Baseball Brings Waterford Together For A Charity Game In Rob McComic's Name

If you know baseball in Waterford, then you knew Rob McComic. He was an avid supporter of all youth sports and volunteered as a longtime coach for Waterford Little League North, Waterford Babe Ruth and, when it wasn't baseball season, he coached pre-teen basketball. 

McComic passed away suddenly last spring after returning home from a Babe Ruth practice. Now, to honor his memory, Todd O'Connell of Little League North and Dave Peabody and EJ McCue of Little League South have organized a AAA Minor League Championship Baseball playoff between Little League South and Little League North and a Home Run Derby that will be open to all AAA players. 

"This is the first time we’ve had a fundraiser for Rob," said Todd O'Connell. "We thought it would be nice to do something in his honor. Next year, we’re going to do the same thing with the minor league game and a major league game from south and north."
 
The inaugural event will be held on Saturday, June 22, at WLLS Patterson Field, Gardiners Wood Road, in Waterford. The Home Run Derby starts at 4 p.m. The WLLS vs. WLLN game starts at 6 p.m.

There will be a DJ to keep the kids entertained and tons of raffles with great prizes including an overnight stay MGM Grand, front row seats for a boxing match at Mohegan Sun, Red Sox tickets, and gifts and gift certificates donated by Waterford businesses including Malloves Jewelers and Filomena's Restaurant.

"A lot of local places in town have donated. The town’s getting behind this and it’s going to get bigger by the year, hopefully," said O'Connell. "We have lots of prizes and a 50/50 raffle. What we’re doing with the money we raise is we’ve established a fund with Waterford Youth Services to offset registration costs for all the leagues."  

The winner of the tournament will take home the McComic Cup, which will be passed back and forth between the winning teams year after year. 

For more information about the event, email tjoconnell22@sbcglobal.net or call O'Connell at (860) 625-1252; or david.peabody@ymail.com or call (860) 287-1842.