Two Game Times Switched at Little League Baseball World Series Games on Monday, Aug. 22

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (Aug. 21, 2011) – Two of the game times scheduled for Monday, Aug. 22, at the Little League Baseball World Series have been switched.  

Based on recommendations from local law enforcement, to help with crowds, traffic control and security on the Little League Baseball World Series Complex, the following changes have been made:  

Game 18 between the Mid-Atlantic team and the losing team from Game 14 (Northwest or Southwest), originally scheduled at Lamade Stadium at 4 p.m., will now be played at 8 p.m. at Lamade Stadium. This game was originally scheduled to be on ESPN. It will instead be seen on ESPN2. The Mid-Atlantic team’s home fields in neighboring Clinton County, Pa., are 28 miles from Little League International. There has not been a local team in the Little League Baseball World Series for more than 40 years.
Game 20 between the Southeast team and the losing team from Game 15 (West or Great Lakes), originally scheduled at Lamade Stadium at 8 p.m., will now be played at 4 p.m. at Lamade Stadium. This game was originally scheduled to be on ESPN2. It will instead be seen on ESPN.
 
 

All teams that could be affected have been informed of this change.  

“We were approached by local law enforcement authorities, based on the unusual situation we have with a local team in the Little League Baseball World Series,” Patrick Wilson, Vice President of Operations at Little League International, and the Director of the International Tournament, said. “We would expect about the same size crowd for the Mid-Atlantic team at 4 p.m. or 8 p.m. But our local law enforcement officials have advised us that handling the larger crowds in the later game is more advantageous.”   

Law enforcement officials cited the fact that they generally are not able to have as many personnel on site during weekday games in the afternoon as they do for night games. Also, vastly increased automobile traffic during business hours could cause even greater delays for local residents and businesses if the Mid-Atlantic game is played at 4 p.m.  

The Mid-Atlantic team’s two games so far have drawn an average of more than 37,000 fans, an attendance figure that rivals or exceeds most of the games in the history of the Little League Baseball World Series. The attendance at Friday night’s game (41,848) was the largest for any World Series game.  

“We are not always able to make these kinds of changes,” Mr. Wilson said. “But in this case, all of the elements involved have been able to come together and make it work. We’re always grateful for the outstanding support we receive from local, state and federal law enforcement at the World Series. And we thank our friends at ESPN for being able to accommodate the change as well.”