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Date: 2/9/2022
EAST LONGMEADOW – On Feb. 19, the East Longmeadow Spartans 12u Cooperstown Team is hosting a bottle and can drive at the Pleasantview Senior Center to help support their trip to an annual Baseball Hall of Fame tourney.
The team will be collecting bottles and cans from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“The bottle and can drive is something that other teams and organizations have done before,” said coach Mike Carlin. “Jason Cloutier, who’s a member of our coaching staff and a parent of one of our players, spearheaded this drive and put it together. We’re trying to avoid having to ask family and friends to just donate money to us. We’re also trying to get the kids actively involved in the fundraising process, and this can and bottle drive gives us the ability to do that. We’re hoping this ‘hands on working together’ approach continues to develop our team’s chemistry.”
He went on to say, “One of the things we’ve been trying to do in our fundraising efforts is to keep the kids involved in the process. We really want these players to better understand and appreciate the hard work involved. It’s an important part of the experience.”
The East Longmeadow Spartans 12u Cooperstown Team is a team of 12 players and four coaches that will be participating in the Cooperstown Dream Park Tournament in Cooperstown, NY, from Aug. 9 to 16, joining 104 other teams from across the country.
According to Carlin, this will be a once-in-a lifetime event filled with unforgettable baseball experiences, friendships, team building and lifelong memories for their players, friends and families.
The team was only formed in early fall of 2021, and is comprised of a combination of children that have played together over the last handful of years as well as a few other players that have recently migrated into the group. This team is separate from the East Longmeadow Baseball Association, but it is made up of players from East Longmeadow. They will be playing in the John L. Sullivan travel baseball league in the Pioneer Valley this spring. In addition to that league, they’re planning to compete in a handful of pre- and post-season tournaments leading up to Cooperstown.
“This tournament has been around for a long time. It’s become a baseball tradition,” Carlin added. “We’ve got a great group of players that have been working hard, preparing to compete in the tournament.”
Right now, the team is heavily involved in the fundraising stage because there’s a large cost associated with participating in this tournament. Carlin told Reminder Publishing the financial aspect is a substantial undertaking. They’ve been raising money with the help of the community and they’re currently looking for corporate sponsors.
The money raised from the bottle and can drive will help alleviate the per-player-costs associated with participating in the tournament, as well as other costs including indoor practice sessions, pre- and post-season tournaments, liability insurance, bringing an umpire with them and the cost of baseballs. The team is a registered 501(c)(3) organization. For those who want to contribute if they can’t donate bottles and cans, tax deductible donations can be made directly to East Longmeadow Spartans Baseball Cooperstown.
“We want to help these players become better baseball players and better human beings by teaching them the skills of baseball, teamwork and comradery, Carlin concluded. “Our only expectation on the field is that we’re prepared to compete the best we can and in addition to that we expect to have a whole lot of fun.”
The team encourages locals to bring their bottles and cans to the Senior Center where they’ll have their team of players there along with parent volunteers to help sort the cans and bottles. If residents are unable to deliver their cans and bottles to them, the team is willing to come pick them up too. After the drive, the team will bring all the bottles and cans to recycling centers to redeem them.