MOOSIC, Pa. -- Our boys of summer have done it again. The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders are playing for the Governor's Cup for the third year in a row.
Tuesday night was game one of the best-of-five series against the Durham Bulls, and with the anticipated arrival of Hurricane Florence in North Carolina, all five games will be played at PNC Field in Moosic.
“That's going to be a nice thing for the Scranton area, for people to come out and see them,” said Tim Jones from Dalton.
“Oh, it's great. Any extra baseball here is great for the area,” said Matthew Kalinowski from Scranton. “I personally wish it was the Mets, but we'll take the RailRiders right now.”
Fans of the RailRiders say with all five games being here they may see their team take home the championship on home field.
“Oh, that would be great,” said Ryan Manley from Scranton.
“Last year Durham beat them,” said Joe D’Amato from Clarks Summit. “And this year, back to five again, all five here, even though Durham will be the home. Yeah, we have a chance.”
As an added bonus for local fans, playing with the Durham Bulls is Scranton native Joe McCarthy.
The number 31 left fielder got a huge welcome before his first at-bat.
“Batting second, left fielder, number 31, Joe McCarthy,” said the announcer as the crowd cheered loudly.
This was the first time McCarthy has played at PNC Field. He was on the disabled list the last time the two teams met up.
This time, plenty of RailRiders fans had no problem proudly displaying their pride.
“We love Joe. We're so proud of him, and we're proud that the Durham Bulls made it this far,” said Dan Markey from Jermyn. “We're also RailRiders fans too, so it's a win/win for us tonight.”
“There's a lot of anticipation to actually see him, and he has not played in his hometown since high school, so I think it's a special moment for his friends, his schoolmates, family,” said Josh Olerud, the RailRiders General Manager.
Game two is scheduled for Wednesday, September 12 at PNC Field.