud and virtually unparalleled history in ballpark design, event promotion, community involvement and fan support, the Buffalo Bisons were awarded the 1992 John H. Johnson Presidents Award.

Twenty-three years later, the team that started the ballpark construction boom and shattered attendance records that will never be reached again continues to innovate, continues to lead by example and continues to be minor league baseball’s most complete franchise.

COCA-COLA FIELDThe First ‘Classic BallparkBuilt in an Urban SettingBuilt in the heart of downtown Buffalo in 1988, Coca-Cola Field (then named Pilot Field) was the first “Classic Ballpark,” starting aconstruction boom that carried throughout the entire sports industry. Designed by H.O.K. Sports, the home of the Buffalo Bisons was a revolutionary step forward in ballpark design and a break from the norm of cookiecutter, multi-purpose stadiums nestled deep in the suburbs.

The predecessor to facilities likeCamden Yards, Jacobs Field, Coors Field and Comerica Park, Coca-Cola Field is still renowned for itsadaptation of local Buffaloarchitecture and as being a focal point to the local downtownrevitalization of the QueenCity.

COCA-COLA FIELDInnovation - Maintaininga Gold Standard Despite being the oldest non-renovated ballparks in the

International League, the commitment of Bisons team owners Bob and Mindy Rich and the City of Buffalo has

kept Coca-Cola Field as one of the marquee facilities in all of minor league baseball.

In 28 seasons, the Bob and Mindy Rich havepersonally invested $23 million dollars back into

the ballpark while the City of Buffalo continues to fund important structural improvements to the

facility. The strong public-private partnership has not only kept the 17,600-seat facility in

great working order, but has allowed for inno-vative additions like the Bully Hill Party Deck in 2004 and the 80-foot BisonsTV HD Score-

board in 2011. Providing the optimal con-ditions for great baseball action was also the priority when installing a state-of-the

artdrainage system in 2010 and new

energy-efficient LED lights thefollowing season.

OWNERSHIPCommitmentto the OrganizationBob Rich purchased a struggling Bisons Double-A team in 1983, ensuring that the franchise would remain in Buffalo. Two years later, the team was elevated to the Triple-A level. In 1988, Bob and the President of Rich Entertainment Group, Mindy Rich, cut the ribbon on the trend-setting Coca-Cola Field. Since then, Bob and Mindy have personallyre-invested more than $23 million dollars back into the ballpark to ensure its standing as one of the marquee facilities in minor league baseball. Both Bob and Mindy Rich are members of the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame. Bob was a three-time American Association Executive of the Year (1986, 1988, 1991) and has been inducted into the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. Mindy, a 2004inductee to the Western New York Women’s Hall of Fame, was the 1988 Rawlings’ Minor League FemaleExecutive of the Year.

Over $23 MillionRe-Invested Into

Coca-Cola Field

OWNERSHIPRich Products

The Rich Promise: We will treat our customers, our associates and our

communities the same way.Like family.

The Buffalo Bisons are part of the Rich Products Corporation, a worldwide

leader in customer service. As one of the largest family owned frozen food company in the world, Rich Products

makes over 2,000 products sold in 112 countries. For 70 years, Rich

Products has been anindustry leader for over 70 years

with a customer-first approach that has been applied to

every event held atCoca-Cola Field.

OWNERSHIPSenior LeadershipThe success of Bisons day-to-day operation has been driven by a senior executive team with more than two decades of experience. In 2016, the President of Rich BaseballOperations, Jonathan A. Dandes, will be entering his 29th season with the team. With the team for 30 seasons, Mike Buczkowski is entering his 23rd year as the club’s Vice President/GeneralManager, the longest tenured GM inthe 131-year history of the club.Together, they have directed the team to not only 3 league championships, but numerous attendance records. Buffalo was the first Triple-A team to win two Baseball America Bob Freitas Awards (1991, 2001)and was also given the 1992 John H. JohnsonPresidents’ Trophy.

EVENTPROMOTIONMiLB TOP 10in Attendence AnnuallySince the opening of Coca-Cola Field in 1988, the Bisons pioneered the idea of ‘every game is an event.’ In doing so, the team attractedattendance records that will likely never be reached again. Coca-Cola Field owns the six highest single-season attendance records in the history of minor league baseball, including 1,240,951 during the 1992 season. The Bisons also hold the single-seasonattendance record for the 132-year old International League, set in 1998. In the last 10 years, Buffalo has ranked no worse than 11th among all domestic minor league teams in averageattendance despite operating in the oldest non-renovated ballpark in the IL.

The absolute best Sports & Family Entertainment

Experience & Value atevery event!

35 School Kids Days514,193

since 1988

21 Independence Eves384,274

since 1995

8 Star Wars Nights117,440

since 2008 EVENTPROMOTION

MarqueeGame-Day Events

The Bisons have combined innovative

event themes with excitingbaseball action to create

unforgettable events. From being one of the first teams to

offer morning starts for area school kids, to becoming the

industry’s leader in the popular Star Wars events, several

Bisons games are annually the highest attended games

in Minor League Baseball.

EVENTPROMOTIONTriple-AAll-Star GameMinor League Baseball’s signature event was born in Buffalo, NY. The first ever Triple-A All-Star Game was played in 1988 before a sold-out crowd at Coca-Cola Field and a national audience on ESPN. From the foundation built from that inaugural year, the event has grown into a tremendous showcase of what minor leaguebaseball has to offer to fans. In 2012, the Bisons hosted the SilverAnniversary Triple-A All-Star Game before another sold-out crowd, again displaying on a national sports scene the fun andexcitement of our greatgamepark in the IL.

