August 12, 2011 – By Sarah L. Greenhalgh, The Winchester Star       

Evan Thatcher (left) and Josh Bogdan of the Hickory Hornets, the Middle Atlantic 10-year-old Babe Ruth League Regional Champions from Harford County, Md., swing T-shirts like baseball bats on the Loudoun Street Mall Thursday night. The team will be playing in the Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series.
(Photo by Jeff Taylor/The Winchester Star)

Winchester baseball players toss coins into the fountain on the Loudoun Street Mall on Thursday night and wish aloud for a World Series win in the Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series. From right are Aaron Banks, Cam Mintz and Cris Burger.
(Photo by Jeff Taylor/The Winchester Star)Winchester- Teams from across the country began arriving here Thursday for the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series.

This is the first time the city has hosted a World Series.

Ten teams, from as far away as California and Oregon, will play in the series, which starts Saturday and culminates with a championship game Aug. 20.

About 20 players and their families gathered Thursday night on the Loudoun Street Mall to meet each other and watch an outdoor showing of the the 1994 movie “Angels in the Outfield.”

The boys were full of energy and looking forward to playing on the newly sodded Yost Field in Jim Barnett Park.

“It’s really nice,” Cameron Kalandros, 10, of Harford County, Md., said of the field. “It looks like a major a league field. I can’t wait to play.”

One home run hitter, Trent Gast-Woodard, is eyeing a certain part of Yost Field.

“I really, really like those fences,” he said with a smile.

His coach, Ken Bogdan, believes he can hit a few balls over them.

“He can do it,” Bogdan said. “All Trent needs to do is hit it about 200 feet. He has it in him.”

Bogdan, who is coaching the team from Hickory, Md., said his players had to make some changes and relearn their pitching stances in preparation for the World Series.

“We don’t pitch off the mound in Maryland,” Bogdan said. “It was a hard adjustment, but they have adapted nicely. We’re not fixing what ain’t broke, it’s just a foot release and about throwing harder.”

He added: “I think it helps that they think it’s cool and fun.”

Bogdan has been coaching for about six years. He’s pretty sure a team from Hickory has never made it to this level, and stardom does have its perks.

“It’s been great,” Bogdan said. “They are little superstars. The Orioles sent us tickets to a game and [we] got to meet some of the players. The boys got some autographs and were all up on the Jumbotron.”

Bogdan says the boys are learning what it’s like to be serious athletes and how to act like one.

Cameron’s mother, Barb Kalandros of Bel Air, Md., said the team didn’t know until the last minute that it was going to play in the World Series.

Cal Ripken Baseball is the age 4-12 division of the Babe Ruth League.

“I think we were the final team picked to go, so we only had about 10 days to raise the money for this trip,” she said.

Each traveling team had to raise about $16,000.

“We were lucky,” Kalandros said. “We were able to get some donations from some banks, a 50/50 raffle and Five Guys helped us out.”

When they aren’t practicing, players on the Maryland team have been relaxing in the hotel, meeting players from other states and playing some games of strategy.

“We play poker,” Cameron said, smiling.

His coach says he is good at it.

Opening ceremonies for the World Series, complete with fireworks, will be at 7 tonight at Yost Field.

The first game is 1:30 p.m. Saturday, with the host team from Winchester taking on a team from Mineral Area, Mo., at 7:30 p.m. Play continues throughout the week.

A one-day pass to attend the games at Yost Field is $5 per person and free for children age 3 and under. Individual passes for the week are $25, and family passes are $50.

- Contact Sarah L. Greenhalgh at sgreenhalgh@winchesterstar.com

August 6, 2011

By Vic Bradshaw
The Winchester Star  - The world – or at least the Cal Ripken 10-year-old baseball world – comes to town next week.

Eight youth baseball teams from across America will join state host Glen Allen and local host Winchester for the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series.

The 10-team tournament, which has taken about two years to plan and stage, begins next Saturday with round-robin pool play and ends Aug. 20 with the championship game.

Brad Veach, Winchester’s Parks and Recreation Department director, said the decision to pursue hosting the tournament was an easy one.

“I think any time you can bring an event into the community that showcases your community – but also has a very positive economic impact – it’s always a good thing,” he said.

The department’s history of successfully hosting tournaments, combined with the efforts of Winchester Baseball, went a long way toward convincing the Babe Ruth League – which governs Cal Ripken baseball – that Winchester would be a good host site.

The opportunity to be the World Series host also is a major event for Winchester Baseball. The local team is automatically entered in the tournament, but the benefits go beyond that.

Winchester Baseball President Bob Brown said hosting the series increases the profile of the program and could boost participation.

He said 700 to 800 children aged 4 to 15 take part in Winchester Baseball. The majority of those youngsters are from the city and Frederick County, though some come from neighboring areas that do not offer Cal Ripken or Babe Ruth ball.

“I think [hosting the series] speaks volumes for the quality of our program and the quality of baseball in the area,” Brown said. “I think it will be a real plus for baseball in general in our area.”

