WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- In one of the final events before the opening ceremonies on Thursday morning, Holbrook Little League rode its Mid-Atlantic float in the Grand Slam parade through downtown on Wednesday night.
The parade, which is hosted by the city of Williamsport, is an annual tradition and allows fans to see all 16 teams in one place before the tournament begins.
Prior to the parade, the Holbrook team took part in a picnic with the other 15 teams. Little League officials, umpires, and parade grand marshall Eddie Murray - the longtime Baltimore Orioles first baseman - were all in attendance at the picnic, which was held at the Pennsylvania College of Technology.
Holbrook will begin play in the opening round at 3 p.m. on Thursday against Fairfield American Little League, the New England region champ, at historic Lamade Stadium. That comes after the opening ceremonies, which are slated for 11 a.m. Thursday.
The parade was a final act of pregame festivities for Holbrook in the days leading up to the start of the tournament. The Jackson-based team held its first practice on Tuesday morning and practiced earlier Wednesday in preparation for its first game.
With a win on Thursday afternoon, Holbrook would play at 11 a.m. on Sunday in the second round against the winner of the Great Lakes/Southwest game. With a loss to Fairfield American Thursday, Holbrook would be pushed to the loser's bracket and would play an elimination game at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Check out the gallery above for photos from the parade.
Brian Deakyne may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrianDeakyne.