Hooks host No Bats Baseball Club
Published on October 8, 2007 under Texas League (TL1)
Corpus Christi Hooks News Release
CORPUS CHRISTI - The No Bats Baseball Club (NBBC), a truly unique non-profit group dedicated to promoting the game of baseball and giving back to the community, assembles here Thursday for its annual series of games.
As a result, a minimum of $25,000 will go towards the construction of a Miracle League field in Corpus Christi. The facility, to be constructed on Airport Road between Old Brownsville Road and Greenwood Drive, is a joint project of the Hooks' Field of Dreams Program and local Rotarians.
"We're excited about No Bats coming to Corpus Christi," Hooks President J.J. Gottsch said. "Miracle League facilities give special needs children the opportunity to play baseball on a completely flat, rubberized surface. This eliminates hazards for developmentally disabled participants who may be sight-impaired, wheelchair-bound or using crutches or walkers."
"Philosophically, No Bats and Ryan-Sanders Baseball have always been aligned," Hooks CEO Reid Ryan explained. "It's about using the strength of our national pastime as a tool to create and enhance community welfare."
Both Gottsch and Ryan are members of NBBC, a self-perpetuating organization founded in 1991. Its primary mission is to promote and foster friendships using the game of baseball as a focal point. NBBC actively supports charities and foundations that either promote the game or are personally endorsed and supported by players or teams whose own actions have demonstrated the civic ideals and character to which baseball professionals should be held accountable.
NBBC membership attendance for the four days of games is generally limited to 56 (four teams of 14 players). Playing a few baseball games is an excuse to rally each year, but the priority is financial and moral support of the designated charity. There is no admission charge or advertising campaign. Players range in age from mid-30s to early 70s, hail from 30 states and three foreign countries and come from all walks of life.
All money is raised by members or others on behalf of NBBC.
"It's bad baseball," Gottsch admitted. "It's non-competitive by nature, not design. The object is to put the ball in play, so we pitch to our own players.
"Obviously, you're talking about varying degrees of ability. We try to be as safe and sound as possible. At the end of the day, it's all about baseball, friendship and charity."
Previous NBBC weekends have benefited the following charities or projects: renovation of Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Ala.; Nolan Ryan Foundation; Jim "Catfish" Hunter ALS Foundation; Dave Dravecky's Outreach of Hope; Cubs Care; Randy Johnson's Strikeout Homeless Campaign; Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation; Negro League Foundation.
Texas League Stories from October 8, 2007
- Missions Named Texas League Team of the Year - San Antonio Missions
- Travs Batting Practice Jerseys On Sale - Arkansas Travelers
- Astros Farmhands Ready For Fall Ball - Corpus Christi Hooks
- Hooks host No Bats Baseball Club - Corpus Christi Hooks
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