For the second time in five years, the Greenfield and South Hadley baseball teams will be competing on one of the most storied baseball fields in the country. 

The Green Wave and the Tigers made the trip to Cooperstown, N.Y. in 2018 and played at historic Doubleday Field. The two schools planned to return every three years for a game, but COVID-19 delayed the trip back to the spot that bills itself as “the home of baseball.”

With things returning to normal, Greenfield and South Hadley decided to make the trip back this weekend, where they’ll face off at Doubleday Field on Sunday. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.  

“We talked about doing it every three years then COVID hit,” Green Wave coach Tom Suchanek said. “We saw each other when we played last year and talked about doing it again this year. Things are getting back to normal so we decided to give it a go.

“We have a good relationship with South Hadley,” Suchanek added. “We play them quite a bit. South Hadley has won some games this year and it should be a good baseball game.” 

The Tigers were taking the trip to Cooperstown every two years to make sure nearly every player who came through their program would have the chance to go. 

The pandemic halted that, but South Hadley head coach Matt Foley said he is thrilled to be heading back on Sunday to get the chance to compete at Doubleday Field once again. 

“It’s something that we really enjoy doing,” Foley said. “We were on a schedule where we were going every other year so every kid would be able to do it. COVID jumped in and we haven’t been able to go since. We tried in 2021 but we weren’t able to with restrictions on going out of state. We’re back to doing it now. I’m very excited to be going back out. We love going with Greenfield. Their coaching staff and ours have become close over the years.” 

With it being five years since the last meeting there, none of the players taking the field on Sunday were part of the 2018 game at Doubleday. 

Not only will those players get to play in the game, they’ll get to tour the Hall of Fame, an experience any baseball fan would dream of. 

“I would venture to guess none of my players have been,” Foley said. “When you’re going every other year it keeps it fresh where every kid would have a chance to go at least once. There’s so much history on that field and in that town. Once they get there, the kids really embrace it. If past history means anything, it’ll be a special day all around. They get to go to the birthplace of baseball and get to really feel what it’s like being there.” 

While it’s a trip to play a baseball game, it’s also a great team bonding experience. Suchanek and Foley both said players who have taken the trip in the past don’t forget it any time soon and always enjoy the experience.

“I think some of them don’t realize what it’s all about,” Suchanek said. “Once they get there and see the surroundings, all the stuff around it, they will. Playing at Doubleday Field, going out to eat as a team, going through the Hall of Fame, those are things they will remember for a long time.” 

Foley mentioned that he was pleased to be able to make this trip before his senior class graduated. The coach said he has multiple players on his team who love baseball and have been waiting to go to Cooperstown. 

“There’s already a buzz about it,” Foley said. “We’ve been talking about it for a while. This group knows we like to do this but haven’t been able to go. Our senior captains Nate Carillon and Ben Foley, they played on the state championship soccer team and have had some great experiences in high school, but those guys haven’t been able to do this yet. For guys like Nate, who knows the history of the game, he’s really looking forward to getting out there. We’re glad to be able to do it for kids like that.” 

In order to pull off a trip like this, it takes a big fundraising push. With coordination between the two programs as well as individual fundraising efforts, the two teams were able to make it happen.

“We did some fundraising,” Suchanek said. “It’s pretty expensive with getting a bus, staying overnight, the expense of Cooperstown. It’s not cheap to do. [Assistant coach] Vinnie Melendez had a lot of communication with Matt Foley. It takes a lot of communication and planning to get something like this done.” 

“Every year you have to fundraise and do different things,” Foley added. “We have a couple standing fundraisers that we do and have been doing for a number of years that raise a couple thousand dollars for this trip. It’s not easy fundraising for anything. The kids were motivated and it was great to offset some of the expenses.” 

As for the game itself? Both Greenfield (8-4) and South Hadley (7-4) have had strong seasons and look like they’ll be sewing up state tournament berth in the very near future. Both coaches are expecting a competitive game on the diamond, with the atmosphere always creating a great game environment. 

“We have a great history with Greenfield,” Foley said. “With Coach Suchanek being in his 50th year [as head coach], we’ve had a lot of battles together. It’s great to be able to go out there with them. It doesn’t matter what our records are, the kids love being there and we’re expecting it to be an exciting game. We both want that.” 

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