The Williamsport Crosscutters have announced the return of their Hot Stove Banquet on Tuesday, January 24th in the Grand Ballroom of the Genetti Hotel in Williamsport. The event is presented in part by Muncy Bank & Trust, Professional Petroleum, iHeart Radio Williamsport, and the Williamsport Sun-Gazette.
Guests at this year’s banquet include former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle and ESPN Baseball Analyst Tim Kurkjian. A portion of the proceeds from the event benefit the programs of Sojourner Truth Ministries.
Hurdle played 515 games in MLB with the Royals, Mets, Reds and Cardinals. He began his managerial career in 1988 in the N.Y. Mets farm system and managed the Williamsport Bills in 1991. Hurdle managed over 2,600 games in the major leagues with the Colorado Rockies (2002-2009) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (2011-2019), winning the National League Manager of the Year Award in 2013.
Kurkjian has covered baseball since 1978 and has been a baseball writer, reporter, analyst and host at ESPN since 1998. He has been a regular on Baseball Tonight and _SportsCente_r. No stranger to Williamsport, Kurkjian has also been part of ESPN’s coverage of the MLB Little League Classic since its inception in 2017 as well as the Little League World Series. He was the recipient of the 2022 Career Excellence Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America presented each year at the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies in Cooperstown, N.Y.
The evening will consist of a full-course dinner, live and silent auctions of sports memorabilia along with interviews and question and answer segments with the special guests. Other highlights of the event include the inductions of the latest members to the Bowman Field Hall of Fame and the Lycoming County Sports Walk. Those inductees are expected to be announced in the weeks leading up to the event. The ballroom doors open at 5:30 PM with the dinner and entertainment portion of the event kicking off at 6:30 PM.
Tickets are $65 per person and can be purchased by calling the Cutters offices at (570) 326-3389. This event is a sell-out each year, so fans are encouraged to purchase tickets early. Business sponsorships for the event are also available.
The Williamsport Crosscutters are members of Major League Baseball’s MLB Draft League, featuring top draft-eligible prospects from across the country. The Cutters finished the 2022 season with a record of 44-31, earning a berth in the first-ever MLB Championship Game against the West Virginia Black Bears. The 2023 season will feature 40 home games between June 1 and September 2. MVP Club season tickets, mini-plans and Bonus Books are available at crosscutters.com.
