Where in AZ

[LMSANS]

Anybody working this tourney in AZ. My brother's grandniece is one of the players. Team is from NJ area.

[ousafe]

Awesome uniforms!

[Velho]

3 hours ago, ousafe said:

Awesome uniforms!

Agreed!! Finally a team that is not 'Elite' or 'Extreme'.

[KenBAZ]

What Tournament and what days?

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[Senor Azul]

From the internet I found out that Leighton Accardo was a 9-year-old girl who lost her battle with cancer. She played baseball and this tournament is the inaugural event staged in her honor. Here are the details posted on the tournament’s Facebook page--

Inaugural Baseball For All
LEIGHTON ACCARDO SERIES
December 10-12th, 2021
Espee & Pima Park - Chandler, AZ
3 Game Guarantee
LA49 Friday Night Social
Fri, Dec 10th, 6pm
2 Pool Play Games Saturday, Dec 11th, followed by single elimination bracket play Sunday, Dec 12th.
Team Registration Fee - $1395
Individual Player Registration Fee - $149

[BLarson]

Wow...that's a pricey tournament for a 3 game guarantee.   Hopefully some of that money goes to a charity/foundation.

[MadMax]

Sorry, didn’t do this one. We had enough rain on Friday night to close some fields down, and then I did 4 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday of 15U & 16U baseball. 

[Senor Azul]

Mr. MadMax, it is fascinating to know your work schedule—thanks for that bit of info. But, please tell us, isn’t Chandler a suburb of Phoenix or just very close? Is there anything you could add about this tournament?

For example, are you familiar with the venues—Espee and Pima parks? Maybe you know some of the umpires who did participate (apparently our fellow member Mr. KenBAZ was not one of them)? Would they be a lot of softball umpires and perhaps some women umpires?

Do you have any idea why the entry fee is so high? What I read on their Facebook page is that the tournament was a stay-to-play tournament. I am not entirely sure what that means exactly but would that be part of the reason for the high fee?

Perhaps you could find the results and let us know if the team that Mr. LMSANS mentioned from Jersey did well. Apparently, this was an all-girl tournament. Is girls’ baseball a big thing in Arizona or is it just getting started? How much rain does Phoenix actually get annually? Apparently, this event went off as scheduled even though it was raining in Phoenix. Are these fields in Espee and Pima parks artificial turf and thus not as affected by rain?

[LMSANS]

@Senor Azul The team pictured played in the finals...and lost.

I was curious if anybody here worked the tournament. I do believe it was girls baseball. My brother's niece was on her LL all star team which had some success in the post season tournaments. This is a travel team that plays in many tourneys.

[BLarson]

Our team (14U USSSA Omaha Royals) is coming from Omaha to Glendale the weekend of April 8-10th.  I believe we have a 6 game guarantee.

When I get more specifics of the fields/game times I'll post a thread to see if anyone will be picking up games in that tournament...would love to meet some of you guys/gals.

The wife and I are coming a days before and staying a day after as a little getaway...we don't have a boy playing on the team...I volunteer coach.

[MadMax]

“It is fascinating to know your work schedule… “ 

Huh! Did I give too much information? Too much that wasn’t relevant or practical or germane to the Original Question? 

Chandler is a suburb of Phoenix. Southeast side. If you like, I could quote (let’s face it – copy & paste) the entire Wikipedia article about Chandler’s history, demographics, and even the parks & recreation information. In there, it might mention something about Espee and Pima parks, but considering that there are hundreds upon hundreds of parks in the Phoenix metro area, likely not. 

Annual rainfall amounts could likely be cited from some National Weather Service source, too. They’ve got a website. 

Or, someone who actually lives and works here – you know, in an experiential sense – will rightly say that the metroplex is vast. Storm cells will randomly roll through and dump rain on only one or two suburbs at a go. When that happens, only certain select fields and parks have maintenance crews and tools equipped to handle it; most simply give up, go home, and let it sit and dry out until the next day. Even the Major League facilities don’t fight it, and pack up and purge everyone from fields in use if it starts raining, for fear of damaging the fields further. In the entirety of the Phoenix metroplex, there is only one FieldTurf baseball field. And it’s owned by a private high school. 

Someone who officiates here will also share – there are more games than umpires (or other officials). On any given weekend, there are numerous baseball, softball, soccer, volleyball and basketball tournaments underway. How and why entry fees are charged and then distributed is above my pay grade. It’s not my place to speculate. Assigners who know me and use me know my skill, ability and preference is more effective in 60’-90’ “full” baseball. Now, multiply that amongst some 400-600 other “umpires” throughout the metroplex… and that’s not counting the dozens that venture in and out from Tucson (2 hours south) or upstate (Payson, Prescott, Flagstaff) or even from out of state. 

We need more umpires, period. Don’t care which sex, or which level of baseball or softball they prefer or show aptitude towards. 

“Apparently, this was an all-girl tournament. Is girls’ baseball a big thing in Arizona or is it just getting started?” 

If we look at that photo, we’ll see two things: 1) the Tournament’s own title / name is “Baseball for All”. That would be implied to be inclusive of all girls and boys, no? and 2) I could be mistaken, but I think there are both boys and girls in that team photo. 

And for what it’s worth, I do know Espee and Pima parks very, very well. Espee’s 60-90 field is one of the worst in the entire metroplex, and that’s a hard feat to accomplish. And that storm front that dumped rain on “us”? Hit and soaked Mesa, which is home to Red Mountain and Gene Autry baseball complexes… which have 3 60-90’s each, and if Mesa’s Parks & Rec admin cancel something, they cancel all (outdoor) activity in Mesa.

[Senor Azul]

Thanks for the info, Mr. MadMax. I must be really behind the times because I have not heard anything about all-girls baseball teams being formed and tournaments dedicated to them until now. Just found the following at a website called baseballforall.com—it was an all-girls tournament.

INAUGURAL LEIGHTON ACCARDO SERIES 

We are proud to introduce a brand-new girls baseball event in partnership with the Arizona Peaches: the Leighton Accardo Series, an all-girls baseball tournament for players ages 8–16. This inaugural two-day tournament will be held in Chandler, Arizona in conjunction with East Valley Baseball...

Leighton Accardo was a founding member of the Arizona Peaches, an all-girls baseball program in Chandler, Arizona that has grown to include over 150 girls.