{"id":92291,"date":"2025-12-22T10:50:04","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T10:50:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/92291\/"},"modified":"2025-12-22T10:50:04","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T10:50:04","slug":"our-field-of-dreams-orlando-special-needs-baseball-league-replaces-unsafe-field-thanks-to-community-donations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/92291\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Our field of dreams:\u2019 Orlando special needs baseball league replaces unsafe field thanks to community donations"},"content":{"rendered":"

ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 A special needs baseball league in Orlando is preparing for a new season after the community raised more than $100,000<\/a> to replace its aging field and keep the program alive. <\/p>\n

Central Florida Miracle League has played at Trotter\u2019s Park for about 20 years. Earlier this year, the field had deteriorated<\/a> so badly it had become unplayable, putting the future of the league at risk. <\/p>\n

League president Mike Houlihan said the process to raise enough money took an emotional toll on him and everyone involved. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis field just brings tears to my eyes,\u201d Houlihan said. \u201cI know where we were. I know what it took to get here.\u201d <\/p>\n

[SEE PREVIOUS COVERAGE BELOW]<\/p>\n

The former field was nearly unplayable, had a significant drainage problem, and became a safety hazard due to the chunks of turf that were missing on the playing surface. Houlihan said it was a heartbreaking situation for the athletes. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is like a field of dreams,\u201d he said while looking out at the new field. \u201cIt actually is our field of dreams.\u201d <\/p>\n

The league faced a choice: raise enough money to replace the field or shut down operations at Trotter\u2019s Park. They spent years asking for donations but reached a plateau after reaching about 70% of the estimated cost. <\/p>\n

Awareness grew after News 6 reported on the league\u2019s fundraising challenges. Donations soon followed, ranging from small contributions to major gifts. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe had donations from $5 to $40,000,\u201d Houlihan said. \u201cThis is the only special needs field in this area, and they didn\u2019t even know we existed. They do now.\u201d <\/p>\n

About eight months after the fundraising push began, the $273,000 is ready ahead of the upcoming spring schedule. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou got results,\u201d Houlihan said. \u201cI mean, look at it. I feel like I should\u2019ve brought my glove.\u201d<\/p>\n

[SEE PREVIOUS COVERAGE BELOW]<\/p>\n

While the field is complete, the league\u2019s focus is shifting to building accessible bathrooms. The nearest restrooms are located inside the neighboring Orlando Babe Ruth complex, creating challenges for players. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really difficult for the wheelchairs to make it over there,\u201d Houlihan said. \u201cAlso, if the Babe Ruth league isn\u2019t playing, those are locked. So, we have one port-a-john.\u201d <\/p>\n

For now, Houlihan is enjoying the league\u2019s new diamond, and reflecting on the players past and present, including those who never got to see the upgrade completed. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think about the players who played on the old field, but I also think about the players who unfortunately aren\u2019t with us anymore who didn\u2019t get to see this,\u201d he said with tears in his eyes. \u201cThat\u2019s what was driving us. That\u2019s what was driving all of our board members. I wish they could\u2019ve seen it.\u201d <\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 A special needs baseball league in Orlando is preparing for a new season after the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":92292,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[3816,49485,28,30314,1335,139,141,140,110],"class_list":{"0":"post-92291","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-orlando","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-central-florida-miracle-league","10":"tag-florida","11":"tag-getting-results","12":"tag-orange-county","13":"tag-orlando","14":"tag-orlando-headlines","15":"tag-orlando-news","16":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92291"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92291\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/92292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}