Play Ball! BCAC Opening Day

By Dan Guarino

The sun was shining on Saturday, April 18, as hundreds of parents, families and players in colorful new uniforms came out for the Broad Channel Athletic Club’s (BCAC) little league baseball opening day.

Volunteers arrived bright and early to set up at the BCAC’s Memorial Field, and make sure all was ready for the big day. The event itself got underway around 9:30 a.m. as youngsters began to arrive, greet teammates, check in with coaches and get ready for play.

The BCAC reported 242 players were signed up for the season, with a few later registrations expected to add to that number. “There are 18 teams total,” a BCAC spokesperson confirmed. “Twelve of those are in-house, with the other six being our travel CYO girls’ and Kings Bay boys’ teams.

“The travel teams are for boys and girls 3rd-grade and up. Our in-house little league is for players 3 years old and up. (BCAC’s) in-house league is made up of t-ball, farm, softball and minor divisions.”

Previous opening days usually started with a lengthy parade from Broad Channel’s 17th Road Park to the field. But, the group’s spokesperson noted, “the last two years we’ve had to shorten the parade or pivot altogether due to the road being torn up (for eventual repaving) or the weather.

“Since in-house makes up a large portion of our parade, the feedback from families was the walk was too long for the (younger) kids. So we’ve pivoted this year” to holding all activities at the BCAC Memorial Field. The move allowed parents to use BCAC’s large parking lot, bring all their children’s equipment, and not have to walk with kids and gear in tow all the way back to the parade’s starting point.

Two large inflatable jungle-themed soft obstacle course and slides, as well as the field’s community playground, greeted the excited, energized children, and the BCAC’s concession stand was open with snacks for sale.

As the large crowd assembled on the field, proceedings started off with the Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem. Special guests Councilwoman Joann Ariola, Broad Channel Civic Association Dan Mundy, the Rockaway Times’ Dan Guarino, and 100th Precinct Commander Captain Sachi Singh were each invited to address the crowd. Councilwoman Ariola then threw out the first pitch, following up on her exclamation to “Play ball!”

Coaches and helpers then took their teams, arranged by age, out to the field’s six baseball diamonds to get in a few games, along with pitching and catching practice and learning some basics. For the youngest players, this included a volunteer for each child to help the little ones learn skills like batting and running in the right direction towards the bases.

As with all its sports programs, BCAC’s baseball not only teaches kids the fundamentals of the game, but also teamwork, healthy competition and sportsmanship. It also builds friendships that will often last a lifetime.

This year, teams were sponsored by Hooks Pizza, Sports Depot, Bagel Barista, Ruffle Bar, Bungalow Bar, Adrienne’s restaurant and Lisena Landscaping and Garden Center, which also helps prepare the field.

All in all, each participant enjoyed the day, which ended sometime before noon, with all looking forward to a brand-new season.

 Photos by Dan Guarino.