Yachats Oregon Writer Rick Schultze

To me those words mean it’s time to enjoy: enjoy baseball and softball. It’s that time of year when the ball fields get trimmed and ready for action and the players get to lace up the playing shoes, grab the bat and glove and begin their season. Baseball and softball are great sports that kids can start at a young age and play it at many levels for many years. There are youth leagues in this game that others might not have although all sports these days have youth leagues but baseball and softball were the first to implement them. Baseball and softball games are very family oriented and because of the normally nice weather during their seasons they are great reasons to gather up friends, neighbors and family and take in a game. Waldport and Florence both boast of their baseball and softball teams with good reason and the support in both communities shows that. I’m betting that most of you have attended more than one ball game and had a good time doing it. It’s hard to beat a game that features drama, enthusiasm and teamwork with various levels of skills. To see young people and young adults playing their hearts out is very good stuff!

For me both baseball and softball played big parts in my life. Born in Portland Oregon I began playing softball in church leagues at the age of nine. Then I moved into Little League baseball. Those teams and acquaintances I made playing paved the way for more playing and meeting other kids when we moved to Roseburg. To be able to play ball was a great icebreaker for “the new kid on the block” and it made the move easy for me. This was also the case when we moved on to Sacramento California. I still always look forward to baseball and softball season with fond memories of the hours spent practicing, playing in games, traveling to away games and the many fellow ballplayers I’ve met over the years. I hope you that are players have great seasons, you that are parents and team supporters enjoy the efforts of your kids and for you fans, it’s that time of year to Play Ball get out to the ballpark and enjoy your local baseball and softball teams in action.

To reach Rick Schultze email:yarick@pioneer.net