Veach said the parks department staff is working on in-game promotions and other activities that should create “a very festive atmosphere.”

He believes games with visiting teams will draw a few hundred people. But when Winchester Baseball plays, he’s expecting the 800 to 1,000 fans to pack the stands.

Robert P. Faherty Jr., vice president and commissioner of the Babe Ruth League, said the Cal Ripken qualifying method of bringing in teams from eight regions country means visitors from around America will have a chance to visit the northern Shenandoah Valley.

“It’s not just eight teams from California that are participating,” he said. “They’re from the south and northeast, the north and west, all over.

“Right away, you kind of sense that we’re bringing the whole world to Winchester.”

A costly endeavor

The World Series, however, doesn’t come cheap.

Veach said he is on pace to spend about $218,000 to operate the tournament. That includes the $45,000 paid to the Babe Ruth organization for the contract.

Another $60,600 in capital expenditures went toward upgrades at Yost Field, some of which Veach said would have been needed soon regardless.

Field lighting was added, the diamond was regraded and resodded, backstops and fences were repaired, the press box was painted and carpeted, the scoreboard was replaced, and walking trails were resurfaced.

Veach said local businesses stand to benefit from about $200,000 of the tournament’s expenses. But the business community has given back, too, contributing $159,872 in goods, services or cash toward the event.

“In recent weeks, a number of sponsors have come up and said, ‘Hey, we want to do something,’” Veach said. “Some of those sponsors are ones we talked to a year ago, and they said they weren’t ready to make a commitment yet.

“But they’ve seen [series coverage and advertisements] in the newspaper, they’ve seen it on TV, they’ve seen it on the sides of the streets – all the advertisement and all the buzz about the World Series – and they’re like, ‘Hey, we need to get involved in this.’”

Some of the series donations were made for items or services the event needed, which eliminated an expense. Some donations will be sold at concession stands.

Others will be used as prizes to lure people to buy tickets for the Chik-fil-A “cow drop;” the money from that event will be used to defray series expenses.

If revenue projections from items such as ticket, souvenir and concession sales are reached, Veach said, he thinks the tournament will net about $30,000 for the parks department.

He said he expects to more than break even, and because he budgeted conservatively, the surplus could be greater.

“Our goal wasn’t to make a lot of money,” he said, “but we didn’t want to take a loss.”

Veach, however, had to refine his proposal considerably and promise to cover any losses with department funds before the City Council would allow him to seek the contract.

His initial pitch required an investment from the city; his final plan called for the department to borrow $75,000 from its reserves and repay that amount when the tournament concluded.

The councilor who pushed him most regarding spending was Art Major, the panel’s vice president. He said he was sold on the event, but didn’t want to see a lot of tax dollars directed toward it.

“I always had confidence that this event would be good for the city of Winchester,” Major said. “I made my comment [about covering shortfalls] to make sure Brad felt confident that his financial projections were accurate and he could back them up,”

Major said he thought it was great that the city government could use reserve funds for seed money and repay them.

Business involvement

Support from the business community for such an event is crucial, and Veach’s sponsorship sheet includes 58 organizations, the vast majority of them local.

Chuck Guffee, owner/operator of the two Chik-fil-A franchises in Winchester and Frederick County, said he called Veach when he heard the series was coming and wanted to help.

The cow drop, which features prizes ranging from a Caribbean cruise for two to football and movie tickets, along with the fireworks will help to cap Friday’s Opening Ceremonies.

The company contributed $3,500 in cash and provided an in-kind contribution valued at $4,000.

“We thought this would be a big event and something we could get involved in pretty easily,” Guffee said. “We wanted to have our name associated with it.”

The restaurant will sell chicken sandwiches and other edibles at the field, but Guffee also expects to get business at his stores.

Cork Street Tavern came aboard late, donating $500 in gift certificates. Chris Bennett, the downtown restaurant’s kitchen manager, said the importance of youth sports to a community is one of the reasons they became involved.

“I know a lot of kids came up through [the Winchester Baseball] program,” he said. “Youth sports has really helped a lot of kids.”

The exposure, Bennett said, also might help the independent restaurant compete for business with the national chains all visitors will know.

But not all sponsors are likely to see their bottom line enhanced by their participation.

Major – who aside from his City Council duties is president of GearClean Inc. – donated $7,500 to sponsor the opening banquet. His company cleans some athletic uniforms – but not the type the ballplayers will wear – and other segments of the business will not be affected directly.

“I love Winchester,” he said, “and I want to support what’s good for our city. What’s good for our citizens is good for me.”

Major said he thinks the banquet and ballgames will be fun, so it was “easy to get behind it.”

Overall, he said, it’s good to have GearClean associated with such an event.

American tradition

What those sponsors have invested in is a link to Babe Ruth baseball, which has been a part of the American landscape for 60 years.

Girls’ softball was added to its offerings along the way.

