FREEPORT — The 17th annual Freeport International Baseball Invitational takes place next week with 25 teams involved.

Japan will send a team to play in the event — slated Tuesday through Saturday — and Canada will have a few teams involved. A team from Brooklyn, NY, is coming to town, as are squads from Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and West Virginia.

“I can’t believe it’s as strong as it is today,” Freeport Invite founder Ralph “Sonny” Westerman said. “Two things we said we’d never do, we still haven’t done.

“Turn the thing into a tournament or charge admission. That’s never going to happen.”

No trophies are handed out and no champion is crowned in this event. As it’s motto says, teams sign up and play “for the love of the game.”

Japan is sending a team over despite the earthquake and tsunami that ravaged the country earlier this year.

“Most of that happened to the north of where these kids live,” Westerman said. “A lot of them had relatives affected by it, though.

“We held a benefit spaghetti dinner and through other donations raised $1,000 to help in their travel expenses to get here.”

Australia will not send a team this year as “the economy caught up to them,” Westerman said.

Games will be played on numerous fields in the Freeport area, with Swartz Field being a central location. An old-timers game will be played at Swartz Field at 8 p.m,. July 21, with parachutists landing at the field at 7 p.m.

Swartz Field will also host a foreign teams vs. the United States game at 8 p.m. July 23. A fireworks display will follow at 10 p.m. to close the event.

The Lyndora Lancers, a Palomino team, will join the Freeport Colt team and Freeport Palomino team as local entrants among the 25-team field.

The Potter Baseball Tour, founded last year by former Freeport resident Jeff Potter, will return to the Invitational. This group of 15 players tours various states to play in events like this one.

Based in Maryland, the Potter team will put on a baseball clinic from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday at South Buffalo Elementary School for boys and girls ages 9-14.

Fee is $20, which includes drinks and a Potter Tour t-shirt.

“All of the proceeds go back into baseball,” clinic spokesman Dave Brestensky said. “Whether it goes to the Freeport Invitational or some aother area organization, all of the money will be distributed toward a baseball organization.”

Brestensky said 25 kids took advantage of the Potter clinic last year.

“The team teaches everrything from pitching, hittig, throwing, proper fielding technique ... They cover every aspect of the game,” he said.

For more information on the clinic, call Brestensky at 724-525-0909.

The complete Freeport International Baseball Invitational schedule will soon be available at fortheloveofthegame.org.