Help coordinate the volunteers for that day which includes the Buddies and Announcer. Help the buddies get situated with their players. Open the equipment boxes and make sure they have everything for the game. Make sure everyone is having a good time! See the duties below. Click Here to sign up to be a Director of the Day
Director of the Day Duties:
Set up equipment: All items are found in the two lockers along the baselines
Put by home plate:
One rubber tee
Two large, plastic bats
Bucket of tennis balls
One set of catcher’s equipment—helmet/mask; chest protector; shin guards
Put in/by each dugout:
White board and marker (Please make sure the white board is wiped clean—wipes are in blue Rubbermaid in black locker. So are the markers.)
2-3 batting helmets
1 first aid kit
Put by the backstop:
Bullhorn (located in Rubbermaid box)
CD player (also in box)
Please check both items to make sure they are operational. If batteries are needed, there should be extras in the Rubbermaid. Please discard any used batteries—do not put back into the container!
In the CD player there should be a CD already loaded with three songs on it. This is the order in which the songs will be played and sung by all: National Anthem before the start of the game; Take Me Out To The Ballgame during the “7th inning stretch” (usually after 1-2 full innings) and the Chicken Dance to be played at the end.
Go to the concession stand and ask for the following:
50 treat tickets for each game. Tell them it is for Miracle League and they will charge it to our account.
Remote to the scoreboard. Be sure it is operational. There will be instructions with it as to how to operate it the remote during the game. You can do this yourself or ask a fan in the crowd to run the scoreboard.
Right before game start:
The buddies for the teams will begin arriving about now. Decide which buddy team will be paired with each Miracle League team.
Miracle League coaches should be there by now. Introduce yourself and let them know you are the “go to” person for the day.
Try to find someone in the stands to throw out the first pitch. It can be anyone, young or old, who looks very interested in what is going on. It sounds intimidating to walk up to strangers to ask such a thing but it’s not! You’d be surprised how instantly supportive folks are in providing a genuine baseball experience.
Try to get the game underway within 10-15 minutes of the start time. Let the coaches know it is time to start and they will gather up their players and buddies.
Start of Game/During Game:
The Director of the Day will introduce the players, their positions, and their buddies. The Director of the Day will then ask everyone to stand for the singing of the National Anthem (lead by the Home team). You should have the CD player cued and ready to go at this time. The announcer should hold the bullhorn up to the CD player while you are holding it.
After the National Anthem, the Home team should take the field. The Director of the Day will then introduce the person throwing out the first pitch to the Home team catcher. They will then yell, “Play ball!” and the game is underway! The Director of the Day & coaches will have control of the game from here and you can take a breather and enjoy the game!
End of Game:
As the game is coming to an end, be ready to pass out treat tickets as the players & buddies go through their handshakes. Ask the announcer to take half the tickets and stand at one end while you stand at the other. Each player and buddy gets a treat ticket. Make sure you and the announcer get some too for all your hard work!
Once everyone is gone after the first game, reorganize the dugouts for the next game. Clean off the white boards. Throw out any garbage left in the dugouts.
If there are any lost items, hang on to them in one of the dugouts until after the last game. Sometimes folks return right away to retrieve their forgotten item.
If there are any leftover treat tickets please put them in the Rubbermaid container in the envelope.
End of Day (after last game is played)–Put the equipment back in the lockers as follows:
Black Locker
White Locker
CD player & bullhorn in the Rubbermaid
Bucket of balls
Whiteboard markers & cleaners in the Rubbermaid
Catcher’s gear
Whiteboards
Bats
Rubber tee
First aid kits
Helmets
Once everything is put away in the equipment boxes, please check the dugouts one more time to be sure nothing is missed.
Once you are satisfied everything is put away, please lock each of the equipment boxes securely.
Please throw out any garbage you find in the dugouts or on the field.