In 2000, the organization’s 4- to 12-year-old age group in was renamed Cal Ripken Baseball.

Faherty, the Babe Ruth commissioner, said the move was made to honor the entire Ripken family – Cal Sr., who coached and managed the Baltimore Orioles; his son Cal Jr., the Hall-of-Fame shortstop who retired in 2001 after 21 years with the Orioles and is best known for playing a Major League record 2,632 consecutive games; and his other son Billy Ripken, who played for four teams during his 12-year Major League career.

The 10-year-old baseball division is the youngest for which a World Series is held.

Economic boost

Even using very conservative estimates, the tournament’s economic impact on the area quickly becomes obvious.

If each visiting-team family consists of three people, and they spend an average of $10 each on three meals a day. That’s $90 spent at local restaurants.

Add the $105 average room rate Veach calculated from team host hotels and the daily per-family spending on lodging and meals alone is $195.

Assuming the average number of families per team is 15 (hotels reserved 20 rooms per team, and Glen Allen, the first out-of-the-area qualifier, booked 25 rooms) team spending could reach $2,925 per day – and multiplying that by nine teams means a daily outlay of $26,325 on meals and lodging alone.

Veach said Babe Ruth officials say the average length of stay is 9.7 days. Factoring that into the equation, the visiting teams should spend a minimum of $255,352.50 locally before they have paid to clean the first uniform or made any gas, entertainment, souvenir or other purchases.

Add more families and/or people per family to the equation, toss in coaches and umpires, consume more than $30 in food and beverages per day and the numbers climb.

For example, an average of 20 families per team boosts minimum local spending to $340,470 for the tournament, and if those 20 families spend an average of $12 per person per meal, the figure climbs to nearly $371,898.

Such spending will translate into thousands of dollars in sales-, meals- and lodging-tax collections for Winchester and Frederick County.

Veach said he thinks series visitor spending likely will total about $286 per day. He said that monetary influx, plus the money spent with local businesses on tournament preparation, should place the local economic impact of the event between $500,000 and $1 million.

“A substantial boost”

Three Aikens Group properties – the Hilton Garden Inn, the Hampton Inn Conference Center on Berryville Avenue, and the Fairfield Inn & Suites on Front Royal Pike (U.S. 522) – are set to benefit from the tournament.

Jason Aikens, the company’s vice president, said the hotels would have filled up several of the tournament nights on their own. The value of booking the teams comes from the extra room sales on normally low-occupancy nights and from exposure.

Hotels with a coin laundry will benefit from regular use by the ballplayers and their families. Visitors also will purchase other incidentals, and full-service properties will see extra food and beverage revenue.

Aikens and Min Lee, the director of sales for the team-host hotels Aloft and the Wingate Inn, said their owners are very supportive of community activities such as the series. Some properties sold rooms at below their regular rate, and Lee said team hotels are required to provide complimentary rooms to two coaches.

Aikens said employees at his company’s three hotels are looking forward to the event.

“It’s going to be a good week,” he said. “I’m glad to see the City of Winchester bring this event to the area. It’s going to be a substantial boost to the local economy.”

Lasting effects

While the visiting teams will pack up and leave about 10 days after they arrive, the tournament’s effects will linger.

Sally Coates, tourism director for Winchester and Frederick County, said visitors who have a good experience in the area will spread the word about the community and perhaps make a return trip.

The improvements to Yost Field will not go away when the series ends. Area youths will benefit from the enhanced facilities for years to come.

But the real benefits are the possibilities. Faherty, the Babe Ruth commissioner, said last month that he could see Winchester having the opportunity to host another World Series a few years from now.

Veach said he hopes a successful tournament will evolve into more park use for similar events. Work to add two multi-purpose areas at Preston Field provides a new opportunity, along with the existing pools, gymnasium, BMX track, disc golf course and other amenities.

To help accomplish that, Veach has started marketing Winchester and Jim Barnett Park in Sports Destination Management magazine.

“We’re definitely moving in the right direction when it comes to bringing tourism dollars into the community,” he said. “I want to see the Winchester Parks and Recreation Department become a destination for sports events.”

Even if that’s not accomplished, Veach said, he thinks the World Series will continue to pay dividends. The 58 tournament sponsors sank their dollars into the park, and he hopes they will benefit from it and continue to do so.

“This is getting local businesses back into the park,” he said. “That’s important for down the road.”

- Contact Vic Bradshaw
at vbradshaw@winchesterstar.com

WINCHESTER – The 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series, presented by Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company, will be held August 13-20 on Yost Field in Jim Barnett Park. 

Since families and teams will be traveling to Winchester from across the country, the World Series Executive Committee wanted to offer them something fun to do when they were not at the ball field. Thanks to the Winchester-Frederick County Visitors Center, World Series visitors now have the opportunity to enjoy a variety of relaxing excursions both locally and to neighboring attractions such as the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and Luray Caverns.

