In case you missed it, the 2024 PA State Games are headed to Reading, PA after 3+ successful years in Dubois, where it served as a platform to hundreds of eventual commits. Though sad to close one chapter, the overall feeling around the staff has been filled with optimism. President Dan Cevette (NY/PA) sat down and discussed some of the reasoning for the change and what to expect in the coming months.

"There's so much love for Dubois, being a small blue-collar town; the people and memories will last forever," Cevette said. "When you look at the progression of the PA State Games, I'm a big believer that it should move around the state (in time). We found out last year, 68% of the combination of players and colleges in attendance hailed from the eastern part of the state, and thought about the best way to cater to the masses."

Behind a "lengthy process" as he describes it, everything pointed to making the switch to the Big Show Sports Complex. "We've had a positive ongoing relationship with the Big Show, starting with the 2022 Jr. PA State Games. They've continued to enhance their facilities with an easy parking setup, two turf-fields back-to-back, and a concession stand on-site. Everything is in one spot, which helps recruiting. We weren't going to leave (Dubois) unless something checked all of the boxes."

In 2021, the backdrop of Showers Field in Dubois, PA is shown during batting practice. 2024's version will feature a new home for the event.

Getting into more detail, the focus shifted to the potential influx of college coaches. "It should give access to multiple important cities and states within two hours, such as Philadelphia, Baltimore, & New Jersey," he exclaimed. "Considering all of the major highways and airports around the area, this will be a vast improvement on travel inbound/outbound for schools."

Cevette's biggest message to those in Western PA: "We don't want them to feel left out, and they should know that this will be the marquee event of the summer with record setting attendance from coaches." He mentioned, "It's a straight shot across the interstate and only 3 and 1/2 hours east from Pittsburgh."

PBR's VP of Scouting, Shooter Hunt plans to make an appearance, adding a strong national presence to the team. The former first-rounder joined us for a quick chat and echoed Cevette's sentiment, "This shift in location allows even more coaches to limit their travel while connecting a path from the PA State Games to travel ball tournaments on the weekend."

Maybe the most important piece remains the timing of the move, Hunt noted. "After speaking with a full collection of recruiting coordinators up and down the I-95 corridor, it became obvious that this was the best opportunity for players to be seen by the largest number of coaches."

The 2024 PA State Games are scheduled for June 10-13 with two sessions over four total days.

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