Babe Ruth World Series returns to Basin

Following the success of the 2013 Babe Ruth 14 year old World Series in Moses Lake, the organization has announced that Grant County will host  the Senior Babe Ruth World Series again next summer.

The senior World Series was played in Alabama this August and was plagued by weather problems throughout the tournament.

"The tropical depression was very unfortunate in Alabama this year. They planned for years in advance for the tournament and did a great job, sometimes these things just happen. Generally we have good baseball weather during that time of year in the basin and good lord willing we will have great conditions for the event next summer." State Commissioner Randy Boruff said.

The championship series will take place Aug. 7 through Aug. 14 2014,  and feature 10 of the nations best senior Babe Ruth teams. The Columbia Basin River Dogs get an automatic bid as the host team and will be competing with the Washington State champion and eight regional champions from around the country.

"This year we had to win the regional tournament and state championship to go to the World Series." Boruff said.

The team was eliminated after four games, twice losing in the final inning. The River Dogs pitched well and played strong on defense, but struggled to manufacture runs during the tournament. The team will look to capitalize on home field advantage in 2014 and make a run at the World Series title.

"The success of the World Series depends a lot on how good the local team is. It makes a huge difference from an audience standpoint when the host team is still there at the end of the tournament." Boruff said.

With 10 players returning next spring Columbia Basin will be able to build on their performance in Alabama and the experience garnered playing at the highest level. The River Dogs lost one infielder, one outfield and three of the six members of their pitching staff; so the core of the team has remained intact for the most part. "I'm confident we will be competitive with the best teams in the country come tournament time." Boruff said.

The senior World Series next August will mark the fifth time the Babe Ruth organization has brought a World Series to Grant County. It will be the second time the event will be hosted in Ephrata with the tournament being played at Johnson-O'brien Stadium. The recent trend of high level baseball coming out of the Basin area can be attributed to a combination of local support, developing players through the Babe Ruth ranks and the area becoming a destination for national tournaments.

"Many people have really invested in youth baseball helping make this area a hot bed for youth baseball and the River Dogs have been fortunate to have tons of support and talent allowing for a national presence to develop." Boruff said.

The organization is still looking for volunteers for the event and families willing to host players from the nine visiting teams.