Ten seasons ago, Todd Claus gathered with his Portland Sea Dogs players on the Hadlock Field infield, celebrating the 2006 Eastern League championship.

On Thursday night, Claus returned to the infield, throwing out the first pitch to open the 2016 season.

Todd Claus, who was the manager in 2006 when the Portland Sea Dogs won their only Eastern League championship, throws the first pitch Thursday at Hadlock Field. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

“Every time I do something like this, or talk about that season, it’s humbling because it’s really all about the players,” Claus said.

Maybe that’s why Claus wasted little time throwing the pitch after acknowledging applause from the crowd.

Or it could be that Claus, 47, had to be off to another Latin American spot, looking for the next Boston Red Sox phenom.

Claus is in his seventh year as the team’s Latin American scouting coordinator as well as an international cross checker.

“I’m on the road 120 nights a year. It’s pretty extensive,” Claus said. “The travel is a little more challenging, getting to these remote fields.”

But that’s not the biggest challenge. Players from Latin America can sign pro contracts when they are 16, so the scouting starts early.

“We’re looking at 14-year-olds and trying to say whether or not they’re going to be big leaguers,” Claus said. “It’s the most difficult thing I’ve done in the game.”

Claus was used to dealing with older prospects, like Jacoby Ellsbury and Brandon Moss, when they suited up for the 2006 Sea Dogs. They helped deliver Portland’s only Eastern League title.

“I can’t believe it’s been 10 years,” Claus said. “I remember the players, the effort they put on the field. And I remember the people that run this place – the way they treat you and do everything, which is always first class.”

THE METAL detectors made their debut at Hadlock Field with no noticeable glitches. Four detectors stood in front of the main entrance – two for people with bags that needed inspection, and two express lanes for those without bags. There was another lane for people who couldn’t go through the detectors, including families with baby strollers. No lines appeared backed up.

“It went extremely smooth,” Sea Dogs General Manager Geoff Iacuessa said. “No issues. No backups.”

The Sea Dogs are one of only two known minor league teams to use detectors, with the Tacoma (Washington) Rainiers.

The detectors the Sea Dogs use don’t require fans to remove anything from their pockets, nor stop inside the detector. They just walk through.

Elliott Cresoe of Skowhegan was one of the first fans to arrive. When asked about the detectors, he looked puzzled.

“I didn’t even notice them,” he said.

THE YARD GOATS are getting used to being on the road. The new Hartford team is still waiting for its stadium to be completed. The latest date is May 31. Until then, the team keeps boarding its bus.

“It’s been fine. We’ve been talking about it to the players since spring training,” Manager Darin Everson said. “We’re able to do everything we need to do. We just happen to be at a different site.”

Outside the front entrance to Hadlock Field, the seven-piece Bellamy Jazz Band again greeted fans on Opening Day, a tradition that has continued since the inaugural season of 1994.

Frannie Dunphy, whose late husband Roy – a bass player – started the band in 1979, enjoyed the music and balmy pre-game weather. Dunphy and her daughter, Colleen Writt, make the mascot costumes used at the ballpark.

Dunphy said fans are in for a treat with Slugger the Sea Dog this season.

“He had a laundry list of things he’s going to do in skits,” she said. “A Jedi robe, a boxing robe, everything under the sun. Which is good. It’s theater, after all.”

Dunphy, 83, lives in North Yarmouth. She has yet to miss Opening Day at Hadlock.

Before the fourth inning, Slugger showed off some fancy new dance moves, including an amusingly romantic waltz with first-base umpire Paul Clemons.

If the name Yard Goats struck you as unusual, you’re not alone. Initially derided by some as silly, Hartford’s choice of a nickname has paid off in merchandise sales.

“We were No. 1 for holiday sales,” said Hartford radio broadcaster Jeff Dooley, who spent his previous 18 years with the New Britain Rock Cats before the franchise moved a few miles northeast to Connecticut’s capital. “We beat out the Durham Bulls.”

Another smart move was changing the color scheme to royal blue and kelly green, the same hues sported by Hartford’s beloved Whalers, the NHL franchise that left in 1997 to become the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Yard Goats are in their second year as an affiliate of the Colorado Rockies.

ON THE HEELS of the Ken Burns PBS documentary about the man who broke the color barrier, the Sea Dogs will celebrate Jackie Robinson Day on Friday. The first 1,000 fans at Hadlock will receive cards of the former Brooklyn Dodger great produced by the Hall of Fame. Every Sea Dogs player and coach will wear Robinson’s No. 42.

TWO SEA DOGS, infielder Mike Miller and outfielder Cole Sturgeon, were sent to Triple-A Pawtucket to fill vacancies. Portland activated outfielder Derek Miller and reliever Heri Quevedo.

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