Local residents can also take part in the offer.  Call Winchester Parks & Recreation at (540) 662-4946 to make a reservation. 

Three Local Winchester Sightseeing Excursions

Each tour package includes a full-day of sightseeing, admission to all museums, and a comfortable, modern, climate-controlled motor coach with reclining seats.  A buffet lunch is included in the packages offered on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Local tours also include the services of a professional step-on guide.

All tours begin and end at the War Memorial Building in Jim Barnett Park.

Registration deadline for all tours is August 4. If the minimum number of participants (25) is not met by the deadline, the excursion will be canceled.

1. Visitors Center/Museum of the Shenandoah Valley/Civil War Tour in Old Town/Old Court House Civil War Museum/Buffet Lunch
Sunday, August 14, 2011 (Activity #: 557313/01)
10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Per person fee: $70.00 or Save $10 per person by purchasing online
 
2. Abram’s Delight/Visitors Center/George Washington Office Museum/Godfrey Miller Home/Stonewall Jackson Museum/Loudoun Street Mall
Monday, August 15, 2011 (Activity #: 557313/02)
Wednesday, August 17, 2011 (Activity #: 557313/04)
10:00 am – 4:30 pm
Per person fee: $55.00 or Save $10 per person by purchasing online

3. Historical Points of Interest Tour/Wayside Inn/Marker-Miller Orchards/Buffet Lunch
Tuesday, August 16, 2011 (Activity #: 557313/03)
Thursday, August 18 (Activity #: 557313/05)
10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Per person fee: $70.00 or Save $10 per person by purchasing online

Sit back and enjoy a Historical Points of Interest Driving Tour that includes stops, not only in Winchester, but also in the surrounding countryside, where you’ll see breathtaking mountain views. Learn about people and events of this area that helped shape our nation’s culture and history.

Nation’s Capitol, Washington D.C.
Saturday, August 13 (Activity #: 557313/06)
Tuesday, August 16 (Activity #: 557313/07)
9:00 am-7:00 pm
Departs from and returns to the War Memorial Bldg, Jim Barnett Park
Per person fee: $70.00 (fee includes bus fare only) or Save $10 per person by purchasing online

Luray Caverns in Shenandoah Valley
Monday, August 15 (Activity #: 557313/08)
Thursday, August 18 (Activity #: 557313/09)
10:00 am-5:00 pm
Departs from and returns to the War Memorial Bldg, Jim Barnett Park
Per person fee: $70.00 or Save $10 instantly by purchasing online

To make a reservation in person, please call Winchester Parks & Recreation at (540) 662-4946 or visit the War Memorial Bldg in Jim Barnett Park. Registration deadline: August 4

Winchester Parks and Recreation Director Brad Veach, shown at Yost Field in Jim Barnett Park, says plans for the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series are shaping up.
(Photo by Scott Mason/The Winchester Star)

A new paved walkway has been installed around Yost Field in Winchester’s Jim Barnett Park in preparation for the Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series.
(Photo by Scott Mason/The Winchester Star)

WINCHESTER- More than two months before the first pitch, preparations appear to be shaping up nicely for the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series.

“All over town, you can see signs that the World Series is coming,” Brad Veach, director of the city Parks and Recreation Department, said of promotion for the Aug. 13-20 event. “We have pole banners lining Old Town, banners in Jim Barnett Park, and the series website is getting a good amount of activity.

Veach said local businesses have contributed about $120,000 – some in cash and some in equipment, services or goods required to operate the event or sellable to generate revenue.

Improvements have been made at Yost Field, where the games will be played, and more are scheduled.

Volunteers are coming forward to aid event operations.

Robert P. Faherty Jr., national vice president and commissioner of Babe Ruth League Inc., said Winchester easily passed its spring visitation inspection, during which preparation details were reviewed. Since then he has regularly talked with Veach about planning progress.

Winchester is one of nine sites hosting Babe Ruth League World Series events this year, and Faherty said he has changed his plans so he can attend the Aug. 12 Banquet of Champions and the next day’s opening ceremonies.

“I’m as excited about the Winchester community hosting the 10-year-old World Series this year as any we have this year,” he said. “It seems early to say this, but I think the Winchester community is going to have the type of partnership with Babe Ruth League that could see us bringing more than one World Series back to that community.”

Despite the early strong reviews, much remains to be done, and more money and help are needed.

Veach said he will seek sponsorship contributions of $500 or more for about 30 more days. He specifically is looking to fill team sponsorships at $2,000 each.

Much of the contributed money is flowing into the local economy. He estimated that city and Frederick County businesses have received about 80 percent of the $56,000 spent to date on expenses beyond the contract fees paid to Babe Ruth League, which sanctions Cal Ripken baseball.

Banners for the series were printed locally, he said, and a local contractor resurfaced the walking trails around the fields. Cabinets for the press box were purchased at Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore outlet. A local company obtained the contract for souvenirs.

“By the time it’s all said and done,” Veach said, “there probably will be well over $100,000 spent locally.”

