Raptors make a trade, giving them a home game in Ridgefield to celebrate Independence Day

The Ridgefield Raptors hope a lot of fans will celebrate America with a baseball game at the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex on Thursday. First pitch for the Fourth of July game is 3:05 p.m., giving fans a chance to watch a game and make it to their nighttime plans. Photo by Mike Schultz

The Raptors return home for a holiday game Thursday, plus are they are setting up water stations for fans who attend their three more games over the hot weekend

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

The Ridgefield Raptors made a trade this offseason that will pay off on Thursday.

The Raptors have a home game on the holiday.

When the West Coast League came out with its initial schedule, the Raptors were to play a three-game series in Corvallis this week against the Knights. It turned out, the Knights had a situation arise and asked the Raptors to trade one of those home games – the Fourth of July.

“We love the Fourth of July for a game,” said Gus Farah, the general manager of the Raptors. “It’s patriotic. It’s baseball. We don’t get that choice all the time, but when we get it, we take it.”

The Raptors lost at Corvallis on Wednesday and play in Corvallis again on Wednesday, but that third game of the series will be back in Clark County, at the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex.

Typically, Farah said, the league gives a team a home game on Independence Day every other year.

For the Raptors, it allows for a great partnership with the city. Ridgefield’s annual Fourth of July Celebration is famous in Southwest Washington. It includes parades, music, fun runs, and more. Farah said he likes the fact that some people come to Ridgefield for the festival, then catch at game at the RORC.

First pitch for the Fourth of July game is 3:05. That is not a normal start for a Raptors game, but Farah said the time makes sense. It allows for some space between the festival’s parade and the baseball game, and gives fans a chance to take in the baseball game and still have time to go to their nighttime plans for the holiday.

A reminder that there are no fireworks planned at the RORC.

In fact, the Raptors have had fireworks just once in their history, right after the first game for the franchise in June of 2019. Farah can laugh about it now.

The fireworks show went fine, but the next day was a bit of a hassle.

“There is so much wind out here, and so much turf at the facility,” Farah said. “It blew debris all over the turf. Some floated 300, 400 yards.”

The next day, team employees and others took hours to clean up The RORC and the turn at the nearby middle school.

“The city, the school district, and myself, we decided it was best we consider not doing fireworks again,” Farah said.

Still, it’s baseball and the Fourth of July. That’s special enough, even without the pyrotechnics.

The Fourth of July is also the start of a predicted heat wave, with temperatures expected to reach the high 90s and perhaps triple digits over the weekend.

The Raptors play home games Friday and Saturday starting at 6:35 p.m., and the Sunday home game has moved its start time to 6:35 p.m., as well. Normally, the Sunday games start at 1:05 p.m. Farah said the game time was moved due to the weather forecast.

Water stations will be set up for fans throughout the complex this weekend.