Oakland Ballers hold open tryouts Saturday in effort to stock new team with local talent

"Raimondi is resilient, and its best days are still ahead." So say the Oakland Ballers in a promotional video touting Raimondi Park's connection to baseball history. The team hopes to make new memories with locally recruited players when $1.6 million in renovations to the park are completed later this season. (Oakland Ballers/YouTube)

Think you’re good enough to go pro? This weekend is your big chance.

The Oakland Ballers are holding open tryouts Saturday, trying to recruit local players for their upcoming, inaugural baseball season.

The Ballers will debut in the independent Pioneer League as the minor league’s first team on the West Coast, with most of the competition playing in Midwest states Montana, Idaho, Colorado, and Utah.

The Ballers are spending $1.6 million to renovate Oakland’s Raimondi Park, with the first of 48 home games slated for June 4.

A short video recaps the baseball history of Raimondi Park, which the Oakland Ballers are restoring as the team’s home field. (Oakland Ballers/YouTube)

The Ballers said Tuesday they already have more than 50 players signed up for Saturday’s tryouts, including Kelsie Whitmore the first woman to sign a contract with a professional MLB affiliated league.

Tryouts run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Laney College baseball field in Oakland. The cost is $150, and prospective players can reserve a spot through Eventbrite.

The post Oakland Ballers hold open tryouts Saturday in effort to stock new team with local talent appeared first on Local News Matters.

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