Yost Field has new lights, a new scoreboard, a new backstop, and a renovated press box, he said. The field will be graded in mid-June and converted to Bermuda grass, featuring a grass infield with base cutouts.

In addition to dollars, the remaining concerns are lining up enough volunteers to help conduct the tournament and sell tickets. Veach said a number of civic groups and businesses have pledged to provide volunteers, but more help is needed.

“The volunteers and sponsors make and break this event,” he said. “When you’ve got volunteers helping out by doing whatever it takes to get the job done, it helps the whole appearance of the series, helps with the hospitality of the event. It’s an extension of our community, the willingness to volunteer our time to help with kids.”

Faherty said he expects the community to “open up its arms to see that the kids will be treated in a first-class manner.”

Advance ticket sales have been slow, and Veach said he hopes they will pick up once the school year ends.

He hopes to find volunteers with extensive community connections to help with sales. Tickets can be purchased online, too.

“The series continues to need community support,” Faherty said, “and if someone is not volunteering, then at a minimum we’d like them coming and buying tickets and supporting the event. Buying a family pass and coming out and watching three or four games is big in the success of the event.”

Veach said fans traveling with participating teams should buy 400 to 600 tickets.

winchestervaworldseries.com

- Contact Vic Bradshaw at
vbradshaw@winchesterstar.com

The 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series Banquet of Champions (sponsored by Gear Clean) featured speaker knows a few things about baseball, winning and life. 

Scotty McGregor of the Baltimore Orioles has an impressive baseball resume which includes:

• 1969 – Babe Ruth 13-15 year old World Championship Team
• 1969 – Babe Ruth World Series Most Valuable Player
• 1971 – High School California State Championship Team
• 1971 & 1972 – Player of the Year for Southern California
• 1972 – Drafted by the New York Yankees in the 1^st round as the 14^th draft pick in the nation
• 1976 – Traded to the Baltimore Orioles and brought up to the Major Leagues several months later where he stayed for 11 years
• 1979 – Pitched the clinching play-off game against the California Angels with an 8-0 shut out to go to the World Series against Pittsburg
• 1980 – 20 game winner for the Orioles and
• 1981 – Participated on the All-Star team
• 1983 – Pitched the final game of the 1983 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies and won 5-0 to clinch the title for the Orioles.  By throwing that shut out, Scott become the only pitcher in Major League history to clinch 2 play-off series with shut outs. 
• 1983 – Orioles MVP Pitcher
• Scott ended his career with 138 wins, 105 losses, 3.95 ERA, 2.124 innings pitched, 2,218 hits allowed, 511 walks, 894 strike outs and 5 saves…all with the Baltimore Orioles.
• 1990 Orioles Hall of Fame inductee as the current 6^th winningest pitcher in Orioles history.
• Today, Scott is the pitching coach for the Aberdeen Ironbirds, a member of the New York Penn League, located in Aberdeen, MD.

Scotty McGregor’s youth baseball experience began at age 8 in California.  His fondest youth baseball memory is winning the Babe Ruth World Series in 1969.  Yes, winning was fun, but his favorite memories are of the times he spent with his teammates traveling around the country to play baseball.  He enjoyed exploring new cities with his best friends when they weren’t playing baseball and he is thankful to have been able to share these experiences and the game of baseball with the same group of boys for his entire youth.   

Mr. McGregor attributes his success to genetics and something from a higher power.  He impressed his father with his throwing ability at age 7.  When he was 9, he was striking out 11 and 13 year olds.  In addition, he grew up in a “baseball town” where many locals helped teach him the game in neighborhood streets and in his own back yard.  He also attributes his talent to his internal drive and hard work.  He loved the game and that has never changed.

His role model growing up was the older brother of his good friend and teammate, George Brett.  Ken Brett was older and also a baseball player, so Scotty looked up to Ken and wanted to be like him.  In 1966, Ken was drafted out of high school by the Red Sox.  Later in their professional careers, they had the opportunity to play together on the same team, something that Scotty remembers fondly.

The 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series is all about young baseball players, their future baseball careers and learning about life.  Mr. McGregor mentioned in a phone interview: “Baseball teaches you how to handle the ups and downs in life.  Sometimes you strike out.  Sometimes you hit a home run.  Whether you win or lose, you’ve got to give it all you got even if it doesn’t always go the way you want it.”  In his motivational speeches to baseball families, Mr. McGregor talks about this important lesson about tenacity, hard work and sportsmanship while having fun on the baseball field.

The 2011 Gear Clean Banquet of Champions will be held in the gymnasium at Jim Barnett Park in Winchester, Virginia on August 12 at 5:00 pm.  Tickets can be purchased in advance for $15 per person and includes a buffet dinner.  Seating is limited.  Contact WPRD for details at 662-4946.

Following the Banquet of Champions will be the Opening Ceremonies at 7:00 pm on Yost Field.  Scheduled during the opening ceremonies is a formal introduction of the teams, entertainment, the Chick-fil-A Cow Drop and the Sheetz Fireworks Show.

