Coastal Plain League to play eight games with USA Baseball Collegiate National Team

The Coastal Plain League announced this week that its teams will compete in eight games versus the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team during the 2014 summer season. The games will mark the fifth straight year teams from the CPL will welcome the Collegiate National Team into their ballparks.

“We are thrilled to be working with USA Baseball again in 2014,” said CPL commissioner Justin Sellers. “Each year we look to elevate our brand and this partnership is a great example of that commitment. These games will be memorable for our players and coaches; and exciting to watch for our fans across the CPL footprint.”

For the first time ever, a CPL Select team will be formed to face the Collegiate National Team at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C., on June 22. A selection committee will be put together comprised of league coaches, league officials and Major League scouts to choose players from CPL teams to compete during this special exhibition contest.

The Collegiate National Team will then hit the road for a seven-day tour of CPL ballparks starting on June 23 with a match-up against the High Point-Thomasville HiToms. The next day (June 24), the team will travel to Fayetteville for a game with the SwampDogs. On June 25, the tour will take the Collegiate National Team to Wilson to face the Tobs, followed by a game on June 26 against the Columbia Blowfish. The Florence RedWolves will host the next stop on June 27, and then the tour shifts to Morehead City for a contest with the Marlins on June 28; and concludes on June 29 in Hampton, Va., versus the Peninsula Pilots.

“The seven-game tour through the CPL will allow the CNT to get ready with the wood bat and continue to name players to the final 24-man roster,” said Eric Campbell, USA Baseball’s General Manager of National Teams. “We had a great atmosphere in all the CPL stadiums last number and expect even greater excitement as this tour continues to go to the next level. The addition of the CPL Select game in Cary on June 22 is going to highlight some our nation’s best prospects in both dugouts.”

The Coastal Plain League will open its 18th season on May 27, 2014. For more information, visit www.coastalplain.com.