WESTFIELD – Little League in the City of Westfield is about to get a little bit bigger and a little bit better.
In an exclusive interview with The Westfield News on Monday evening, first-year Westfield Little League President Scott LaBombard announced that Opening Day will be a fun-filled atmosphere that the city has not seen for quite some time.
Little League Baseball and Softball’s Opening Day will we held April 18 in the Whip City.
A parade will kick off the day’s festivities, followed by an opening ceremony at Ralph E. Sanville Memorial Field. A ceremony featuring the banners and players from the 1985 regional baseball champs and 1995 World Series softball teams will also take place.
That is just the beginning though.
A carnival will be held at the South Middle School fields, featuring cornhole, Wiffle ball, bounce houses, an obstacle course, facepainting, a DJ, and food from North Elm Butcher Block.
“The first thing I wanted to do as league president was to do something new and invigorating,” LaBombard said.
Players from the Westfield Starfires are expected to attend. The team also plans to unveil their new mascot, according to LaBombard.
“It’s time to get back to the players,” LaBombard said. “Kids learn lessons from Little League for the rest of their lives. At the end of the day, it’s about the players – not the parents or the coaches.”
LaBombard said while youth baseball has become somewhat clouded by the increase of travel leagues throughout the country, the experience of kids playing with their fellow classmates in classrooms and lunchrooms are memories that will last for a lifetime.
Westfield Little League has also been giving back to the community, renovating the Cross Street fields in 2019, and installing a new scoreboard at Sadie Knox this year.
While tryouts for Westfield Little League Baseball are already coming to an end, softball tryouts will be held Saturday at Westfield Technical Academy High School from 9:30 am.-2 p.m.
