PONY League World Series set in Washington, Pa
One of the area's most prestigious summer athletic traditions will continue when the 2007 PONY League World Series, for 13- and 14-year-olds, takes place in Washington, Pa., home of PONY Baseball and Softball.
The series -- an eight-team, two-division, double-elimination tournament -- will begin Aug. 11 and conclude Aug. 18.
Teams from all over the world compete for the honor of making the international event.
The U.S. teams are divided into four zones: east, west, north and south.
Countries in the Asia-Pacific Zone are Australia, China, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Philippines, Russia and Taiwan.
Caribbean Zone nations are Anguilla, Aruba, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Saba, St. Croix, St. Eustatius, Tobago, Trinidad and Venezuela.
Other countries playing under the PONY banner are Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico and Saudi Arabia. The united Kingdom's England and Wales also field separate teams.
All World Series tickets are general admission (no seat assignments). There are no sellouts. Gates open at 4:30 p.m. for the 5:30 p.m. games and at noon for the 1 p.m. championship game Aug. 18. Nightly tickets purchased at the gate are good for that night's doubleheader. The cost is $5 for adults, $3 for youths age 14 and younger.
Series passes provide admission to all games. The cost is $20 for adults, $10 for youths. Parking at Lew Hays PONY Field is $3 per night or $15 for a series pass.
A volunteer PONY Baseball workforce built the original home in 1952; it is now a registered Historical Pennsylvania Landmark. The first World Series played on this field was in 1953. When founder Lew Hays died in 1998, PONY Field was renamed Lew Hays PONY Field.
This summer's PONY League World Series will mark the 44th time in the league's 56-year history that Washington will play host to the worldwide event.
Washington was the scene of the first 12 PONY League championships, from 1952 through 1963, and also served as host of the PONY World Series from 1968-1973, 1976 and 1981-1982. The PONY League World Series has taken place at Washington every year since 1984.
Caguas, Puerto Rico, won the 2006 championship, defeating Simi Valley, Calif., in the title game by a 4-2 score. That marked the second straight year a California-based team earned runner-up honors. The Chinese Taipai All-Stars won the 2005 PONY League World Series by defeating San Diego Tecolote, Calif., in the championship game that went eight innings, 2-1.
That one-run victory gave Taiwan its fifth PONY World Series championship since 1994 and first since 2000.
Before 2005 and 2006, the last non-American team to win the PONY League World Series was Ponce, Puerto Rico, in 2001.
Marietta, Ga., won the 2004 PONY League title, and Lakewood and Norwalk, Calif., won the 2003 and 2002 titles, respectively.
San Antonio, Texas, won the initial PONY World Series in 1952. Host Washington and Monongahela were the only Pennsylvania-based national champions, in 1955 and 1954, respectively. Monterey, Mexico, was the first non-U.S. PONY champion, winning the tourney in 1972.
Seoul, South Korea, is the only team to win three consecutive PONY titles (1988-1990). The first repeat PONY champion was Campbell-Moreland, Calif. (1978-79). The only other team to win consecutive PONY titles before Seoul's "three-peat" was West Covina, Calif., in 1981-82.
Last August, Simi Valley was hoping to be the 20th team from the state of California to win the PONY League title. Puerto Rico has now produced six PONY World Series champions, and Taiwan has five titles. Illinois teams have won the PONY League World Series four times, and teams from Texas, Georgia, and Korea (Seoul) have won three times each.
States that have had two-time PONY League World Series championship teams include Pennsylvania, Florida, Hawaii and North Carolina. West Virginia, Indiana, Mexico, Michigan and Massachusetts have all had one-time champions.
PONY is an acronym for Protect Our Nation's Youth. The name originally came from boys at the local YMCA in Washington and stood for Protect Our Neighborhood Youth. When PONY became an international program in the early 1950s, "Neighborhood" was switched to "Nation's."
Since the first PONY League World Series in 1952, many players who participated in PONY's premier tournament have gone on to Major League Baseball careers.
Joel Horlen was a star pitcher for the inaugural World Series champ, San Antonio, Texas. He won the College World Series with Oklahoma State University in 1959 and the Major League World Series with the Oakland Athletics in 1972.
Gold Glove first baseman Wes Parker played in the 1954 PONY World Series and won the Major League World Series with Los Angeles Dodgers in 1965.
Greg Swindell was a PONY World Series runner-up in 1979 with Houston and won the Major League World Series with Arizona in 2001.
Alex Fernandez owns a World Series ring from 1997 with the Florida Marlins, 13 years after being the PONY runner-up with Miami in 1984.
Among other PONY League World Series participants to go on to Major League careers are Juan Agosto, who pitched 13 years; catcher Alex Treveño, who also played 13 years in the majors; pitcher Bill Gullickson, who had a 16-year career, and 1974 American League Most Valuable Player Jeff Burroughs.
