Chicks with Sticks wins 'Caps contest

COMSTOCK PARK, Mich. (WOOD) - Voters have chosen the newest item that will appear on the Fifth Third Ballpark menu.

Visitors that come to the stadium in Comstock Park to watch the West Michigan Whitecaps this season will be able to enjoy Chicks with Sticks -- fresh sliced vegetables with a hummus (made from chickpeas) or optional ranch dipping sauce.

The Whitecaps solicited ideas for new food items in January, whittled the list down to 10 finalists, and opened the voting to fans in February.

Lisa Baird of Jenison submitted the Chicks with Sticks entry.

Chicks with Sticks received 31% of the votes from the top 10 finalists' contest. Second place in the voting was the Meat Salad, a seven-meat treat, with 27% of the vote. The third place votegetter was the Walking Spaghetti, a 16-inch loaf of Cole's garlic bread loaded with spaghetti, meatballs, marinara and cheese, weighing in with 15% of the vote.

None of the remaining seven options received more than 5% of the votes (Mac 'N Cheese Burger Burrito, Honey Bun Burger and Bologna Lollipop -- 5%; Sonoran Dog and Big O Sandwich -- 4%, Meat Man Parfait -- 3% and Duck Hog Frog Dog -- 1%).

Baird said her idea was inspired from her own switch to healthy eating after recently joining Weight Watchers.

"I thought, 'What on earth could possibly be served in this type of venue that wouldn't be heavy, and would be portable?' I had recently switched from eating pita chips and hummus to eating healthier veggies and hummus, and it made perfect sense," said Baird. "It's portable, it's sharable, it's a win-win for everyone. I was trying to be cute and clever with the name -- it's not the most outrageous food, but it can still be fun! I know I'll be eating my share of Chicks with Sticks at the ballpark this season!"

The interest in ballpark food options spiked two years ago with the introduction of the 4-pound, 5,000-calorie Fifth Third Burger, seen the Travel Channel's "Man V. Food" and Food Network's "Unwrapped."