At 11 a.m. today, the cry of “Play ball!” will be heard across Blue Springs, Independence and Grain Valley, signaling the start of the 21st annual American Legion Wood Bat Invitational.
For all of the out-of-town fans who flock to the area for the 40-team, 104-game tournament, get ready for one of the greatest amateur baseball experiences of your life.
The fields have been manicured, the Fike burgers will be sizzling and the teams just seem to get better and better every year.
It’s been well documented for more than two decades that the tournament is the brainchild of Blue Springs Post 499/Fike coach Jim Moran and the late Ron Johnson, who made such an impact on area players while coaching Oak Grove Post 379.
I remember watching the sun come up over the left-field wall at Pink Hill Park many, many years ago as I covered a memorable game that began under the stars and ended under the golden hues of the approaching sun.
Most games don’t begin at 3 a.m., but that Wood Bat tourney was thrown into a funk by rain, rain and more – you guessed it – rain.
“Rain can cause some problems,” Moran said, “but it looks like we might get by this week. They’re calling for some rain late in the week, but who knows? You just hate it for the out-of-town teams and fans when that happens.”
And when it does happen, Moran goes into emergency mode and reschedules games, fields, umpires and volunteers.
The number of volunteers it takes to make this even run seamlessly is astounding.
“We had a dad volunteer to paint the scoreboard at Hidden Valley Park earlier this year and his son decided he wasn’t going to play baseball,” Moran said, “but the dad still came out and painted that scoreboard – and that’s a lot of work.
“The parents of all the Legion teams, the former players and managers and coaches are all pretty amazing.”
So is Moran, and so is his tournament.
He’ll probably get about six total hours of sleep this week and most if it will take place on a cot in the office under the press box at Hidden Valley No. 2.
If you need an answer, he can provide it.
If he can’t answer the question, he will find someone who can.
And all the while, he’s out there coaching his Fike team.
The man wears more hats than the Mad Hatter and makes the toughest job this week in American Legion Baseball look so easy that a kindergartner could do it.
If you happen to run into Moran on the field, at the Fike Burger stand or walking through the Hidden Valley Complex, take a moment and thank him for what he’s done the past 21 years.
I’m sure he only hears about the negative things, and believe me, there isn’t much to gripe about at the finest tournament of the summer.
Somehow, he anticipates a problem and takes care of it before it even happens.
Now, if he can just keep the rain away.
Blue Springs, MO —