February 26, 2011

By Vic Bradshaw
The Winchester Star       

WINCHESTER- The 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series is being marketed on grocery store shelves and in drink coolers from Virginia Beach to Delaware to Ohio.

Berkeley Club Beverages, which bottles and distributes Berkeley Springs Natural Spring Water, is shipping 16.9-ounce bottles with a private-brand label featuring the 2011 World Series logo.

The logo lists the Aug. 13-20 tournament dates and host city – Winchester.

The private-label water that will market the series and Winchester to hundreds of thousands of Berkeley Springs customers grew from the effort to line up sponsors for the event.

Brad Veach, Winchester’s parks and recreation director, signed up the West Virginia beverage company, and it decided to take the next step with its involvement.

Rod DeHaven, co-owner of the company, said 400,000 labels have been purchased and will be affixed to bottles shipped to 19 distributors in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Ohio and Washington, D.C.

“We wanted to get our other distributors involved with it,” he said of the decision to use labels with the World Series logo. “They buy the 16.9s from us, and they’re advertising the World Series to everybody that gets a bottle.”

Berkeley Club Beverages is one of 16 local businesses committed to supporting the championship baseball tournament. The event will feature eight teams from around America, a Virginia qualifier, and Winchester Baseball’s all-star team as the event host.

Wachovia/Wells Fargo bank has signed on as the series’ title sponsor. The bank’s name will change from Wachovia to Wells Fargo the week before the event.

Selling the series is vital to its operation.

Robert P. Faherty Jr., vice president and commissioner of Babe Ruth League Inc., the parent organization of Cal Ripken baseball, said he tells tournament organizers to expect to need a $120,000 operating budget.

Some years ago, he said, Van Buren, Ark., raised $268,000 in corporate support.

Soliciting community sponsors helps to build interest in the event.

Faherty said Walmart once pledged $100,000 to a series in Bentonville, Ark., where it is headquartered. The money was appreciated, but it reduced the need for organizers to solicit contributions from throughout the area.

“It stopped that community from having to reach out to all levels of business,” he said, “which in itself is a publicity avenue, letting everybody have part of it. It’s more common for people to line up 40 $1,000 sponsorships.”

Veach’s goal is to capture $140,000 in sponsorships, either in cash donations or in-kind contributions of products or services, and he is about 60 percent of the way there.

Much of the money will be spent with local businesses.

Wachovia/Wells Fargo’s donation will be cash. Berkeley Club Beverages will provide products to be given to volunteers and sold at concession stands to raise money. Jim Stutzman Chevrolet-Cadillac is doing both, donating money and providing vehicles for tournament officials to use.

Sponsorship donations are being funneled through the Winchester Parks Foundation, a nonprofit group that supports city parks and recreation activities.

While admitting that the national reach of the World Series fits Wachovia/Wells Fargo’s footprint, Mike Wilkerson said the sponsorship decision was made locally.

Wilkerson, the bank’s regional business manager for Virginia’s western region, is on the board of directors for Winchester Baseball. He said youth sports are great for children, and the event can be an economic boon for the region.

“If you look at the statistics that are out there, young kids who are involved in youth sports do better in school, they stay out of trouble, and they have higher self-esteem,” he said. “When you look at what they do for young kids, it’s great to be involved and sponsor youth sports.

“Also, [the series] can be such an economic catalyst to our community that it absolutely is right thing to do.”

Veach said he is asking sponsors to put the event logo on their websites.

That markets the tournament and shows that the business is involved in an important local event.

Berkeley Club Beverages, of course, did even more.

DeHaven, who co-owns the company with his brother Butch and mother Patty, said he and his brother were involved with baseball from a young age.

So when Veach called to ask if they would help as a sponsor, they didn’t hesitate.

DeHaven believes he had the idea to produce the private label. The bottles promoting the World Series began reaching store shelves in late January and should last up until tournament time. He would not disclose the amount the labels cost the company.

The investment already is paying off. DeHaven said he has lined up about 15 new customers for five-gallon bottles who said they called because they saw the World Series bottles.

Faherty said Cal Ripken-Babe Ruth also should benefit from the exposure the bottle labels provide.

While the tournament is a single event, Faherty, Wilkerson and Veach said they envision Winchester becoming a regular World Series host city.

“This is a big door we’re stepping through here,” Wilkerson said.

But Veach said the potential goes beyond baseball.

“I want people walking away saying, ‘It was like we were home, the people were nice to us,’” he said, “and when they get home they say the Shenandoah Valley is someplace they want to come back to.”

- Contact Vic Bradshaw at
vbradshaw@winchesterstar.com

February 2, 2011

By Vic Bradshaw
The Winchester Star 

WINCHESTER- Though the area is blanketed in snow, organizers of the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series think it’s a good time to start thinking baseball.

