Grand Opening of Our New Indoor Facility – The Hangar
Bagel Bombers host grand opening for baseball facility
Largest travel baseball program in Delaware unveils new training site
At the grand opening, Bagel Bombers players and parents test out the new hitting lanes. MEGAN SMITH PHOTOS
Megan Smith
July 2, 2024
The Bagel Bombers program is set to have its first softball team next year. The team will compete in the 12U age division.
Food trucks from Vanderwende’s and DaNizza Pizza are parked outside the facility for Bagel Bombers families and coaches.
The Bagel Bombers facility is located off the Lewes-Georgetown Highway just west of Besche Furniture.
The Bagel Bombers Baseball Association recently hosted a grand opening to unveil its first private facility since its founding in 2007. The new facility located along Route 9 features four hitting lanes and 3,800 square feet of turf.
Over the past 17 years, Delaware’s oldest and largest travel ball program has rented out private facilities locally for practices and off-season training.
“Moving forward, we’ll have a place for all of our teams to come and practice, and a home base for all of our kids,” said Bagel Bombers President Jerry Windish.
Players from the Bagel Bombers played cornhole and hit in the batting cages at the grand opening. Food trucks from Vanderwende Farm Creamery and DaNizza Wood Fired Pizza were parked outside the facility. Dewey Beer Co. provided beverages for adults.
This past year, the Bagel Bombers had 200 players across 17 teams, beginning with 8U and spanning up to a college team that plays throughout the summer. The organization will introduce its first softball team at the 12U level next year.
The Bagel Bombers program has served as a feeder for most athletes playing for high school teams through Sussex and Kent counties. Many Bagel Bombers products are also now playing collegiately. Several of the program’s alumni come back to help out with the next generation of Bagel Bombers.
Three former Bagel Bombers players are now competing at the professional level: Zack Gelof of the Oakland Athletics in the MLB; Jake Gelof of the Great Lakes Loons, a High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers; and Mason Fluharty of the Buffalo Bisons, a Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Bagel Bombers Baseball Association is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) that does not pay any of its coaches. The organization aims to make playing baseball as affordable and accessible as possible for the families involved.
“This is volunteerism at its best,” Windish said. “We try to make the travel baseball experience affordable for all of our kids and families. I think that gives us our unique niche in the marketplace because we’re half the money of everyone else. We do it because we love it, not because we’re trying to make money off of it.”
The Bagel Bombers began with Adam Gelof and former Surf Bagel owner David Vitella. Several other parents later joined in on the idea. SoDel Concepts, the new owner of Surf Bagel, contributed funds toward much of the hardware in the new facility.
The facility’s sponsors are SoDel; Sweet Frog; the Fazio Family; King Crop Insurance; Clean Delaware; Country Lawn Care; The Gelof Brothers Foundation; Ron Krajewski State Farm; Lank, Johnson & Tull, CPAs; and Above and Beyond Heating and Air.
The Bagel Bombers’ facility is located at 20331 Providence Park Lane in Georgetown. The organization will hold tryouts at the Georgetown Little League from 4 to 8 p.m., Sunday, July 14, and from 6 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, July 17. Tryouts will also take place at the Milford Little League from 4 to 8 p.m., Sunday, July 21, and from 6 to 8 p.m., Thursday, July 25.