Big Train welcomes ex-Nationals Drew Storen, Tyler Clippard for Down on the Farm Night

Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen by Mark Thalman

ROCKVILLE, Md. — Despite another rain-induced game suspension, fans at Shirley Povich Field got to see a number of exciting guests on Thursday.

First and foremost, the team welcomed ex-Washington Nationals pitchers Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard, who met and signed autographs for fans. Storen and Clippard are the co-founders of Field of Dreams Whiskey, which utilizes the actual corn from the famed Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa for its products.

“I just collected too much bourbon throughout my career,” Storen said. “Kind of fell in love with collecting authentic, cool stories.”

“[Storen] called me up with the concept,” Clippard said. “It was a home-run concept, and I certainly didn’t think it was going to be able to come to fruition like it has.”

Clippard said he and Storen have had a great relationship over the years.

“We’re like an old married couple,” Clippard said. “We started off on the wrong foot, and then we became inseparable for many years, and now we’re basically like brothers.”

Both Storen and Clippard said they are glad to remain in the DMV area today.

“We obviously spent the biggest chunk of our career here and kind of made names for ourselves here,” Storen said. “Seeing the fans, nostalgia, reliving memories and stuff, it’s always fun.”

“And from the city perspective, I like the fact that there’s no skyscrapers,” Clippard said. “The roads suck. Other than that, it’s a great city.”

Storen (left) and Clippard by Mark Thalman

It was also Down on the Farm Night on Thursday. The Big Train welcomed FredNats owner Seth Silber, Montgomery Countryside Alliance Executive Director Caroline Taylor, Washington Metro Oasis Tutoring Coordinator Kathleen McDaniel and Wade Butler, the owner of Butler’s Orchard, among other guests.

Butler said his farm — a “pick-your-own orchard” with many fruits and vegetables — is celebrating 75 years of operation.

“We’ve been constantly changing and evolving, and that’s what’s enabled us to expand and grow and be a part of 75 acres and agriculture in Montgomery County,” Butler said. “We’re always looking to see what’s next.”

McDaniel said Washington Metro Oasis seeks to benefit people ages 50 and above, providing classes, fitness help and ways to volunteer. As the tutoring coordinator, she is responsible for organizing volunteer groups to help elementary-age children in Montgomery County.

“We have a 90% return rate for volunteers,” McDaniel said. “The quotes that we have from teachers are generally about the relationships that our volunteers are creating with the students.”

McDaniel said one of the volunteers’ goals is to instill a passion for reading in students.

“We’re not doing assessments. We’re not testing them,” she said. “We know they have plenty of assessments during school. We don’t feel like that’s our role.”

Last but not least, Taylor said Montgomery Countryside Alliance — an organization that seeks to protect and educate people about farms within the Agricultural Reserve — has a profound human impact.

“Connecting people with where their food is grown is important because through the years, through the decades, we’ve become so distant from how our food is grown, how different kinds of foods, vegetables and fruits are really good for us,” Taylor said. “So being able to have a place nearby [where] people can engage with their farmers is really important.”

“We also learned during the pandemic — more than we even knew before — the aching need for people to connect with the natural world,” she said. “So being able to step away from the built-up environment … to a place that has forests, fields, creeks, the river and connect with the natural world is a real healthful, important thing for people to be able to do.”

Bruce Adams (left) with Taylor (center) and Knight Kiplinger of the Kiplinger Family Foundation, which funds the team's Community Heroes program

With one more home regular season game currently on the docket, the Big Train will celebrate Fan Appreciation Night on Sunday against the Alexandria Aces. That game is scheduled for 7 p.m.