- November 28, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
A Golden Spikes 12U team will make a trip to Cooperstown, N.Y., adding a 15th year to the program's tradition.
BY MATT MENCARINI | SPORTS EDITOR
By about noon Friday, a Golden Spikes contingent will be on its way to the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum. But this won't be the first time a local squad has embarked on this pilgrimage.
For the past 15 years, Golden Spikes teams have made the trip to Cooperstown, N.Y., site of not only the baseball hall of fame but also of 24 fields at Cooperstown Dreams Park, which host approximately 100 teams each week during every summer.
Just like in previous trips, the Golden Spikes’ 12U team will play six pool games before entering into a single-elimination playoff.
“This is the pinnacle," said Mark Chastain, the coach of this year’s team. “A lot of kids will stay on, but this (year is) the one that you work for. So the tryouts for the 12U are pretty competitive because they all want a chance to be on that team.”
There are 13 players making the trip, accompanied by family and coaches. The team will also bring an umpire, Rich Turner, although he won’t officiate any of their games. It will be his 13th year attending the tournament.
After landing, the kids will be checked into the players’ barracks. Unless they check their children out for any reason, parents will only see them during games, as the hall of fame ushers players to games, tours and other activities.
Baseball activities will start Sunday, when there is home run, fastest-player, throw-from-center-field and around-the-horn competitions. Each competition will feature a player from each team.
“It’s an awesome family vacation,” Chastain said of the trip. “I know the boys will appreciate the hall but be in and out in an hour, while an adult male can spend a whole day in there.”
Games will start Monday, and continue through Wednesday, as the Golden Spikes play two games each day. Cooperstown provides the uniforms (a red and a blue jersey) and even does the players' laundry each day.
For months, players, parents and coaches have been fundraising for the trip. They’ve run the concession stand at Nova Community Park, with 10% of the profits going to the city.
There were also private and corporate donations, Chastain said, which will allow the team to make the trip first-class. The players will even wear travel shirts.
It’s a trip the players should remember for years to come, as they join what has become a fraternity of former Golden Spikes athletes who have made the trek to one of the most revered plots of land in American sports.
“They have a really cool opening ceremony and parade of players,” Chastain said. “They have these all summer, (but) they always give Ormond Beach a warm welcome because we’ve been going for so long.”
The Roster
Cameron Green
Cameron Roa
Chris Hoolehan
Christian Mahlstedt
Christian Pregent
Emerson Cheney
Ethan Goodman
Grayson Chastain
J.J. Sousa
Mitch Nathan
Nate Petrizzo
Sal Grinstead
Vince Campos
