Syosset Baseball Association's annual awards dinner at the Crest Hollow Country Club is scheduled to be held on Monday, Nov. 6. This annual event celebrates the year's baseball season from the first pitch in April to our fall travel season ending October 28.

This is always a great time to reflect on the year's achievements and events to refresh and remind everyone in the community of the great season of fun and enriching each player's skills throughout the year.

The spring 2006 season opened on a 60 degree April Saturday morning with a complete card of games being played from ages 5 through 12 that day. Over 1,400 players registered and enjoyed intramural play throughout the intramural season, which finished all playoff games in late June prior to the close of the school year.

The baseball apparel was opened through the website as well as direct in-store sales with Woodbury Sports.

The 5-year-old tee-ballers, have enjoyed their first taste of team baseball and now look forward to being in the 6-year-old division where they further develop their skills prior to getting pitched to in the 7-year-old league. The 6-year-old tee-ballers, now graduate to coach pitching next year. Seven-year-old coach pitching will be graduating to player pitching in the 8-year old-division. The 8-year-old division, will be graduating to umpired games, not being able to play with their friends, but now being put on a team through a draft and team standings in the 9-year-old A Division. The 9-year-olds move up to the 10-year-old division. The 10-year-olds' now are apart of the AAA/Major League 11/12 year pool of players. The 11-year-olds remain in this pool of players while the 12s who were playing in this league now move onto to the Senior Leagues, ages 13+.

Champions were crowned in Divisions 9-12 for their individual standings throughout the intramural season and an overall champion crowned for winning the playoffs in each Divisions.

Director of Player Development, Steve Gross, conducted a clinic for our 5- and 6-year-olds during the first weekend in May. Owen Photography, as always, provided the venue for individual and team photos to be taken as keepsakes for the years play.

The annual All-Star games and picnic held Memorial Weekend provided showcased our players from our 8 through Major League Division throughout the day with our barbecue of hamburgers, hot dogs, snacks and watermelon plentiful for all. Long Island Ducks mascot, Quackerjack paid a visit to the crowd, mingling throughout his visit, taking pictures and signing autograph requests. Memorial Day, Syosset Baseball Association's contingent marched in the Memorial Day parade down Jackson Avenue through town.

Summer travel started on Saturday, June 24, the day after school ended with the Summer Syosset Braves teams taking to the fields throughout the tri-state area. The 11-year-old A team, managed by Joe Miecuna, took home the championship in the NBJL summer league defeating Hauppauge. Our 15-year-old A team won the Babe Ruth Division under the managerial direction of Artie Johansen. Our 17-year-old team won the Babe Ruth Division under the Managerial direction of Jack Ciano.

The 8-year-old Division enjoyed a weekend skills competition and in-house tournament among the four 8-year-old summer travel teams, with Tony Maracic's team crowded "champs" and individual skills honors awarded to several of the 8-year-olds.

Alan Rapfogel Managed the 12-year-old Summer Travel team in a Cooperstown tournament of 96 teams comprised throughout the entire United States and abroad in Cooperstown, NY the week of August 19.

The summer finished with the third year of New York Mets Baseball Academy bringing their instructional league to our fields the last two weeks of August. Over 200 players participated this year and enjoyed great fun, education and visits from some of their current favorites as well as past Met icons George Foster and Ed Kranepool.

At the start of the school year, the fall baseball travel season kicked off with teams competing again throughout the tri-state area and enjoying the use of the new "turf field" at the back of Syosset Woodbury Community Park.

At the same time, Syosset Baseball Association launched online registration for spring 2007, going on now through Dec. 31.

The association got the scoreboard at Syosset Woodbury Park up and running again with the start of the fall season, as any games that were played there enjoyed the working scoreboard maintained by a group of designated 11-14-year-olds.

This leads to this Monday's dinner, which culminates this year's events. We look forward to all attendees enjoying the evening's festivities and surprise guest speaker.

This and the calendar of events can be found at www.syossetbaseball.org.