By The TimesLedger
Workouts and tryouts will begin this weekend for the Midville Dodgers Freshmen team, ages 13 and 14 (no player can turn 15 before Aug. 1). It is expected that if the mild weather continues the team will workout outdoors at Juniper Valley Park. Interested players should call Manager Bill Schindler (718) 446-6454 and leave their name, phone number and date of birth.
Meanwhile, for the past month the Junior team, ages 15 and 16, have been working out. Last Sunday, with the temperature pushing 60 degrees, the team moved outdoors at Juniper Valley Park. Interested players can still register for the Junior team by calling General Manager Greg Bianchini (718) 805-3784 or Coach Bill Johnson at (718) 846-6042. The Junior team is expected to play in several out-of-state tournaments, including a planned return to San Diego, Calif. n July.
Interested Senior Division players ages 17 and 18 (no player can turn 19 before Aug. 1) can register by phone on the Dodgers hotline (718) 651-5865 and leave their name, phone number and date of birth. It is expected that workouts for the Seniors will begin outdoors in late March. At the first workout, all players must include a $75 registration fee payable at the first workout in the form of money orders or personal checks — payable to: Midville Dodgers.
Great things are expected from the 2002 Midville Dodgers squads. Exciting tournament trips are being planned for the upcoming summer. The Dodgers’ home field — Juniper Valley Park No. 1 — has undergone extensive refurbishing with a new infield, new sod, new equipment and new spectator bleachers. Additionally, thanks to the efforts of City Councilman Tom Ognibene and City Councilman Dennis Gallagher, Juniper’s three upper fields (Nos. 5,6 and 7) will be reconstructed starting in April, 2002 with outfield fences and many other amenities that have been lacking in Queens parks for a long time.
The Midville Dodgers play highly competitive baseball as members of the Federation of Amateur Baseball Leagues (FABL), the Elite Eight League, The Long Island Baseball Association and the National Amateur Baseball Federation. Last season the Dodgers fielded a Junior squad (15 and 16 year olds), a Senior team (17 and18 year olds) and a College team (ages 18 and 23). All three teams won division titles and/or playoff berths. Additionally, for the past five season, MV Dodger teams have traveled to week long out-of-state tournaments to California, Florida, Canada, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, Delaware, Massachusetts as well as other local tournaments.