The Winchester Parks and Recreation Department launched a website Tuesday dedicated to the upcoming national tournament. The event will be held Aug. 13-20 at Yost Field in Jim Barnett Park.

Brad Veach, the city’s parks and recreation director, said the site was launched more than six months ahead of the series to recognize key sponsors, solicit volunteers, spark ticket sales, and provide information about the area.

Winchestervaworldseries.com was crafted in large part by checking out sites for similar events, Veach said. He said it closely resembles the website Winchester, Mass., built for the Cal Ripken 12-year-old event in 2009.

“We have the opportunity to customize it the way we need to for the series,” he said. “I think ours is very appealing to eyes.”

The site will be a work in progress from now until the end of the tournament. Day trip ideas are being packaged and will be placed on the “Excursions” page in the coming weeks, and other information will be added as it is developed.

Closer to the event, information on participating teams will be posted. During the series, a link will carry those interested to media sponsor Winchester-Live.com for postgame box scores.

The city’s Facebook link also is prominently displayed on the site.

“We felt it was important to get information out,” Veach said of the use of the social media website. “A lot of people use Facebook, and we’ll be able to announce things people should be interested in there. We’ll be using Twitter, too.”

The site includes a schedule of events leading up to and during the series. Game schedules will be posted soon, Veach said.

Links also carry visitors to the websites of series partners, such as the Winchester-Frederick County Visitors Center, Old Town Winchester, and Winchester Baseball.

Rob Shambaugh, the city’s webmaster and Tom Lloyd, the city’s director of information technology, were both instrumental in creating the site, Veach said.

Sally Coates, tourism director for Winchester and Frederick County, said her department also contributed information.

“I’m very pleased with the way it’s developing,” she said.

Sponsorship opportunities are still available, Veach said, and more volunteers are needed to help in various areas.

He said a push for ticket sales will begin soon, with a focus on family passes ($50 each for an entire family for all games) and a single pass to all games ($25). He said the department is offering “Will Call” service, enabling fans to call in their order and have tickets held for them at the site.

Single-game tickets will be sold at the gate for $5.

- Contact Vic Bradshaw at
vbradshaw@winchesterstar.com

Will call upon their sports medicine experience in August when the Cal Ripken World Series comes to city.

January 27, 2011

By Robert Stocks, The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER – When the 2011 10-year-old Cal Ripken World Series comes to the city in August, two area doctors plan to make sure all the players and fans are in good hands.

Dr. James Larson and Dr. Doug Duncan, both orthopedic surgeons with Bone and Joint Specialists of Winchester, have a wealth of sports medicine experience, and they both jumped at the chance to lend their expertise for the event – scheduled for Aug. 13-20 at Yost Field in Jim Barnett Park. Both Larson and Duncan moved to the city last year, and both have worked as team physicians at the professional level.

Larson worked with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and athletes at the University of Pittsburgh when he studied medicine at that school, and Duncan worked with the Detroit’s Pistons, Tigers and Red Wings last year.

“I was really interested in getting involved, with me being new to the community and this being such a big opportunity for the community,” the 33-year-old Larson said of working the World Series. “I wanted to make sure I had a hand in helping make this the best it could be.”

“A class act deal”

With eight regional championship teams from across the country, along with the state champion and Winchester Baseball’s 10-year-old team, there will be 10 teams competing in the World Series tournament.

Duncan said the goal is to make it feel like a major national event.

“We’ll make it a class-act deal,” said the 40-year-old. “You want an atmosphere where the kids feel a level of competition and they sort of take their game to the next level. It’s what I call the ‘wow experience.’ …

“We want to provide a fun, safe environment, and if we can increase awareness with the sports injury prevention stuff, then we hope to inspire them beyond the field in their academics, their play, and their caliber of person.”

Larson and Duncan will split up their work days with regular office hours for part of the day, and then staff the World Series games in shifts with some of their colleagues from Bone and Joint Specialists.

Duncan said he hopes other members of the medical community will also want to help out.

“We hope to generate interest with some of the pediatricians and family practitioners,” Duncan said. “There are a lot of outstanding physicians that are good at general medicine and sports medicine, too. We want to link arms with the community and generate some excitement about it.”

Larson said the main requirement for the World Series is to have an emergency medical staff present at all times, but the doctors plan on providing pro-level treatment for not only the players on the field, but also for the fans in the stands.

“There has to be hydration, EMS and screening, and a plan of action in case somebody does get hurt – so we’re trying to make sure we go above and beyond,” Larson said. “We want to make it the best it can be. [The kids] might not be used to having a trainer there with them, icing them down and stretching them out and that sort of stuff, but it’s the kind of thing I think they’ll really like.”

Eyes on the Storm

Along with taking lead roles for the World Series in August, both Larson and Duncan are currently serving as team physicians for the Winchester Storm, a semipro basketball team that’s in its inaugural season as a member of the Eastern Basketball Alliance.

