The Rochester Ridgemen home opener is June 3 at Basket Road Field.
WEBSTER, N.Y. – The Ridgemen are coming!
The Rochester Ridgemen baseball team is pleased to announce their 2017 home opener on Saturday, June 3 at 7 pm at Basket Road Field in Webster. Basket Road Field, which features a beautiful artificial surface, is located at 1610 Boulter Industrial Parkway.
Dwayne Snider delivers a pitch for the Rochester Ridgemen at Basket Road Field in Webster. PHOTO: Joe Territo/Rochester Ridgemen
Players and coaches come from all over the country to represent Rochester in the New York Collegiate Baseball League (NYCBL). The league, founded in 1978, is a summer wood bat development league for professional baseball. Major League Baseball funds a small portion of the league’s annual budget. It gives college players who have not yet signed a professional contract the opportunity to develop their skills at a higher level of play, gain experience with wood bats, and be evaluated by scouts.
NYCBL Alumni include former Rochester Red Wings Darin Mastroianni (Saratoga/Oneonta ’06), Ryan O’Rourke (Brockport ’08), and Caleb Thielbar (Little Falls ’07).
The “Ridgies,” as they have come to be known, are owned and operated by Athletes in Action.
“Ridgemen games are fun, very affordable and family friendly,” said General Manager and Head Coach Justin Dillard. The Highlands Ranch, Colorado resident added that even though the ball players are not from Rochester, they become part of the community and most past players felt that by the end of the season, Rochester, indeed, had become their summer home.
Ridgemen infielder Brooks Pitaniello is returning for his second season with the ball club.
The Lubbock, Texas native said, “last summer, coming in, I had never met any of the guys on the team but by the end everyone felt like family. My experience playing for the Ridgemen last season was one of the best times I’ve ever had and I look forward to returning this summer.”