Utley to unveil revamped diamond and hold kids clinic
Former Phillies second baseman Chase Utley will be back on a baseball field in Allentown next week, but he won’t be playing. Utley will be in town to unveil a newly refurbished baseball field for the Allentown School District and Lehigh Valley youth leagues.
The field, located at Union Terrace Elementary School on W. Union Street, was among one of four selected for grants from the Scotts Field Refurbishment Program, which provides funding to upgrade youth baseball and softball fields in communities of need, according to a press release. The initiative is devoting more than $200,000 to repairs and upgrades on fields at the four programs.
Allentown School District and the Lehigh Valley RBI program submitted one of 350 applications nationwide for the grant. It will be the first of the four renovations to be unveiled.
A ribbon-cutting of the newly refurbished field will take place at 4 p.m. Thursday, June 20. The ceremony will be followed by a youth baseball and softball clinic organized by the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation and featuring Utley. All the kids for the clinic have been preselected, said Melissa Reese, the school district’s communications manager.
A panel that included Utley, Hall of Fame shortstop Cal Ripken Jr., World Series champion and broadcaster Cliff Floyd, and U.S. Olympian softball player Jennie Finch helped determine the bid winners.
The other cities receiving grants are Chicago; Mount Vernon, New York; and Wewoka, Oklahoma.
“As a father, I know first-hand how vital it is to have a safe place for kids to play ball in their communities,” Utley said in an earlier statement. “I’m proud to partner with Scotts and support their Field Refurbishment Program, and provide the girls and boys in Allentown, Chicago, Mount Vernon and Wewoka spaces where they can learn the game while having fun. Baseball gave so much to me, and I hope that through this program, we can have a positive impact on the lives of children.”
Utley will officially retire as a member of the Phillies in a pregame ceremony June 21 at Citizens Bank Park.