The Vermont Mountaineers announced Wednesday that the team has canceled the 2020 season out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of fans, host families, volunteers and vendors, as well as players and coaches.
The Mountaineers are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Montpelier. The team, a member of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, plays their home games at the Montpelier Recreation Field.
Brian Gallagher, Mountaineers general manager and president of the board said the board voted unanimously at their meeting on April 22 to not participate in the league this summer.
“The safety of every member of our community must come before the enjoyment of providing a first rate summer baseball experience,” he said. “We cannot ask our host families to accept players into their homes at a time when we just don’t know what our lives will look like in one or two months’ time. We cannot risk the safety of our thousands of fans and our dozens and dozens of volunteers. We cannot promise the parents and college coaches of our players that we can keep them totally safe.”
Gallagher noted that anyone who has purchased 2020 tickets will have them honored for the 2021 season. A NECBL league meeting has been scheduled to decide the future of the league-wide summer ball this year.
— Sarah Asch
