Host families on the Cape
This Memorial Day weekend I talked with a family who recently was contacted by the West Coast League, a summer college baseball league in the Pacific Northwest, to serve as a host family for a player. The family is incredibly generous but the local team was asking if they also could drive the player to the field for practice and games. They weren’t too sure of that but they could offer a room, food, laundry and a family to hang with.
The Cape League has always relied on the kindness of strangers and many host families to this day have long-standing relationships with players who moved on from the Cape to the Big Leagues.
A story in the Albany, New York, newspaper reminded me that it’s clutch time for summer college teams as the season approaches. Seems one team in New York is still seeking 20 host families.
Some CodBall readers are host families and others are trying to place players or find families. How’s it going this season?
This will be our 10th year hosting and it has been a very positive experience for the most part. Our team is very fair in trying to get players situated with proximity to the field, rides etc…I can appreciate that it is a most difficult job. Most,if not all of our players have had cars and I think that it is alot to ask host families to also provide transportation in addition to everything else. We are working families and the players who live with us are welcome to make themselves at home in re: to what is in the refrigerator, laundry facilities etc….We are not in it for the money but to give the players an opportunity to have a positive experience. I can understand why others would not want to host however,I am not hesitant to ask someone to leave if they are are not respectful to our rules, which are minimal. Overall, I believe it is a great experience for both host families and players.