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The hundreds of people lining Main Street to greet players showed Farmington's fervent support for baseball, Longshots player Joe Turek said.
Cheering parade goers made Will Jolin, of Ohio's Midland Redskins, feel welcome.
"Everybody seems really enthusiastic about the tournament," Jolin said.
Those baseball players and others, who arrived in Farmington on Thursday, will battle in the Connie Mack World Series during the next week for the right to play in the national championship at Ricketts Park next Friday.
Farmington baseball fans, young and old, braved the scorching heat to watch the uniform-wearing ball players waving and smiling as they rode on decorated semitrailers. Shiny red, yellow and striped sports cars, Shriners doing high-speed figure-eights in small "Tin Lizzies" and cheerleaders dancing in the street also were part of the action in downtown Farmington.
Some parade goers have deep roots in
baseball. Sharon Farley Wagner traveled
from Florida to see her nephew, pitcher
and third-baseman Jeremy Farley, play for the Farmington Cardinals.
Wagner never missed a Connie Mack parade in the 21 years she lived in Farmington and her brother even played in Connie Mack.
"We've always been a baseball family — always," Wagner said.
Tiffany Fuerte, a nanny, brought
The children "get to see all the players excited and hooting and hollering," she said. "It's a new experience for them."
Many of the players from the Farmington Cardinals will go to college this fall, so this could be the last time Fuerte will get to see them play.
Allan Kennedy brought his young son, Connor, to see the parade. When he was in high school, Kennedy played in the World Series for the Farmington Roadrunners.
"I played baseball here my whole life," he said. "I just like seeing the teams come in."
Connor said he plays baseball, too, and playing in the World Series one day would be "fun." But getting candy is his favorite part of the parade, he said.
As kids collected lollipops from the streets, players already had their sights on preparing for the upcoming games. Some practiced before the parade, others were scheduled to practice afterward.
Some players, like Jolin, planned to stay out of the sun altogether.
"We'll go back to host families, relax and get ourselves ready for the game," Jolin said.
See today's Sports section for details on Friday's opening-round games.
Steve Lynn: slynn@daily-times.com
Connie Mack World Series parade contest winners
Three volunteers judged 15 entries in four contest categories. Floats of baseball teams were not judged.
Commercial walking group:
Danz Force Gym Force
Non-profit walking group:
Piedra Vista Panteraz Dance Team
Non-profit motorized vehicle:
Shrine Club's Tin Lizzies
Non-profit float:
San Juan County Republican Party
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