More good news for local baseball fans: The elite summer showcase events for incoming high school seniors are still on -- for now.
Late-summer showcase events like the East Coast Pro Invitational, Area Code Games and Summer Rivalry Classic typically offer incoming seniors an opportunity to play in front of the largest pool of pro scouts, cross checkers and player representatives before the next year's MLB Draft. As of right now, all three marquee events are still expected to be played in some capacity in 2020.
The event that appears most likely to go off as scheduled is the East Coast Pro Invitational, which is slated for Aug. 3 to 5 at the Hoover Met Complex in Hoover, Ala. The Area Code Games, originally scheduled for Aug. 6 to 10 in Long Beach, Calif., will likely be moved to another location in either August, September or October. The Summer Rivalry Classic, which is typically held at either Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium, will be held Aug. 21 to 23 in Cortland, N.Y.
The coaching staff of the Northeast regional team is comprised of several pro scouts, including New York Yankees Northeast area scout Matt Hyde, Boston Red Sox Northeast area scout Ray Fagnant, and Northeast Scouting Supervisor for the Detroit Tigers Jim Bretz. Typically, the scouts host multiple tryout opportunities for incoming seniors at various locations around New England. As of right now, there is one tryout scheduled for June 23 at Hartford University, but that is expected to get cancelled. The Northeast regional coaches will likely select the team without having a tryout.
