“Hal the Hot Dog Guy” Gordon describes himself as “one part vendor, one part cheerleader/mascot.”
Gliding up and down the nearly empty Oakland Coliseum stands in his cheery, trademark red and white-striped vest, green and yellow bow tie and newsboy’s cap, Hal Gordon looks like an old-time carnival barker. He’s barking, all right, but for a different reason.
A Chicago native, Gordon got his start slinging franks as a teenager in 2005 at the Cub’s venerable ivy-walled Wrigley Field. Since that first gig, he’s worked as a vendor for other professional sports teams around the country, including the San Francisco Giants, the former Oakland Raiders, the Washington Nationals, the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Blackhawks.
At a price of $7.71 each, the hot dogs may be one of the best deals at the ballpark. Gordon receives a flat per game fee from the A’s, and he also does very well with tips. Heck, he’s got a doctorate to pay for. He sells anywhere from 70 to 120 dogs a game, depending on the crowd, and he memorizes the orders of his many regular customers.
Gordon wouldn’t know. A vegetarian, he doesn’t eat hot dogs himself, but he soon plans to modify his steamer tray to offer some veggie dogs. He describes himself as “one part vendor, one part cheerleader/mascot.” OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – JULY 26: “Hal the Hot Dog Guy” Gordon squirts his fake ketchup bottle at a Jesse Diaz, 12, of Pinole, as his dad Michaelray Diaz looks on during the Oakland Athletics game against the Houston Astros at the Coliseum in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday, July 26, 2022.
“Since coming here and getting to know all of the fans, I’m now an A’s fan for life,” Gordon said. “There are fewer fans than past years, but the ones who are here really love it. The team and the community mean so much to them.” “He has a good beat and he has two or three really cool songs that we all join in on,” Edlund said of Gordon.
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – JULY 26: “Hal the Hot Dog Guy” Gordon dons his trademark red-and-white striped vest before the Oakland Athletics game against the Houston Astros at the Coliseum in Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday, July 26, 2022.
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