USS Midway to Host Home Run Derby

SAN DIEGO, CA: Baseballs, not aircraft, will be launched from the deck of the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum in San Diego in June when minor league players compete in a home run derby, the Lake Elsinore Storm announced Monday.

Players from the Class A California and Carolina leagues will compete in the June 20 event aboard the ship docked in San Diego Bay, according to the Storm, a Padres minor league affiliate. Lake Elsinore is scheduled to host the California/Carolina All-Star Game the following day.

Home plate for the competitors will be located around 250 feet from the bow of the ship, and four batters from each league are expected to hit an estimated 150 balls total into the water.

Balls landing in the bay will be retrieved by volunteers on jet skis, standup paddleboards and kayaks who will be stationed in the landing zone, according to the Storm. The volunteers will include teens who are benefactors of Outdoor Outreach, a nonprofit that provides water-based recreation opportunities to youth in under-served neighborhoods in the San Diego and the South Bay.

The San Diego Harbor Police will be on station in the water as well.

The Storm is selling VIP tickets that will include admission to a pre-event reception. General admission details will be announced at a later date.

The Midway is no stranger to hosting sports events. In 2012, Syracuse defeated San Diego State, 62-49, in a college basketball game.

City News Service

Image: Milb.com