Baseball fans who enjoy watching local stars in action will get that opportunity starting Monday, June 6 at Tyson Park in Springdale.
That's where Perfect Timing Baseball will return for its eighth season with a full schedule of games that stretches until July 14. The league includes four teams from Northwest Arkansas and three teams from Tulsa. High school and college players from the area are expected will participate in at least two games each night Monday though Thursday starting at 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Over 200 players have participated in the Perfect Timing Baseball league in Springdale and nearly 50 have signed up to compete this season. Former Kansas State teammates, Kasey Ford of Bentonville and Jordan Wicks of Conway, played in the league two years ago before turning pro. Wicks was a first-round draft pick of the Chicago Cubs.
"This is as good a summer league as there is in Mid-America," said J.T. Baker, owner of Perfect Timing Baseball.
Attendance is free and all the games will be played at Tyson Park, unlike the early years when some games were held at difference fields. Teams from Tulsa will also make the trip each week to play doubleheaders against Northwest Arkansas teams.
Plenty of local athletes have signed up, including high school players from Fayetteville, Bentonville, Springdale and Rogers. The list includes Trey Hill of Farmington, who'll play next season at Arkansas-Little Rock, and Ty Durham of Bentonville West, who'll continue his baseball career at Southern Miss.
Ryne McDonald, an assistant baseball coach at Rogers Heritage, will coordinate the Springdale portion of Perfect Timing Baseball. He replaces Zac Bottoms, who moved to Colorado to accept a new job. McDonald played high school baseball at Shiloh Christian in Springdale and college baseball briefly at Kansas City, Kan., Community College before an injury ended his career.
"I played in PT and coached in PT and I'm more than excited to be back," McDonald said. "I know a lot of these kids from high school baseball and this will be an opportunity for me to get to know them even better."
The season will conclude on July 14 with a championship game, Home Run Derby, and an All-Star game of the league's top players.
Perfect Timing Collegiate Baseball League
At Tyson Park, Springdale
Week 1 (June 6-June 9)
Monday
Field 1
PT Blue vs. PT Red, 5:30 p.m.
PT Grey vs. PT White, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday
Field 1
Sandlot Black vs. PT Blue, 5:30 p.m.
Sandlot Black vs. PT Red, 7:30 p.m.
Field 2
Sandlot White vs. PT Grey, 5:30 p.m.
Sandlot White vs. PT White, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday
PT Red vs. PT White, 5:30 p.m.
PT Blue vs. PT Grey, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday
PT Blue vs. PT White, 5:30 p.m.
PT Red vs. PT Grey, 7:30 p.m.