Babe Ruth opening day to feature newly built bleachers
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ELKINS -- Opening day will have a different look when the Elkins Babe Ruth League opens the 2023 baseball season Saturday morning at Robin Harvey Memorial Field.
That's because spectators will be treated to brand-new bleachers on both sides of the diamond. The old concrete bleachers, from which generations of parents and baseball players watched games since the 1960s, were torn down over the winter and have been replaced.
"In the fall of 2021 we became aware that there were issues with the old bleachers," Elkins Babe Ruth President Vince Petrice told The Inter-Mountain this week. "We were told to rope off the top two rows and to start seeking funding because the bleachers were in bad shape."
After receiving the bad news, Petrice and other Babe Ruth League officials began putting a game plan together.
"We did cost analysis and figured out what we were going to do," Petrice said. "After reviewing all of our options, we came to the conclusion that our best bet was to just replace the bleachers with new ones.
"We never wanted to tear down the bleachers we had there because of their sentimental value. Those bleachers were a part of history at the field and we understood everyone's connection to them. But for the safety of everyone who comes to the field, it was something we had to do."
The league then began shopping for new bleachers and found ones that best suited the field. In the end, the price tag for the new seating, installation, demolition, and everything else involved with the project, exceeded $200,000.
"Thankfully we had a lot of people and organizations give us donations to help with the cost of the bleachers," Elkins Babe Ruth Vice President William Thomas said.
"Seth Hornick helped us save close to $40,000 by doing the demolition and disposal of the old bleachers for free. The list of everything he did with that job was long and we appreciate everything he did for the league. He really helped us out a lot."
Thomas said cash contributions came from the Randolph County Commission, the City of Elkins, Elkins Parks and Recreation, Dick Harvey and Mike Ross Inc.
Contributors to the project also include: Don Judy, Isaac Riggleman, Tom Tesar, Lifetite, Tygarts Valley Sanitation, Central Supply, Custom Paving, Polino Contracting/Ed Phares, J.F. Allen Kelly Mountain Quarry, Morgan Electrical Maintenance, J.F. Allen Aggregates Quarry, Rustiques/Dick Rockwell, Smith Backhoe & Dozer, Stadium Solutions, Rose Harvey, Randolph County Schools, Elkins Builders Supply and Thrasher Engineering.
"The new bleachers are sitting on solid concrete pads," Petrice said. "The big thing with the new bleachers is that on the first base side, you can now see home plate from all areas of the bleachers. The old ones were so close to the concession stand that you could not see the batter in some areas where people sat."
Petrice said the league has paved more areas of the ballpark, and noted the new bleachers offer handicap accessible seating. The seating capacity at the park is now 500.
Opening ceremonies and a ribbon-cutting for the bleachers will open Saturday's festivities at 11 a.m. The first of three games scheduled for the day will begin at 1:30 p.m.
"We have over 100 kids this year for six teams," Petrice said. "We don't nor will we ever charge a player to play baseball in our league. We want to ensure that every kid has the opportunity to play if they choose to do so."