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Page 30 March 2018 The Catoctin Banner Newspaper www.TheCatoctinBanner.com Published by www.EPlusPromotes.com
S p o r t S news
A New Ball Game in Emmitsburg
James Rada, Jr.
Emmitsburg will still have baseball of volunteers, and this led to fewer Little League. Coaches will hold a league teams would require any Little
in town this season, but it won’t be people willing to volunteer because draft, where players are picked for a League players from Emmitsburg to
provided by the Emmitsburg Baseball they didn’t have the time to do team, regardless of where they live. play for the Emmitsburg team, even if
and Softball League (EBSL). Because of everything. The league also had Emmitsburg players already make up they were currently part of Thurmont
dwindling support and participation, fewer than 90 participants last year. roughly a third of the 250 Thurmont Little League.
the Emmitsburg Baseball and Softball The softball program was dropped Little League players. “We’re trying to get our league
League is taking a break to either re- entirely because the team that did Thurmont Little League, which established here again, and we’re not
energize or disband. play, aged out. “To run a good was established in 1952, has a strong going to get that through Thurmont, I
According to an e-mail from the program, you need probably 180 to record. Its teams were the 2015 9/10 don’t think,” Sweeney said.
EBSL to the Town of Emmitsburg, 200 kids,” Umbel said. “Kids have Maryland State Champions, 2016 Commissioner Elizabeth Buckman
“Through the devoted efforts of a few, been dwindling each year.” 9/10 Maryland State Champions, pointed out that besides making
Emmitsburg Baseball and Softball With so few participants, all 2016 Little League District 2 sure there were enough players,
managed to somehow survive the of the games could not be played Champions, 2017 9-11 District 2 Emmitsburg Baseball and Softball
dwindling number of players and against other town teams. The Champions, 2017 Little League hadn’t been able to get enough parent
volunteers, but the time has now come teams needed to travel to nearby District 2, and 2017 Maryland State involvement to run the program.
to merge the two.” communities to play against other Champions. While the commissioners held off
Some residents expressed a bit teams. All of the travel proved to Some discussion has taken place approving Thurmont Little League’s
of shock when the EBSL’s Facebook be a reason that many parents cited about whether the name of Thurmont field use request until the league
page showed a post directing players for enrolling their team in another Little League could be changed, could decide on which specific fields
to register with the Thurmont Little league. perhaps to Catoctin Little League, to it did want to use, they did approve
League or Catoctin Recreation Council. All of the Emmitsburg baseball reflect Emmitsburg’s participation in a request for Mid Maryland United
One member wrote, “There were players under thirteen years of age the league. Thurmont Little League Baseball League to use three of the
meetings scheduled to decide what to are being referred to Thurmont President Jeremy Johnson told the town’s six fields.
do. No one attended. More parent Little League so that they can Emmitsburg Commissioners that This relatively new league has
volunteers would have eliminated the register to play. Softball players his board would not agree to that at traveling teams and, unlike Little
need to merge with Thurmont. There are being sent to the Catoctin Rec this time. He pointed out that if the League, not everyone makes the cut
were only a few board members doing Council. name was changed, and then in a to play on one of the teams. It is also
all the work without a president or vice “Little League is for every year or two the Emmitsburg Baseball much more expensive to participate
president or player agent or fund raiser, kid, and if we can get kids and Softball League decided to re- in this league. The league will be
plus many more board vacancies. Some playing together, it’s a fabulous organize, all of the efforts to make the sponsoring several youth clinics in
people said they would help next year, thing,” Thurmont Little League changes would have been for naught. town, with the goal of eventually
but no guarantee, and where were they President Jeremy Johnson told Thurmont Little League asked rebuilding a new Emmitsburg
for the past few years when help was the Emmitsburg Mayor and the commissioners to use three of Baseball League that would be
needed. Too little, too late. This will at Commissioners. the Emmitsburg town’s ballfields affiliated with either Little League,
least provide the opportunity for more He said that the area’s kids for practices and games during Babe Ruth, or Cal Ripken Baseball
kids to play.” played basketball, soccer, and the season. This would ensure sometime in the future.
Sandy Umbel with the Emmitsburg football together already, and once that baseball was still played in “A lot of people want to see it
Baseball and Softball League said it has they reach middle school, they Emmitsburg. He said that Thurmont restarted, and once the mechanism is
been years since the league has had a participate on the same teams. That Little League would prepare, clean, moving forward, I think people will
full board. This means that more and was his vision for including the and maintain the fields for the town. be attracted to it,” said Commission
more duties fell on a smaller number Emmitsburg children in Thurmont The Emmitsburg Mayor and President Tim O’Donnell. “Success
Commissioners seemed uncertain attracts interest.”
as to whether or not to embrace So, the town now finds itself in the
the merger. They were happy that position of having its baseball players
children in town would still have recruited for two leagues, and neither
a baseball league, but they were one is organized by volunteers in
disappointed that it wouldn’t be Emmitsburg, at least for this year.
Emmitsburg Baseball.
“We’ve got to beef it (our baseball
league) up and bring it back,”
expressed Mayor Don Briggs.
Commissioner Cliff Sweeney asked
why there couldn’t be teams that were
just made up of Emmitsburg players.
“The segregation of Thurmont and
Emmitsburg is defeating the purpose
of why Sandy (Umbel) came to me,”
Johnson said.
Sweeney then mentioned that
Emmitsburg Baseball and Softball
League had been affiliated with
Thurmont Little League at one
point, but it had become part of
the Cal Ripken program. He said
if the town started a Little League
program again, the district lines for
