Using community to promote community
CENTER TWP — Mike McDonald remembers playing baseball as a kid.
“It was all about playing with your buddies at home in a local league,” the Center Township Athletic Association baseball coach and president of its Pinto League (ages 7-8) said. “There was Select ball where you were picked to go play all-star events.
“Now we’re up against travel ball. Parents are paying $2,000 or $3,000 for their kids to play baseball all over the state. We’re still about keeping kids playing ball with friends in their own neighborhood.”
McDonald and the CTAA have found ways to promote their organization, primarily through fun events. They held a Family Night to begin the season, enabling parents to meet the coaches, get the game schedules, while the kids played wiffle ball and kickball with the Pirate Parrot and the racing Pierogies from Pittsburgh Pirate games.
Recently, the CTAA held a Movie Night at the Starlight Drive-In in Center Township, with 25 to 30 ballplayers from the organization paying their own way in to watch two baseball movies, Sandlot and Field of Dreams.
“The kids had a blast,” McDonald said. “They played wiffle ball in an open area before the movies started. If it was light enough, they would have played all night. There were a lot of other kids there, too, who I didn’t recognize, maybe from some other local leagues.”
McDonald requested the movie Sandlot be shown because “it’s a youth baseball movie that shows exactly what we’re about.” But that request was met with some resistance.
Because Sandlot is a Disney movie, McDonald had to petition the Disney company to release the film to the Center Township drive-in.
“That process usually takes a while,” said Beth Manson, who together with husband John owns the drive-in. “The email Mike sent to them must have touched them emotionally because we heard back from Disney within an hour.”
McDonald said Disney simply wanted to know the purpose for requesting the movie at that particular location.
“We’ve been working on a mission statement, about how we want to keep kids playing baseball at home, so that’s what I sent them,” he said. “Apparently, it was enough.”
Part of the purpose for having Movie Night was to get kids signed up for Fall Ball as well. Deadline to register is Friday.
“This was the first baseball group we’ve ever hosted,” Manson said. “We’ve done Boy Scouts and other organizations, but never this. It was a fun night.
“We were 100% behind this. Youth baseball helps lay a foundation that can benefit kids throughout life. Who wouldn’t be behind that?”
There were just under 300 kids ages 3-18 playing CTAA baseball this spring and summer. A season-ending pool party will take place Friday at Alameda Park.
McDonald said kids can sign up for fall ball there or by visiting centertownshipaa.com.
“We compete against travel baseball,” McDonald admitted. “We want people to have a great experience with youth baseball right in their own backyard. That’s our goal.”
