I enjoy covering section baseball games, especially when I can travel to Milroy and broadcast from two of the best baseball complexes around.

In the small town of Milroy, just about 10 miles outside of Marshall is the beautiful ballpark, Yankee Field.  Then, a few miles outside of Milroy is Irish Yard, another beautiful baseball park. I have a thing about small-town ballparks. Some have a lot of history and some are newer. The people that take care of these ballparks are special people. I have had the privilege of meeting them. They have a great love for baseball and their ballparks.

This past week my broadcast partner Bart Hill and I went to The Irish Yard to broadcast the Dawson-Boyd and LQPV Section 3A baseball playoff game. The Irish Yard reminds me of the Field of Dreams baseball field in Dyersville Iowa. The Field of Dreams movie is one of my favorites. When I arrived I was met by someone I didn’t know, he was in charge and he walked me over to where I was to broadcast. He was very helpful and made sure I had electricity and asked if I  needed anything else. He gave me a warm welcome to the Irish Yard.

My friend Josh Golblish from Marshall radio wasn’t broadcasting the game but he was doing the PA announcing in the press box. When you visit the press box it looks like ESPN, lots of TV monitors and technical equipment.  It’s amazing! They have a huge video board in right field and an old fashion scoreboard in left. That scoreboard reminds me of the one at Wrigley Field or Fenway Park. Also, the Irish Yard has its own website where you can watch the game. They have cameras all over the place, center field, both dugouts, and the press box. It’s truly an impressive set up. The concession stand has the best brats, but no diet pop! My go to when broadcasting is a Diet Dew and Snickers. Overall just a great experience.

Saturday, we were at Yankee Field and were treated like royalty. I really like this place, it has the old fashion grandstand like from from the 40’s and 50’s with wooden bleachers and a roof. The press box is perfect. The wall of the press box had many pictures of the Milroy Yankee teams from the past. Bart and I enjoyed visiting with Mike and Don, who run the scoreboard and PA. They would order up food from the concession stand for us, making sure we had everything we needed. Dawson-Boyd fans would bring us water and candy, some would come into the press box to talk with us. It was just a fun time and another great experience. The people that work at these two ballparks are really kind and sure do make you feel welcomed.

Bart and I will be back at the Irish Yard this Tuesday as Dawson-Boyd takes on RTR at 5pm. Can’t wait!