|
JUPITER, Florida -- The St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates will play a regular-season game this season in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, home of the Little League World Series, Major League Baseball announced Thursday. The game, dubbed the "MLB Little League Classic," will be on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball on Aug. 20. The teams will play at Bowman Field, a renovated 89-year-old minor league stadium that holds 4,200 fans. Before the game, players will attend a Little League World Series contest nearby. "I look forward to it. I think it will be a fun experience for everyone," Cardinals outfielder Stephen Piscotty said. "It's great when you get to play and get the chance to interact with some of the fans, especially some of the younger ones who are into baseball. That's something we all enjoy, for sure." Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn and outfielder Randal Grichuk are among the 12 active major league players who once competed in the Little League World Series, an international tournament for children between the ages of 10 and 12 held annually in Williamsport, headquarters of Little League International. Lynn, coming off Tommy John surgery, said he remembers how bad it felt to exit the tournament without winning a game. His team from Indiana lost all three games. Lynn played first base and pitched. "I was 12. I was on top of the world," Lynn said. His advice to Little Leaguers who reach the tournament: "Enjoy it. Life's got a lot of ups and downs. Just have fun with it. It's just a game." The announcement had Cardinals manager Mike Matheny recounting his own Little League memories. His Ohio team was eliminated in a game in Hagerstown, Maryland, one win short of reaching Williamsport. "It's a good mesh with the roots of this game and all the excitement built around the Little League World Series," Matheny said. "Shoot, our guys watch it. It's fun to see how much the kids and the families all get into it. I remember watching it as a kid myself and trying to qualify for it, thinking that would be a big deal. It's a city that obviously is alive with baseball." Discussions involving ESPN, MLB, the Major League Players Association and both teams to play in Williamsport have been ongoing for months. Originally the Cardinals and Pirates were scheduled to complete a four-game series at Pittsburgh's PNC Park on Sunday afternoon. The Pirates will be the home team in the Williamsport game. "Major League Baseball's greatest responsibility is to ensure that today's youth become active participants in our game as players and fans," MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. "The 'MLB Little League Classic' exemplifies our entire sport's commitment to building a stronger connection between young people and the national pastime." Dan Schulman, Jessica Mendoza, Aaron Boone and Tim Kurkjian will be the on-air talent for the game, which will also be available on ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio and WatchESPN. Last season the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves played a regular-season game at Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army base in North Carolina.
|
