There are five fields at the historic Terry Park baseball complex in the city of Fort Myers. Those ballyards are occupied for the most part by Division III teams from the North at this time of year.
The Bethel Royals were assigned to the field named for Connie Mack for a doubleheader of seven-inning games starting at 9 a.m. Sunday. Mack was the owner and manager of the Philadelphia Athletics for a half-century and brought the A's here for spring training from 1925 to 1936.
Coach Brian Raabe, the former Twins infielder, has his Bethel team here for 13 games and for nearly two weeks, what with the People's Stadium, aka the Zygi Dome, off limits to all baseball this year because of preparations for the Final Four. The Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic draws more than 100 baseball and softball teams here from late February to late March, allowing Minnesota visitors to southwest Florida to play quite a variety of colleges.
PATRICK REUSSE
