Housing woes continue to worry Shelter Island Bucks management

Ask Islanders what it means to have a Hamptons Collegiate Baseball Team at Fiske Field, and the response is overwhelmingly positive. But the annual struggle to secure enough housing for the players makes General Manager Brian Cass wonder if Shelter Island can sustain the Bucks for many more years.

Former hosts speak in glowing terms about the experience of having the players stay with them, with many returning to host year after year. But about five families who hosted last year have plans that prohibit their being able to house players this summer.

Discipline is strict, with players required to follow house rules and told from the moment they arrive on the Island if they misbehave, they will be sent home immediately, with no exceptions for players who may be stars on the field but fail to respect rules set by their host families. It hasn’t happened often, but the few times when a problem arose, team managers kept to their promise and the players left the Island.

The incentive to behave is not just to have a fun summer on the Island but to have the opportunity to be scouted by major league organizations that can lead to a career playing pro ball, Mr. Cass said.

He’s not threatening to walk away, despite the frustrations and hard work he and assistant managers Frank Vecchio and David Austin put in trying to get sufficient housing lined up so they can turn their attention to all the other aspects of what it takes to field a team each summer.

There are 26 players and two coaches on this season’s roster. A few have family members in the area providing housing. But there’s still a need for 12 beds for June and 12 for July, with few prospective hosts coming forward to fill the housing void.

In past seasons there was an effort to use space at The Pridwin. But once the hotel staff arrived for the summer, it didn’t work, he said. Last summer, Mr. Cass fell four beds short and the team had to spend $6,000 to house those players in a rental unit for six weeks. “That’s a lot of money,” Mr. Cass said.

Host families get a small stipend and many have told Mr. Cass they don’t want the stipend. But he’s urged them to take it to offset incidentals they spend on their guests. All the team asks of hosts is that they provide beds, facilities to wash their uniforms and space in refrigerators for their food. It’s not required, but many host families have provided meals for the players.

Transportation also isn’t required with team members who arrive with cars providing rides to games, practices and various events.

On the Island, there’s always competition for staff housing for summer workers, a number of whom have been in the country on work visas. Mr. Cass said some local business operators have told him they expect the same foreign workers who have been staff members in past summers to be back this summer. Whether that will be the reality, given the uncertainty of how the federal government’s immigration policies play out, remains to be seen.

“We’re going to figure something out,” Mr. Cass said.

One back-burnered idea is an off-Island offer for housing he doesn’t think is ideal. But as the days tick away, he said he might have to explore the possibility. He notes the effort to put everything, including housing, in place is a year-round effort. “I hate to see it go away,” he said about having to abandon the Island having a collegiate baseball team. At the same time, it could be the factor that ends the team’s tenure.

If you’ve ever contemplated the possibility of housing a Buck or two, Mr. Cass hopes you will decide to give it a try. You can reach him at 631-445-0084 or by email at [email protected]; or one of his assistants: Frank Vecchio at 516-317-8687 or email [email protected]t; or David Austin at 415-613-1991 or email [email protected].