The Hastings Hawks have announced that the batting cages at Veterans Park will be taken down the weekend of October 19 and 20.
The batting cages were installed and paid for by the Hawks, HYAA and the City of Hastings. The agreement of the partnership is that the Hawks would manage the setup and tear down of the cages each year. That needs to occur before Veterans Park closes for the winter which is usually around the end of October or beginning of November.
This is a volunteer-led teardown of the cages, and the date/time may need to change because of weather, but the expected closure date of the cages is the weekend of October 19. The group typically starts the work around 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, that includes shutting down the field for the season as well. The cages come down and the wind screen is rolled up to extend their life span. The sun wreaks havoc on the materials, taking them out of the sun over the winter when they are not needed is a free way to be mindful of the materials. The snow and ice on the batting cages also wear on the netting, so those are stored inside for the winter.
If you are interested in assisting with the shutdown of the baseball field and cages at Vets Park, email president@hastingshawks.com.