By Paul Gotham
ROCHESTER, NY – In early July the New York Collegiate Baseball League’s finest will gather near the shores of Seneca Lake, and two not-for-profit organizations will benefit.
Geneva’s Red Wings and Twins will host the 2013 NYCBL All-Star Game on July ninth at McDonough Park with the opposing sides representing Roberto’s Kids and The Second Impact.
The event will feature the league’s annual All-Star luncheon, Major League Baseball scout day, league Home Run Derby and the main event.
Each of the league’s franchises will send nominations for All-Star/Prospect game by June 25th to All-Star selection committee. The Selection committee will then decide on the top 56 players, and the game’s head coaches will draft teams from there and divide them to represent the two organizations.
Founded by Oneonta Outlaws president and general manager, Steve Pindar, Roberto’s Kids strives to develop social responsibility through baseball. Named after MLB Hall-of-Famer Roberto Clemente, Roberto’s Kids works to provide equipment to needy children throughout North and Central America. With the endorsement of the Clemente family, Roberto’s Kids has overseen numerous drives and collections since 1999.
The Second Impact is dedicated to increasing the awareness of the risks involving double impact brain injuries. Geneva Red Wings and Twins strength and conditioning coach, Ray Ciancaglini, a former prize fighter, founded The Second Impact after he was diagnosed with Dementia Pugilistica – a neurological disorder common among career boxers and others who receive numerous blows to the head. Good Morning America did a feature on Ciancaglini.
Naming the teams after these two organizations was the brainchild of league secretary and Hornell Dodgers general manager, Paul Welker.
A 7 p.m. first pitch is scheduled for the 2013 NYCBL All-Star Game.
The Geneva Red Wings’ Jesse Puscheck (Canisius) delivered the game-winning hit, a seventh-inning single as the East downed the West, 4-3 in the 2012 All Star Game.
Leave a Reply