Bill Koch

Thursday

Oct 8, 2020 at 3:49 PM


PAWTUCKET — Denied a farewell season on the field, the Pawtucket Red Sox have planned a Final Weekend Celebration.


The PawSox Foundation Golf Classic, Dining on the Diamond and a 33-hour Grand Finale will highlight the four-day event, which starts Thursday. Pawtucket Country Club and McCoy Stadium will play host.


The inaugural golf tournament will raise funds for the city community and is sold out. The foundation typically funds the PawSox Scholars program, the Paws [...]

PAWTUCKET — Denied a farewell season on the field, the Pawtucket Red Sox have planned a Final Weekend Celebration.


The PawSox Foundation Golf Classic, Dining on the Diamond and a 33-hour Grand Finale will highlight the four-day event, which starts Thursday. Pawtucket Country Club and McCoy Stadium will play host.


The inaugural golf tournament will raise funds for the city community and is sold out. The foundation typically funds the PawSox Scholars program, the Paws for a Cause initiative and other civic groups.


Dining on the playing field will be held Friday and Saturday (Oct. 16, 17) including multiple seatings each night. The Saturday schedule includes seatings at 4, 5:30 and 7 p.m. The PawSox started the program in late May and have filled the seatings offered throughout the summer.


The finishing marathon begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday and pays homage to Baseball’s Longest Game, the 33-inning epic against Rochester in 1981. "Never Can Say Goodbye" is a six-hour event that will allow fans to walk the ballpark’s warning track and receive free PawSox gifts. Club mascots Paws and Sox are scheduled to participate.


Saturday’s dining event will be followed by a Scouts Sleepover, which starts at 8:30 p.m. and runs to 8 a.m. Sunday. The event will be held in coordination with the Narragansett Council and features a baseball movie on the video board, special snacks and an overnight on the outfield grass.


Sunday’s events include a pair of opportunities to play on the field. R.I. Interscholastic League baseball and softball seniors who missed their 2020 spring season will take batting practice beginning at 9 a.m. The Pawtucket Slaterettes, a city staple for more than four decades, will host batting practice for girls and women beginning at 11 a.m.


The last scheduled event Sunday will be a Unity Fest held in cooperation with Black Lives Matter Rhode Island. A series of speakers and gospel artists will be featured in coordination with that day’s dining seatings. The fundraiser, designed to promote racial justice and equality, will benefit the African-American Innovation Center.


The PawSox will begin the 2021 season at Polar Park in Worcester, Mass., ending a 50-year association between the state and the franchise. Pawtucket began its run at the venue in 1970 and was named the Red Sox Triple-A affiliate in 1973. Minor League Baseball did not sponsor a season for the first time since 1901, and play in the International League was halted for the first time since 1884.


Per state and local health guidelines, fans must preregister for all events at pawsox.com and self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms. The PawSox consulted city and state officials while finalizing their plans.


bkoch@providencejournal.com


(401) 277-7054


On Twitter: @BillKoch25