ROCKPORT — Tryout registration is now open for those interested in playing for one of the two Five Town Babe Ruth baseball teams. 

Tryouts will be held on Saturday, April 27 from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at The Pitch on Route 90 in Warren. Baseball players from Camden, Rockport, Hope, Appleton, and Lincolnville who will be age 13-15 on May 1 can register for tryouts.

The two Five Town teams will participate in the Midcoast Babe Ruth League with other teams based in Rockland/Thomaston, Waldoboro, Union, Belfast/Searsport, Newcastle, Wiscasset and Damariscotta. 

The Babe Ruth season begins in early May and continues into early July with playoffs. There is also an all-star season that occurs after playoffs.

Until school teams finish, practices and games will be limited to weekends, with games generally scheduled for Sunday afternoons.

The regular season for Babe Ruth teams includes up to 10 games, with about half played at home and half on the road. The two Five Town teams, PG Willey and Granite Coast Orthodontics, will play home contests at Marge Jones Recreational Facility. 

Granite Coast Orthodontics will be coached by Tom Hedstrom and Joe Coffey. PG Willey, which made it to the league championship game last season, will be coached by Tim Moody and Mike Kremin.

Future and returning players can visit fivetownbaberuth.website.siplay.com to register for the free tryout session. Players who are chosen for a team will later need to register for the season with a $100 fee. Uniforms will be provided.

Parents must first create a parent account in the system, then add your player and register them for "2019 Try-outs". Returning players must sign up for tryouts so an accurate count of returning team members can be maintained and to ensure of your spot on your previous team.

Recently, Hedstrom provided returning, future and even past players the opportunity to sharpen skills and get a head start on the season with a spring training session at The Pitch over the last eight Saturdays.

"This additional time gave these dedicated ballplayers a great jump start to there season,” he said. “They are playing with confidence already because they know they are prepared."

Hedstrom believes players really enjoy Babe Ruth baseball because of the low pressure, high reward nature of the season.

"This league is just for fun and for them to improve their baseball skills," Hedstrom added. "Because of that, the players play loose and really seem to enjoy the friendships they make with their teammates and opponents."

Reach the sports department at: sports@penbaypilot.com.