It is finally that time again. For 2 years, the Association of Blind Citizens Boston Renegades have been waiting to play competitive Beep Baseball again.
For those who don’t know, I play for the Association of Boston Renegades which is a Beep Baseball team. It is an adapted form of baseball designed for the blind and visually impaired. For more information on the team and how it works, please read my previous blog here: https://www.blindowlblogs.com/post/real-renegades
Not only do we get to play for the first time in 2 years, but we get to do it at home for the first time since 2018! And as an added bonus, our first game will be under the lights!
The tournament, hosted by the Woburn Host Lions Club will be held on both August 27th and 28th. It is a part of the Beast of the East, which is a two leg tournament that pits Beep Baseball teams from all over the northeast against each other.
The first game, which will be held at Filippello Park in Watertown, MA on Friday August 27th, will be only the 2nd time the Renegades have played under the lights. The game, which will be against the Long Island Bombers, will start at 7pm. Yet another chapter of the Boston/New York rivalry will be written on the field between the best blind athletes the regions have to offer.
The next day, the tournament continues in the morning. The action will move to Daniel L. Joyce Middle School in Woburn, MA. The games will begin around 8:30am and continue throughout the day. There will be four games played between three different teams. The Philadelphia Fire will join the action with the Bombers and the Renegades.
One thing that is required for this tournament to go off without a hitch is sighted volunteers. The Woburn Host Lions do a tremendous job running the tournament, but we do need some help.
What we need is some people to help umpire and run the games themselves. We are looking for people that can be home plate umpires, field umpires, base umpires and base switch operators. We need 5 volunteers per game to make sure things go well, but extra volunteers are always good to have. Here is a brief description of what each person does:
Base umpires: (stand by our bases, set them up when they fall. Help alert the home plate umpire when a player reaches the base).
Base switch operators: (sit on a chair in the shade. Control a switch that turns the bases on and off).
Field umpires: (stand in the field. Help the home plate umpire determine if a player has possession of the ball).
Home plate umpires: (Take control of the game. Have the final say on who is safe and have knowledge of umpiring and the rules of the sport).
There will be a brief training session before each time slot for those who are not too familiar with the rules of Beep Baseball. Also, for those who want to know more about the rules here is a link to the rules of the game: https://www.blindcitizens.org/renegades/beepball-rules/
If you or anyone you know is interested in volunteering, please fill out this Google Form. We do ask that you provide some contact info that will not be shared with anyone. This is for cases of inclement weather or any other schedule change. There are 3 time slots on the form: Friday Night (1 game), Saturday morning (2 games) and Saturday afternoon (2 games). We welcome people to sign up for 1, 2 or even all 3 time slots. Being a volunteer for the games will give you the best seat in the house to watch all the action.
Here is the Google Form if you are interested: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfdRPvtvxEVe356oolz8HWHRSGDDcUt6l9TTGesJAdZFS5eCQ/viewform
If you have any questions please feel free to reach out via email at bostonrenegades@gmail.com or to me directly at blindowlblogs@gmail.com.
I think I speak for all of the Association of Blind Citizens Boston Renegades and all of the other blind athletes that will be playing when I say how grateful we are for those who choose to help us out and make our games run smoothly. Thank you very much and I look forward to seeing (hearing) you there!