HAMPTON, VA (WTKR)- The sound of Peninsula Pilots baseball has returned to Hampton's War Memorial Stadium.
Those who grew up with the sport in the 757 know it well.
"I used to come to these games as a kid and growing up through high school," said Kyle Edwards. "Seeing it was fun playing, great fanbase. It was an awesome place to play, good players."
"I knew a lot of really good players played here," Gardner Meeks added. "It always had a good reputation."
Today's players are keeping that reputation strong. Edwards played his high school baseball at Frank Cox before heading to college at Old Dominion. He's always called Hampton Roads his home and enjoys taking the field in front of his hometown fans.
"It's always fun for me because I grew up here," he pointed out. "These are where my baseball roots are and I've had a lot of great teammates and great friends and great coaches."
Others like Meeks, a Norfolk Christian alumnus, ventured away from home to play college baseball, but returned in the summer for some local flavor. Meeks just wrapped up his career as a pitcher at George Mason and the Virginia Beach native is back for one final summer in the sun.
"I just wanted to play one more summer near my family," the pitcher noted. "It's nice to be home. It's nice that they can come out and watch games, they can watch me play one final time. It's been awesome. I'm so happy to have this opportunity."
The Pilots play in the Coastal Plains League, one of countless wooden bat summer circuits that give college players a chance to sharpen their skills. This team is a staple of the 757 and features plenty of local talent. Look around the diamond and up and down the dugout and the athletes see plenty of familiar faces.
"We are still kids and it's awesome playing with those guys that you just saw and you had great connections with growing up," Edwards said. "Getting to play with them again, it's like your childhood days and that's why coming back and playing in the 757 for me is so important."
"A lot of these guys I did get to play against or play with growing up," added Meeks. "Now you get to play with them and it's awesome because we've all grown up. We've all taken so many strides in our playing careers that now we're all back together and we all get to see how it fits."
Some are taking the field for the final time, while others are looking to head back to college a little bit better, but all are hoping that the summer season turns out to be a home run.
"People always say summer ball is just summer ball and whatever happens, but at the end of the day you're trying to win at all times," Edwards said.
"I just like to win," Meeks declared. "I'm a competitor. That's all I want to do, so I hope we win, I hope have a good time and I hope that, as a person, I can just grow a little bit more."
The Pilots' season runs through mid August. For a look at their complete schedule, click here.
