Fike News

Hello Fike Family! We’re about to start our Fall baseball season, so here’s some helpful info for everyone.

Tomorrow the first player fee payment is due for the 2021 season. If you have not already paid please do so from our website Payments page via Paypal, or you can also mail your payment to the address on that page. You do not need a Paypal account to pay through Paypal (any credit or debit card works!).

Jr Fike’s first tournament is this weekend (Sept 18-20th) at Legacy Park in Lee’s Summit. Once the game schedule is released game times will be added to the Team Calendar. Always check your team’s Groupme for any last minute changes.

As of now, Sr Fike’s first games are on Sept 27th 12PM vs Owls at Hidden Valley (double header). We will play in two tournaments: Oct 3-4th at Hidden Valley, and Oct 10-11th at Legacy Park. Practices are on Wed & Sun 6PM at Hidden Valley as well (unless game/s scheduled that day). Check the Team Calendar and your team’s Groupme for any updates or changes.

LET’S GO FIKE!

Sr Fike Parent Meeting & Fees Due

We will have our first parent meeting on Sunday, September 13 at 6:00 pm in the shelter at Hidden Valley for the Sr Fike 2021 team. At least one parent must attend as we will discuss many topics concerning plans for this fall and next summer. We will cover fees, fundraising, practices for fall and winter as well as tournament trips for next summer.

Check your email today from Coach Matt for more details. The first payment will be due at the meeting. If for any reason you did not receive an email about this please contact us fikebaseball@gmail.com

Field Work this Saturday

Message from Coach Matt;

“We are about to play some baseball! This Saturday, June 6 we will have a work day at Hidden Valley at 9:00 am to get the field ready for games. We have a long list of things to accomplish from the city, so we need lots of help. The city has not hired any summer help so maintenance has been only mowing.

Things that would be helpful are work gloves, weed trimmers, cordless drills and spade shovels. It is going to be hot. Bring your own water to stay hydrated. I look forward to seeing everyone.

On the baseball front, our schedule is posted here on the Fike Calendar. There will probably be a few more additions as teams are still contacting us to try to schedule. We have our first doubleheader on Saturday June 13 at HV at noon against the Elks. The coaches and kids are anxious to get started.”

Fike News

The following is a message from Sr Fike Head Coach Matt (field prep day listed below is for both Jr and Sr teams):

PARENTS:

We now have information that we will be allowed to use fields for practice and games at Hidden Valley beginning June 8, 2020. Since the City has not hired any part-time summer maintenance employees we need to have a work day to get our fields ready for play.

We will meet at 9:00 a.m. Saturday, June 6th. If we have a lot of people it should not take terribly long. The more help we have the less time we will need to work. We will be putting signs up on the fence, padding and nets for the dugouts, and trimming around the fences and other areas of the fields. If you have drills and/or WeedEaters/trimmers it would be helpful to bring them.

We will have games at Hidden Valley on Saturday, June 13th at 12 noon vs. The Elks. I hope to have a more complete schedule done within this next week now that we know we have fields available. Additionally, we have games scheduled for June 18th and July 2nd at 6 p.m. at Lathrop High School and June 20th at 10:00 a.m. at Higginsville. We will get the complete schedule put on our website as soon as it is completed.

We look forward to seeing you. There will changes for the players, coaches, umpires, parents and spectators this season due to COVID. As parents cannot collect in the stands, parents and spectators will need to bring chairs to sit on the grass outside the outfield fence. Social distancing will be required.

Once more information becomes available (things are changing quickly), I will get that information to you.
Matt

American Legion Baseball Season Cancelled

It is with much regret that I must inform you that there will not be an American Legion season this year. Below is an excerpt of a letter I received earlier today from our State Baseball Commission.

“The Baseball Committee and the Department Executive Committee have voted to cancel this year’s season due to the risks related to the coronavirus issue. Reasons are the safety and health of players, coaches, fans, and the potential legal liabilities that the Department could incur should someone become ill while participating in a Legion sanctioned activity. As of this date approximately 40% of states have cancelled their seasons. In some of those, coaches have stated they will still play, and are forming local leagues to do so. I totally understand, and if you choose to do so, just be aware you cannot utilize in any fashion the Legion emblem or insignia. This means the wearing of a jersey having the Legion patch on it is prohibited.”

Although this is a decision we were hoping to avoid, the hope of some type of a NON-LEGION season is still a possibility. There are many details that must be considered, and we are looking into alternative possibilities. If we can put something together, I will let you know ASAP. I can tell you that we will not be traveling to any out of town tournaments that would require nights in a motel.

Jim Moran

2020 American Legion Baseball Regionals, World Series canceled

The decision has been made to cancel the 2020 American Legion Baseball Regionals and World Series. Follow the link below for more information:

2020 American Legion Baseball Regionals, World Series canceled

The email below was sent out today to all players and coaches from Jim Moran:

“Coaches, parents and players,

This is to keep all of you up to date on the situation concerning how COVID-19 might and will affect our upcoming season.

The American Legion is the only baseball program in America that conducts a true playoff format for the senior teams to decide a World Series Champion. When a team wins their State Tournament the Legion pays ALL travel, meals and lodging for the players. Including host teams, which totals 64 teams competing in eight Regional sites; the winners advancing to the World Series in Shelby, North Carolina. Junior programs can only advance to a regional tournament at this time. This adds up to millions of dollars spent every year for a program that was started in 1925. The decision has been made by the National Commander for the protection of players, coaches, and tournament personnel to cancel this year’s Regional Tournaments and World Series.

Each State is in charge of their programs and can decide how they run the baseball program for their particular state. At this time, Missouri is still hoping to have something in place for the summer season. Like everything else with this virus, these plans can also change at a later date. I will keep everyone informed about things as we move forward.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Follow all guidelines that have been laid out by the CDC and Together We Will Win the Battle.

Jim”