CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Corpus Christi is about to be packed with baseball and softball teams and fans starting Thursday for the annual Mira's Sports & More baseball and softball tournaments.
The 19th annual Baseball Classic will take over the CCISD fields and highlights the semifinal and championship matchups on Saturday at Whataburger Field, home of the Astros' AA farm team the Corpus Christi Hooks.
"Well you get to see all of the good talent," J.R. Castillo, umpire for 31 years, said. "Basically a lot of kids that are going DI, DII, JUCO. You see good pitching and good coaching from the Valley and all the way up to the Austin area and it's a privilege and honor to umpire these games."
Mira's partnership with the Corpus Christi Coaches Association, that began in 2004, has helped raise over $150,000 in scholarships thanks to the tournaments.
"All the money that is raised is going to go to scholarships for kids, and we give out 12 scholarships a year to local high school students," Craig Charlton, Corpus Christi Coaches Association President, said. "A girl and a boy from each high school. We're really appreciative of Mira's for what they do in donating to help this cause."
Mira's Sports & More high school Softball Bayfront Bash will also be simultaneously with the Baseball Classic. 23 teams from across Texas will compete March 2-4.
"You have a lot of local talent and again to have a variety of teams that are here it gets them excited," Shaye Carpenter, CCISD District Athletic Director, said. "They like to be able to see the sight of Corpus Christi and get some great competition."
Click these links to keep up with the scores and bracket for the Baseball Classic and Softball Bayfront Bash as well as the Calallen Varsity H.S. Invitational Baseball Tournament.