EVENTPROMOTION

Non Game-Day Events

With one of the most historically-important ballparks in minor league

baseball, the Bisons have also founds great ways to entertain fans while the

team is on the road. Over 100,000 fans visit Coca-Cola Field annually for

non-game day events, such as the National Buffalo Wing Festival and charitable events such as the Bas-

es Merlot-ed Wine Tour and theBallpark Brew Bash. Concerts

such as WYRK’s ‘Taste ofCountry’ have entertained

sold-out crowds over 25,000 for nearly 15 years.

COMMUNITYBuffalo BisonsCharitable FoundationAn organization that has always put community first, the Buffalo Bisons have used both game-day and non-game day events to raise not only awareness, but vital funds for the many deserving organizations within the ‘City of Good Neighbors.’ For years, the team has used their signature events like Star Wars Night, Mystery Ball Night, and Blue Jays Weekend to raise money through theauction of limited edition merchandise andraffles for game-used specialty jerseys. TheBisons’ popular non-game day events such as the Bases Merlot-ed Wine Tour and Ballpark BrewBash have also included a charitablefocus since their inception. By choosingdifferent groups to work with each year, the Bisons have been able to spread over $100,000 annually to severalimportant causes. In 2015, theBuffalo Bisons Charitable Foundation was officially designated a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Over $3Million Raised

Since 1988

COMMUNITYCommunityCare Program

Founded in 1995 by Bisons ownerBob Rich, the Buffalo BisonsCommunity Care Program isdesigned to assist non-profitorganizations to bring local-

ly disad vantaged youths and adults to baseball games. Since

the start of the program, 19 years ago, over 325,000

individuals have been given the opportunity to come to

the ballpark and en joy abaseball game.

COMMUNITYBuffalo Public High School Baseball ProgramIn 2007, Bisons owners Bob and Mindy Richformally adopted the City of Buffalo High School Baseball League as part of a commitment to assist in the revival and development of the city’s high school baseball program. The commitment included over $250,000towards the now-success renovation ofJohnny B. Wiley Stadium on the site of the former Bisons home of War MemorialStadium. The Bisons have also employed a ‘High School Baseball Coordinator,’purchased equipment for the 12 Buffalo Public High School teams, paid for team transportation, provided stipends for coaches and funded the ‘Junior Bisons’ baseball team to compete in summer leagues. Each year, the adoption represents a $25,000+commitment to youth baseball.

COMMUNITYInvolvementIn The Community

The Buffalo Bisons have alwaysencouraged community involvement with their players. Each year, members of the

team generously donate their time to visit area hospitals, participate in

nearby Miracle League games and share their love and wisdom of the

game in various instructional camps at Coca-Cola Field. Since 1993, the

Bisons have also celebrated the efforts of their players with the

Frank J. Vallone CommunityService Award, given out to the

most deserving player at the team’s final home game of

the season.

TECHNOLOGY/FAN SERVICESBisons.com -Most Page Views in Milb

Over the last decade, Buffalo has been anindustry leader at using online technology to connect their fans with the action on the field. One of the first teams to switch to the MLB Advanced Media network in 2005, the team has annually ranked as one of the mostvisited team sites in minor leaguebaseball. During the 2015 season, Bisons.com’s 3.2 million page views topped all clubs while their 1.17 million visitors finished 2nd. Supported daily by an audience of nearly 100,000 on social media, Bisons.com combined video highlights, engaging content, event details and special offers to pro-mote the Bisons product as well as minor league baseball as a whole.

TECHNOLOGY/FAN SERVICESBroadcasts -

Bisons Baseball Over the Airways

In recent years, the Bisons have successfully used various channels to promote their brand of minor league baseball to wider audiences. Online, the team’s web steams annually rank

as MiLB.tv’s most popular, topping all minor league clubs in unique viewers in 2015. On

television, Buffalo has worked with theirlocal Time Warner Cable affiliate to

annually show as many as 35-40 games live and in high-definition (home and

road contests). And in a fantasticexample of parent club/affiliated team

partnership, the Bisons RadioNetwork included the live broadcast of 15 games on Sportsnet 590 The

Fan, the radio home of theToronto Blue Jays.

TRADITIONFounded in 1877

There are few teams in Major or Minor League Baseball that can compete with the history of the Buffalo Bisons. The 2016 season will be the team’s 131st season of professional baseball in Buffalo, with each one using the moniker, ‘Bisons.’ Not only has club been a member of the prestigiousInternational League for nearly acentury, Buffalo is one of few teams to have also been members of both the National League and American League.

In the Western New York sportscommunity, the Bisons have been the hometown team forgenerations. The Herd has played more than twice as manyseasons as the Buffalo Bills and is nearly 100 years older than the Buffalo Sabres.

TRADITIONThe Players

Since 1877, more than 3,000 players have proudly worn, ‘Buffalo’ across their chest. Not only does that include some of minor league

baseball’s most iconic names like OllieCarnegie, Luke Easter and Mike Hessman, but many of the best that have played the

game at any level. Twenty former Bisons are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, including Connie Mack, Pud Galvin, Fergie

Jenkins and Johnny Bench. A total of 30 former Bisons players are also in the

International League Hall of Fame.

Nine Bisons players have been named International League Most

Valuable Player, a tradition that continued this year as infield-er Matt Hague turned in argu-ably the best season in minor

league baseball in 2015.

20 former Bisonsare enshrined inCooperstown

TRADITIONThe Titles - 6 Governor’s CupChampionshipsBisons fans have grown accustomed to the ballpark tradition of TinaTurner’s, ‘Simply the Best’ playedafter yet another victory atCoca-Cola Field. Closing in on 10,000 all-time victories, awinning culture has always been associated with the Bisonsfranchise. Buffalo can claim six Governors’ CupChampionships from 1933 to 2004 as well as an American Association title in 1997.