By Jack Kraman (Forrestdale Student and Aspiring Writer)
The 2022 Rumson T-Ball Fest took place on June 4th. As I walked up, I heard the sounds of birds chirping, young kids talking, a dog barking in a nearby yard and the sound of a bat hitting the ball -- the unmistakable sounds of baseball season at Riverside Park!
The Rumson T-ball Fest is an exciting day that brings together all the teams in the Rumson T-ball league.
Charlie Hoffmann kicked things off with a few remarks and thank yous.
Olivia Bruno amazed the crowd as she sang the national anthem. The Rumson Police Department was on hand for the ceremonial first pitches.
Then, each of the teams went through different stations where they got to do different baseball activities. Multiple fields were set up in which teams played each other in exciting, edge of your seat games, and then moved on to the photo station and getting their picture with the Rumson T-ball mascot.
I, as a reporter, was lucky enough to get to interview some of these promising young T-ball players.
Ella of the Orioles was the first player I interviewed. “Are you excited?" 'Yeah!’ ‘Do you think you will win?’ ‘Definitely!’ ‘Are you better at batting or fielding?’ ‘Batting.’
Next, I interviewed another promising T-ball player named Lincoln. “ ‘What school do you go to?’ ‘Deane-Porter’ ‘What is your favorite thing to do in baseball’ ‘Fielding.’ After interviewing Lincoln, I could tell that these young baseball stars did not all think alike.
I then moved on to speak with Henry, “ ‘What is your favorite baseball team?’ ‘The Phillies’ ‘What is your favorite thing to do in baseball?’ ‘To pitch’” Hmm, well this is T-ball but hopefully he will get his chance next year.
For my final interview, I arranged a two-for-one deal by interviewing two friends, Colin and Jack. “ ‘Do you like ice cream or cookies’? I asked, branching out from T-ball a little bit. ‘Ice cream!’ was the unanimous answer.
At that point, I decided to wrap it up for 2022, but I am excited to see what next year's T-Ball Fest will bring. Please enjoy some of my action shots below!