LITTLE ROCK — Wayne Gray is keeping a closer eye on the skies this year.
Gray, the director for the Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities regional tournament in the Little Rock area, is hoping he and his staff do not have to deal with the heavy rains that washed out half of last year’s regional.
“Things went well when we were able to play baseball,” Gray said. “A lot of the teams were frustrated by the weather. They spend a lot of time and money to get here, so they want to play as much as possible. When they were able to play, they were pleased.”
The tournament begins today with games at Lamar Porter Field, Little Rock Central High School and UALR’s Gary Hogan Field. The championship games will be held Sunday at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock. The girls softball tournament will be held at Little Rock Fair High School.
The RBI program began in 1989 and was founded by John Young, a former member of the Arkansas Travelers and native of south central Los Angeles. Young was working as a major league scout when he notice a significant decrease in the number of skilled athletes emerging from his childhood area.
The league has grown into a national event and is endorsed by Major League Baseball. The tournament in the Little Rock area is one of seven regionals. The winner of the regionals will advance to the RBI World Series,which will be held in Jupiter, Fla., and Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., on Aug. 3-14.
Teams from Little Rock, Jackson, Miss., St. Louis, Memphis, Houston, Arlington, Texas, and McAllen, Texas, will be participating in the regional.
Little Rock’s RBI program began nine years ago.
“It’s grown over the years,” Gray said. “We had five junior teams and five senior teams play in our summer league. From those, we selected an all-star team that not only included the best players but some players who have shown a commitment to the program.”
Now, if the rain will just stay away.
At a glance WHAT Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities regional tournament WHEN Today-Sunday ADMISSION Free WHERE Lamar Porter Field, Little Rock Central High School, UALR’s Hogan Field, Little Rock Fair High School (softball only) CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES 8:30 a.m. (13-15) and 11 a.m. (16-18) Sunday at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock. 9 a.m. Sunday (softball) at Fair.
CITIES REPRESENTED Little Rock, St. Louis, Memphis, Houston, McAllen, Texas; Arlington, Texas; Jackson, Miss.
Sports, Pages 23 on 07/23/2010