Letters

The Hamptons Adult Hardball League is a baseball, not softball, league for adults 30 years of age and older on the South Fork. We have played our games at Mashashimuet Park, Bridgehampton School and the Southampton High School JV field. The vast majority of the league’s players live on the South Fork.

Baseball is played on a field that has larger dimensions (90 feet between bases) than fields used for softball (60 feet between bases). A major issue that our league has is that the vast majority of our players are police and firemen, and those who work in the service industry — they are landscapers, electricians, plumbers, carpenters and so on. Especially in the spring, but throughout the entire season, May through July, those workers and business owners are under enormous pressure to get work done.

Our games during the week start at 5:45 p.m. It is almost impossible for these players, many of whom were born and raised out here, to get to a game during the week.

A solution that the league’s leaders came up with (which is very similar to a solution of a different school parents group) is to modify field No. 4 at Mashashimuet Park, the softball field, with lights, so that we could play baseball games at night during the week.

The field would then be dual-purpose — both softball and baseball could now be played on the field.

I secured a grant, through Assemblyman Fred Thiele, for $250,000 to cover the costs of the modification. Our league starts in mid-May, so we could have these conditions this season.

The Pierson teams wouldn’t be able to use the field for a few days, but I’m sure they would be fine with that, because the middle school baseball teams would then be able to use the field, too, in addition to the softball teams.

The reasons for this proposal not being approved, which I’ve been given:

• “It would be a shame to ruin a perfectly good softball field.” This statement doesn’t reflect that both sports can be played on the field. Also, the modifications would increase safety.

• “The field is being used daily during the spring by Pierson girls softball, both middle school and varsity.” The request to modify the field came in the fall. Had the procedure been more efficient, this wouldn’t be an issue. Also, did the park board contact the school administration to get their thoughts?

• “During the summer, it is used by various softball groups, like Artists and Writers.” This statement doesn’t reflect the issue that the work would already be done; therefore, groups like Artists and Writers would have an improved and safer field to play on.

Jim Kinnier

Sag Harbor