Play Ball Day at PNC Park 📸 ⚾️

On Sunday, we hosted a special Play Ball day on the North Shore as more than 150 kids got to have fun with coaches and staff on the field at PNC Park!

The early morning on-field event included interactive baseball/softball related activities such as hitting, defensive stations, pitching in the bullpen, and more. At least one member of the Pirates coaching staff led each station as the kids rotated through in groups.

(Check out the full story with quotes and stuff here)

Ray Searage and Justin Meccage gave tips in the ‘pen, Euky Rojas and Kimera Bartee threw pop flys in centerfield, Joey Cora and Herbie Andrade ran through some throwing drills, Dave Jauss gave pointers on base running and Tom Prince threw a little BP in the cages.

The kids were running and throwing and to us it all looked pretty exhausting. But they’re kids and they were on the field at the ballpark, so judging from their smiles, they loved every second of it.

The Play Ball initiative is a collaborative effort between MLB, USA Baseball designed to encourage widespread participation in all forms of baseball activities for kids. It’s not about structure and drills, but about having fun with your friends and fun with baseball.

That’s something we can all get behind.

Check out some 📸 from the morning:

In 2017, as part of the Pirates Play Ball program, the Pirates launched Pirates.com/PLAYBALL, which provides resources for players, coaches and parents such as online education centers, coaching clinic information, and instructional videos from players such as Josh Bell, Jordy Mercer and Jameson Taillon.

Check it out for some great tips and ideas to help your young one to have fun and play ball.