American Legion baseball has been played since 1926, but it will debut in Boothbay Harbor this summer. Post 36 in Boothbay is sponsoring its first season, with play scheduled to begin in June. American Legion baseball is for ballplayers 16-19 years old. A group of youth baseball enthusiasts has worked on growing the sport in recent years. The group began in Tee Ball with their kids, followed them through Cal Ripken baseball through an alliance with Wiscasset and Richmond, and more recently formed a Lincoln County Babe Ruth squad for players 13-15 year-olds.

With many of these athletes about to age-out of youth baseball, the group began a couple years ago working on extending their playing days to American Legion. “There has been a lot of excitement,” Adam Harkins said. Harkins is the team’s manager during its inaugural season. “We had a meeting with the post (36), and they also have a tremendous amount of excitement about this, too,” he said. 

Harkins has been a member of the group who supported local baseball back when his son, Finn Harkins, began playing Tee Ball. He has also coached middle school baseball and is familiar with many of the 16 likely roster members. “I love these kids. They are a great group, and we are also excited about providing them with this opportunity to continue playing baseball.”

Harkins reported Post 36 is one of four new teams playing legion baseball this summer. Maine American Legion is divided into zones, but Harkins is not sure which one Post 36 will be in. “Probably, in the south. There are still a lot of things we don’t know, but that should be cleared up next month at the coaches’ meeting,” he said. Maine American Legion scheduled an organizational meeting for April 30 in Winslow.

Post 36 is hoping to draw players from Lincoln County to play as many as four games per week in a six-week span. The team will mostly consist of Boothbay region players, but Harkins is hoping to draw from all over Lincoln County, and possibly a few beyond the border. “We had several Lincoln Academy players who played on our Babe Ruth squad for a couple years, and hope they will play this summer,” Harkins said. 

Post 36 will be clad in Dodger Blue tops and white pants with a red number appearing on the front pocket and larger red numeral on the back. The cap will be Dodger blue with a red 36 insignia cap’s front. Harkins expects the schedule to be Tuesday, Thursday with a doubleheader played either on a Saturday or Sunday. “One of the criteria to joining is the field must have lights. So many games will be played under the lights at Sherman Field,” he said. “We had a night high school baseball game last year, and it was a great atmosphere. So it’s a great place to play.”

While volunteers and Post members are waiting for the season to start, they will participate in fundraising activities. “We are still organizing, and I’m not sure what we will do for fundraising, but we have a group ready to begin,” Harkins said.