River Cats Independence Field
MEDIA ADVISORY

Children, Adults With Disabilities Will Now Have Their Own ‘Field of Dreams’

River Cats Independence Field to Open Sunday With Kids Playing Baseball, Some for the First Time

WHAT: A “field of dreams” for thousands of people with disabilities in the Sacramento region will be have its grand opening, featuring the inaugural first pitches being thrown and caught by the stars themselves – children with disabilities. River Cats Independence Field is surfaced with a rubberized, track-like material that makes it easily navigable for individuals in wheelchairs and walkers. After the field is formally dedicated, children of differing ages and abilities will take their places in the field and up to bat for the first games to be played there. This is believed to be the only baseball field for people with disabilities in the nation that features the rubberized surface throughout the infield and outfield and is the size of a regular 200-foot Little League diamond.

WHO: · Mike Ubaldi, chair of River Cats Independence Field Advisory Committee.
          · Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo and City Council Member Bonnie Pannell.
          · Art Savage, CEO of the Sacramento River Cats Triple-A baseball team, which
made River Cats Independence Field its “legacy project” as the host of the 2005 Triple-A All-Star Game in July.
          · The real stars: Dozens of children and adults with disabilities, many of whom couldn’t play baseball before because regular playing surfaces were too hard to navigate and often too dangerous for play.
                       
WHEN:  Noon Sunday, Oct. 9, 2005.

WHERE: Samuel Pannell Community Center, 2450 Meadowview Road, Sacramento. Fields are located adjacent to the center at Meadowview Road and 24th Street.

CONTACT:  Kathleen Smith, Runyon Saltzman & Einhorn, Inc., (916) 496-7320.
                            Alan Tomiyama, City of Sacramento, (916) 808-8958