Workman Field in Belgrade has lights, covered dugouts, a digital scoreboard and a public-address system. It’s also the site of the 10-and-under Cal Ripken Baseball All-Star State Tournament that begins Saturday.

When Messalonskee Cal Ripken got the opportunity to host the tournament, it was an appropriate time to remember a man who played a big part in making that field possible: Kenneth Workman, the gentleman the field is named after.

“When I played 30 years ago, there was no field with fences and lights and a scoreboard,” tournament director Pete Bolduc said. “That was his vision, and he built that. When the field was being built, he could be seen, daily, tending to the field.”

Workman’s son, Larry, is now the District 5 commissioner. Bolduc said Kenneth Workman will be at the tournament sometime this weekend. The tournament runs Saturday through Tuesday and the teams competing are Gardiner, Maranacook, Messalonskee, Skowhegan, Ararat, Gorham, Marshwood and River Valley.

Bolduc said there were 145 kids ages 8-12 who played Cal Ripken Baseball on Workman Field this year.

“Having been a lifelong member of the community, having seen him work on that field countless hours, it’s something very special,” Bolduc said.

There are several other baseball and softball tournaments either hosed locally or involving local teams. The 12U Cal Ripken Baseball All-Star State Tournament will be played Saturday through Tuesday, with an “if necessary” game on Wednesday at the Richard McGee Athletic Complex in Fairfield. Teams playing include Fairfield, Gardiner, Maranacook, Skowhegan, Bath, Eastport, Gorham and Marshwood.

Prescott Field in Farmington will be hosting two softball tournaments Friday and Saturday — the Babe Ruth state 10U and 12U tournaments. The Franklin County Stars will be joined by Ararat and Gorham in both tournaments.

“The winning team gets to go regionals, which is always a really, really great tournament,” tournament co-director Carole Kane said.

The Messalonskee Area Youth Softball Association (MAYSA) will be hosting two tournaments in Sidney this weekend: A 10U tournament with eight teams and a combined 16U/18U tournament. The tournaments will run Friday through Sunday.

The 16U/18U tournament is in its first year, said tournament director Matt Hunt. The 16U teams include the Messalonskee Firecrackers, Northstars (Augusta), Gardiner Lady Tigers and Skowhegan, while Maine Force of Thomaston and the Auburn Eddies make up the 18U teams.

“There’s plenty of 16U tournaments going around, but very few 18U,” Hunt said. “There’s a few that still want to play. We also found that many of the 16U teams can compete at the 18U level.”

The 10U teams include the MAYSA Screaming Eagles, Capital Mainiacs, Waterville, Messalonskee Fusion, Skowhegan Slammers, Monmouth, Hermon and Riptide.

The Central Maine Babe Ruth 14-15 baseball league tried to start its playoffs Wednesday put weather made that impossible.

“We’ve had a pretty lousy year with the weather,” league president Shannon Champney said. “Even on days when it’s nice out, by 6 o’clock, it’s raining.”

The tournaments should be finished in the next couple days, with games will be played at Lawrence, Messalonskee and Winslow high schools. Teams include Central Maine Motors, Cornerstone Insurance Agency, Waterville, Rollins Yard Care, Assistance Plus and Winslow VFW.

The 13 Prep championship will be Saturday, with Paul’s Auto Repair facing either Waterville or Ray Haskell Ford.

The league will be hosting the 14-year-old state Babe Ruth tournament, which begins July 22.

Augusta Babe Ruth also has a tournament going on, with a game at Morton Field scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today.

Some of the District 5 Little League tournaments are already under way. The 9-10-year-olds bracket has games Saturday, Tuesday and possibly Thursday. The 10-11 games begin Saturday and could run through July 21. The 11-12-year-olds got a couple games in Wednesday and have four more scheduled for this evening.

While it’s not in central Maine, the Brewer Witches Invitational softball tournament is in its eighth year and has brackets for 12U, 14U and 16U. Games in this Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA)-sanctioned event will be played Friday through Sunday.

Crowell said teams from Fairfield, Newport, Oakland and Waterville will be among the 24 teams competing in the three brackets.

“This is the second year in a row we’ve had a team from out-of-state come,” tournament director Tim Crowell said. “They’re from New Hampshire.”

Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243

mdifilippo@centralmaine.com

 

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