The doctors staff all of the Storm’s home games at Admiral Byrd Middle School, as well as the team’s weekly practices. Larson and Duncan are assisted by two athletic trainers, making sure the players have the care they need before, during, and after practices and games.

“We keep an eye on what’s happening, and we make sure we’re ahead of what’s going on,” Larson said. “If we see a guy that’s limping off or someone holding a hand and coming out that we’ve got things ready to go for them.

“We’ll pull them behind the bench, make sure they’re able to play and safe so they can get back into the game. We also take care of the visiting teams when they’re here, too.”

Plugged into the community

Larson said helping with the Storm and taking on a lead role for the Cal Ripken World Series are things that “if you don’t do it because you love it – you don’t do it.”

And for a pair of sports enthusiasts like Larson and Duncan, the chance to take part in sporting events in their new community has been very enjoyable and a rewarding experience.

Larson, his wife, Kristen, and sons James, 6, and Kevin, 4, moved to Winchester last August. Larson worked at the Hughston Clinic in Columbus, Ga., prior to moving to Winchester.

Duncan, along with his wife, Sarah; son, Andrew, 7; and daughter, Rachel, 5, relocated to Winchester last September.

He said he and his wife fell in love with Winchester right away.

“My wife and I pulled into Winchester and she said, ‘This is too cute – stop the bus,’” Duncan said. “I have a young family that’s plugged into the community, and it’s sort of the perfect time of life to be in Winchester.”

Larson said he moved seven or eight times throughout his childhood, and that he’s always preferred communities similar to Winchester.

“This is always the kind of community that [my family] ended up in – outside of a large city in a nice rural community,” he said. “It’s really been very nice here. When I was interviewing and kind of looking up and down the East Coast, my son James, he’s 6 years old, said he wanted to live somewhere where there were a lot of apple trees. I said, ‘I think we can manage that buddy.’”

That fondness for the community is why Larson and Duncan are so eager to help the Storm and lend a hand with the Cal Ripken event.

“I’m really hoping to promote this place that we’re planning on staying forever, and hopefully just make this a spectacular event that will continue to attract similar types of events to the area,” Larson said. “It will help promote the town and the community.”

“We hope that we can make it so we can continue the series by generating enough interest and making it an outstanding event that will inspire kids to get to that level but also continue to make Winchester a destination,” Duncan added. “That’s the goal – to show that we have enough interest, class facilities, and class people involved to support so the World Series continues to make this [city] a destination.”

- Contact Robert Stocks at rstocks@winchesterstar.com

HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, NJ…Babe Ruth League, Inc. International Headquarters has announced that the 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series will be hosted by Winchester, Virginia, and played at Jim Barnett Park, August 13-20, 2011. Something for everyone can be found at this beautiful scenic park that includes softball and baseball fields, jogging trails, bike trails, pavilions, tennis courts, fitness room, racquetball courts, gymnasium, dog park, fishing, miniature golf course, adventure playground, accessible playground for children with special needs, and indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Jim Barnett Park is also home to the Winchester Royals of the Valley Baseball League and the Shenandoah University Hornets baseball team.

A Babe Ruth World Series has a high economic impression on any community that plays host to this prestigious event, especially the local hotels, restaurants, and businesses.

Sitting in the northernmost corner of Virginia in the Shenandoah Valley, Winchester offers visitors the chance to explore historical sites, museums, vineyards, farmers’ markets, and treelined Old Town streets once wandered by the likes of George Washington and Stonewall Jackson. The Old Town Pedestrian Mall is a perfect location to unwind after a long day of baseball. With many eclectic, locally-owned shops and restaurants housed in beautifully renovated buildings dating back before the Civil War, Old Town is located in the heart of Winchester and offers something for everyone. To learn more about the City of Winchester, visit www.winchesterva.gov or www.visitwinchesterva.com.

Winchester is the location of the annual Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival ®, which has existed since 1924 and draws over 250,000 visitors to the area. The festival includes a carnival, the longest fireman’s parade and the third longest grand feature parade in the U.S., several dances and parties, and a coronation where the Apple Blossom Queen is crowned. For more information about the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival, please visit www.thebloom.com.

Winchester is also the home of the award-winning Winchester Medical Center and Shenandoah University, a four-year private institution known for its quality academics and performing arts.

In making the announcement BRL Vice President/Commissioner Robert Faherty said, “We are honored to be going to Winchester with our 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series. I was not only impressed with their community, but was also amazed by their commitment to youth. In awarding a World Series, the main factors we consider are the facility, the Headquarters Hotel and community support. We also look for areas that in addition to offering a competitive athletic experience, can also offer a diverse cultural and educational experience. Winchester has all of these elements and more. The 2011 Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series will be a fun and memorable time for all.”

Babe Ruth League, Inc. is a non-profit, educational organization dedicated to developing better citizens by providing properly supervised baseball and softball competition for 4 through 18-year-old players. It is the basic intent of Babe Ruth League that every player who has a desire to play the sport is given the opportunity to participate and have fun.