Bloom, Danville restart leagues
With Columbia County moving into the state’s green phase of coronavirus measures on Friday and Montour County already there, some Little League associations have decided to take another swing at things.
Bloomsburg and Danville both announced they have restarted efforts to have a season this summer, with Danville already holding practices and Bloomsburg starting next week.
Catawissa, RCV and Benton also are exploring whether to hold a summer season, giving Bloomsburg some teams with which they can compete.
“They’re in the same position as us — gauging what interest there is and what we can do,” Bloomsburg Little League President Darin Bettinger said.
Both leagues are aware things are not going to look the same, but they have the best interest in mind for the players and their families.
“We’re just happy to get the kids out and playing,” Danville Little League Board President Matt Hickey said. “We know we have to take the mitigation seriously, but we want to get the kids out and give them an outlet to exercise and be social with other kids.”
Who can play?
Bloomsburg’s Facebook page says anyone interested in playing is to let the league know by Friday. As other leagues in Columbia County weigh their options, Bettinger says Bloomsburg isn’t ruling out hosting kids from neighboring boroughs.
He would, however, like to see how it plays out.
“I’d rather play against some of the other leagues, especially some of the others in interleague” such as RCV, Catawissa and Benton, he said.
Danville, meanwhile, doesn’t want to take the risk.
“We’re not looking to do that,” Hickey said. “It’s a higher risk when bringing in kids from other counties that aren’t green. Our season was already underway and under delay due to the pandemic.... This is a resumption of play, not so much a start over.”
Sanitation priority
Both Danville and Bloomsburg addressed their mitigation process to keep kids healthy while having fun.
Both have said players should not share equipment if at all possible, with the biggest concern being catcher’s equipment, and will disinfect the gear after every use.
Most of the athletes already sport their own batting helmets, bats and gloves, but if a child is in need of any one of those things, both leagues are willing to lend them equipment for the season.
They also have eliminated handshakes, with Danville changing its act of sportsmanship to the tipping of the players’ hats.
Bloomsburg has announced it will not have concessions this season, as Danville takes the approach of eliminating gum, lollipops and sunflower seeds from its sales to lower the chances of spitting.
In addition, they have taken measures with game balls. Bloomsburg is looking to disinfect them every two innings.
“We want to disinfect them because they’re really expensive,” Bettinger said. “We’d go through six balls a game and the costs add up quickly.”
Danville, on the other hand, will have assigned balls for teams — labeled no bigger than the size of a dime.
“Most of the game, only the pitcher and catcher will be handling the ball,” Hickey said. “The coaches [instead of umpires] will throw them into play so they stay within the same team.
“It’s even less of a risk than using a practice bucket.”
Modified play
Danville’s games will begin June 22 while Bloomsburg’s will resume in July. Both are set to conclude in August so children looking to play other sports aren’t pulled one way or another.
Bloomsburg will schedule games on weekdays to avoid interfering with any weekend or family plans. It will not hold a softball league or Junior Division.
Danville will hold baseball and softball at every level but Challenger.
Both are excited to give families an option for their children this summer.
“We’re trying to do this for the kids,” Bettinger said. “They’ve been stuck inside now for months. We’re going to do everything we can to make it safe for them.
“Right now, there are too many questions with what’s going on, but we want to get the kids out and have them play ball — have life return to normal a bit.”
Link to story: https://www.pressenterpriseonline.com/daily/061020/page/9/story/bloom-danville-restart-leagues
