Next summer’s Rowan County American Legion baseball team, already expected to be one of the top squads in the state, got an added boost Thursday — home-field advantage.
Catawba College’s Newman Park will be the site of the 2002 American Legion State Tournament during the first week of August. As the host squad, Rowan automatically makes the eight-team field. If Rowan doesn’t win the Area III championship or finish second, which it did in 2001, JimGantt’s club will still be seeded second from Area III.
“It’s always fun to play here at Newman Park, particularly with all the fans that will be here,”Gantt said. “I just hope we can put together a team. We snuck up on a lot of people last year.This year people will be expecting us to do well.”
Hosting the Legion tournament adds even more excitement to next summer. Rowan lost just two players from a team that finished 36-9, andGantt should take the field with a loaded bullpen and dominating offense.
Across the state, Rowan County Legion baseball is associated with strong teams and big crowds. Newman Park is almost always packed in June and July. Now, though, more than parents, family friends and die-hard fans will be able to root for Rowan in the postseason.
“It’s hard to get off work during the week, and people will still have to get time off, but I imagine a lot of bosses will want to be out here, too,”Gantt said. “Plus, you can get off work and be here in 20-30 minutes instead of driving three hours.”
Two other Area III Legion posts put in bids to host next year’s event, Rowan athletics officer Banks Barringer said this morning. However, Asheboro withdrew its application, and Kannapolis could not work out scheduling conflicts with the Intimidators and next summer’s South Atlantic League minor-league baseball schedule at Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium.
This year’s North Carolina state champion will enjoy a road less traveled to the national championship. Following the state tournament in Rowan, the Southeast Regional will be held in Shelby and the national finals in Richmond,Va.
“Everything’s on the East Coast and close by for us,”Barringer said.
The third annual state tournament is tentatively set to begin Thursday, Aug. 1, with the team banquet. Games would be played Friday through Tuesday in the double-elimination tournament, although Barringer said the event could revert back to the Thursday-through-Monday format of past years.
Barringer said one of the factors in Rowan’s securing the state tournament was Newman Park’s covered grandstand. In previous tournaments at Garner and Caldwell County, fans were subjected to the August sun on temporary bleachers.
To get the stadium ready for the multitude of players, fans and media that converge on the site, Barringer said Newman Park could use updated bathroom facilities and new, temporary press seating in the grandstand.
Rowan County last hosted an American Legion event in 1996 when the Southeast Regional was played here. The Rowan squad actually won that event and headed to the national tournament in Oregon, where it finished fourth.
Prior to hosting that event, improved lighting was added to the field and a new concession stand and press box were built. Gantt said other potential improvements for Newman Park this time around could include a new outfield fence and more permanent metal bleachers down the lines instead of the current wooden ones.
Barringer and the Legion Post 342 BaseballCommittee will start lengthy preparations for the event by hiring a tournament director. After that, the Legion will begin soliciting financial support from local businesses and also look for volunteers to make sure everything runs smoothly.
“Hopefully we can get some things organized. The Legion has always tried to work with Catawba hand-in-hand,”Gantt said. “We’re not big-time, but there’s no reason we can’t try to make this the best smaller baseball facility around.
“The best thing about Legion baseball is it involves the entire city and county. There are a lot of people who can help us.”
To contact Barringer about helping with the tournament, call him at 704-279-2341.
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