PPBA Begins New Season

The Palisades Pony Baseball Association’s 52nd season kicked off its 2006 season the last week of February as newly organized teams took to the Palisades Recreation Center’s Field of Dreams complex. A record 380 boys tried out, 30 more than last year. During the tryouts in January, the boys were asked to field grounders, catch fly balls and demonstrate their hitting. Exactly 320 players were drafted onto eight different teams in three different divisions. This year for the first time since PPBA was started the names of two of the teams, the Braves and Indian teams were dropped and the Cubs and Yankees have been added. “We did it because we have so many people from Chicago. We love the New York and Chicago base here,” PPBA Commissioner Bob Benton said. “When we told the little kids they were on the Yankees they were excited because they know the names of some of the players.” Pintos consist of mostly eight-year-olds with a few outstanding seven-year-olds and a few nine-year-olds who kept to help provide leadership for their younger teammates. Pinto games are Tuesday or Thursday and on Saturday morning. A pitching machine is used for this age group. The Mustangs are nine and ten-year-olds and play on Wednesday and at noon on Saturday. For many players its their first time facing a peer pitcher. Broncos are 11 and 12 and play on opposite diamonds than the Pintos on Tuesday and Saturday. On Friday night, the Pony division, consisting of 13 and 14-year-olds, plays at the Rec Center. The schedules for all teams in all divisions as well as other important announcements such as field closures are available on the PPBA Web site: www.ppba.net. Opening Day is slated for Saturday, March 18 at the Palisades Recreation Center at 851 Alma Real. The annual pancake breakfast goes from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. Find your favorite local baseball player to purchase a ticket. The cost of admission is $3 and will include sausage, pancakes, coffee, orange juice and the chance to meet with all your friends, while waiting for the first games of the season to get underway. Commissioner Benton shared a piece of trivia about the Field of Dreams. The same people who constructed the baseball field in the Iowa cornfield for the movie “Field of Dreams” also built the “Field of Dreams” which is located in the Palisades. At 9 a.m., the first pitch will be thrown out at the Field of Dreams. The rumor is that Palisadian Ray Liotta will start the season with a fastball on the inside corner. Liotta starred as ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson in “The Field of Dreams.” He was also in “Goodfellas,” “Narc,” “Something Wild” and is currently in post- and pre-production on 11 different films, as well as awaiting the release of yet another.