Players converge on Aberdeen as tournament begins today
The17th annual Cal Ripken World Series begins today at the Ripken Experience youth baseball complex.
Eighteen teams — 10 American and eight international — will compete in four groups for the championship. Of the American teams, eight are region champs; the other two are the Maryland state and Harford County champions.
Opening Day events today will include a skills challenge and home run derby. This year, the derby will feature newly added pink-and-purple “money balls” for the hitters.
The preliminary rounds for both events will take place earlier in the day; the finals will be part of the opening ceremonies, set to begin at 5 p.m. at Cal Sr.’s Yard.
“It’s that time of year again, and I am excited that we are once again hosting the annual Cal Ripken World Series in our hometown of Aberdeen,” Cal Ripken Jr. said earlier this week.
“The support that we receive year in and year out is tremendous, and we couldn’t do it without our terrific host families, fans and volunteers.”
The 18 teams will be introduced during the ceremony. Group Ateams are Honolulu, Pacific Southwest; Southeast Denver, Midwest Plains; New Milford, Conn., New England; Florence, Ala., Southwest; and Bel Air, the Maryland champion.
Group B teams are Southeast Lexington, Ky., Ohio Valley; Kennewick, Wash., Pacific Ripken Experience, Aberdeen Today, 5 p.m. Fox Sports 2, MLB.com, FoxSportsGo.com Northwest; Marlton, N.J., Middle Atlantic; Atlantic Beach, Fla., Southeast; and Hickory, the Harford County champion.
The presence of Hickory and Bel Air in the World Series marks the first time two Harford County teams are in the series together.
Group C international teams are New Zealand, Japan, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic; Group D teams are Australia, Mexico, South Korea and Canada.
The first game of the series will take place at 8 tonight, pitting Hickory against Marlton. An additional 31 pool games will be played Saturday through Wednesday at Cal Sr.’s Yard and Nationals Field. Four international crossover games will also be played, but results will not affect pool standings.
The top two teams from each pool will advance to Thursday’s United States and International semifinals.
The winners will advance to the U.S. and international title games next Friday; the final two will play for the World Series title Aug. 6 at 8 p.m.
Admission to all tournament games is free.
New this year is the Ripken Futures The Mexican team celebrates its win over West Raleigh, N.C., in the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series. This year’s series begins today with a home run derby and skills challenge. Game, a game featuring 12-year-old ballplayers from across the country.
“We always try to improve the event each year and this year we will be introducing the Ripken Futures Game that will feature 24 of the country’s top 12-year-old ballplayers,” Ripken said. “The game will be played right before the World Series championship game at Cal Sr.’s Yard, and two terrific former big leaguers, John Franco and David Justice, will serve as the managers.”
The championship rounds of the series will be carried on TV and online.
“As I have said in the past, we always look for solid media partners so many more can watch the event and we can provide the ballplayers with that major league experience,” Ripken said. “This year, the final three games of the CRWS will be broadcast on Fox Sports 2 and live streamed on MLB.com and FoxSportsGo.com, and the Futures Game will be live on MLB.com. I look forward to seeing everyone out there next week.”
Admission to all tournament games is free. Tickets are available online at RipkenBaseball.com/world_series.