‘MIlroy Bambino’ lands
Babe Ruth league honored on newest goose
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MILROY -- A new goose has landed as part of the Wild Geese Flock Together public art project.
The "Milroy Bambino" goose was sponsored by the Best Western Nittany Inn in Milroy and the Juniata River Valley Visitors Bureau.
Tim Mateer, the artist, consulted with many people affiliated with Babe Ruth Baseball to come up with the final design.
This new goose brings the gaggle to 28, with more landings to come.
The latest goose recognizes the history of Babe Ruth baseball in Mifflin County, one of the most successful programs in the national organization. Mifflin County has had Babe Ruth baseball since 1955, one of the things noted on the goose, which also bears the emblem of Babe Ruth baseball.
Ten baseball caps from the local regular-season teams are on the goose -- Beaver Springs, Belleville, Belltown, Burnham, Lewistown, McVeytown, Milroy, Reedsville, Strodes Mills and Yeagertown (which has not fielded a team since 2017), and the All-Star cap worn by all tournament players who represent the county in the postseason.
There is no cap for Beaver Springs East, which played just this past season.
The Goose eyes are All-Star eyes.
Baseballs adorning the goose are signed by all three Babe Ruth World Series managers who appeared in a national final, Scott Reigle (2016), Justin Yoder (2018) and Bill Corbin (2021). The balls bear the number of wins that each manager had during their careers in the Mifflin County Babe Ruth League: 145 for Yoder, 424 for Reigle and 764 for Corbin.
Reigle and Corbin each managed two World Series teams; Reigle was manager of the 2002 all-stars and Corbin had back-to-back qualifiers, having taken a team this past year as well.
Also depicted on the goose are:
• Scoreboards from Armagh Memorial Field from the latest two Mid-Atlantic Regionals held there, both won by Mifflin County -- the 2018 15-year-old tournament and the 14-year-olds last summer.
• The trophies from the three teams that made the national finals -- 2018, 15-year-olds; 2021, 15-year-olds; and 2016, 13-year-olds, who won the national championship.
• Sign posts for all six World Series teams --2002, 2004, 2016, 2018, 2021 and 2022 -- along with location of the World Series and the place that the Mifflin County team finished.
• The longevity of the local league and its 25 Pennsylvania state champions.
Also on the goose are items noting the career of league statistician Ray Wilde, who has been part of the local organization since 1970 (53 years) as the league's public relations person, covering virtually every game played b a Mifflin County team for The Sentinel. On the goose to honor Wilde are a typewriter, a suitcase for his lengthy travels in coverage, the Amtrak emblem because he always takes the train, and a sweater, which you rarely see him without -- even on the hottest days of summer.
"In April, May and June, the players perform, the managers instruct and the parents cheer. Then in July and August, the rewards of spring are triumphs for the league and glory for Mifflin County," Wilde said at the dedication ceremony for the goose Thursday.
The goal of this project is to recognize our unique local tradition of Goose Day through the talent of local artists while strengthening community spirit and enhancing tourism. The project would not be possible without the support of the sponsors, talented local artists and many other individuals, including Dave Miller's company, Penn State Construction, which prepares the landing sites.
For more information regarding the Wild Geese Flock Together public art project visit www.cpartnerships.com or find Community Partnerships on Facebook.