OLD ORCHARD BEACH — A professional baseball team will hit the field at The Ballpark tonight as the Old Orchard Beach Surge open their second season in southern Maine.

“They are very, very excited. They are thrilled to be at this beautiful ballpark in this beautiful town. They are very thrilled and excited about it,” said Surge manager Scott “Skip” Nathanson.

The Surge are in a new league for 2016 as they joined the former North Country Baseball League member Watertown Bucks and new clubs in Sullivan, New York and Rindge, New Hampshire in the Empire League.

“We are very fortunate to be here for year number two. A lot of things (happened) in the offseason, new ownership group, we placed the road teams from last year, we had 235 total guys at spring training. It just really shows the credibility that we’ve built over the course of the year,” said Surge General Manager Alex Markakis.

Surge pitcher Jeremy Hall, who played in OOB last summer, has been impressed with the new league.

“From what I’ve seen it’s a lot more organized, which is phenomenal compared to last year,” said Hall, who believes the league is filled with talent. “We have some real good players. A lot of good players got cut, so you have the cream of the crop of those guys that were (at spring training.)”

The 2016 version of the Surge arrived in Old Orchard Beach on Wednesday after spending a week in Delaware for spring training – where players had to earn their spot on one of the four teams.

“Very strong teams,” said Nathanson of the four Empire League clubs. “We could have made eight teams out of the players that were there. We had (over) 230 players at spring training.”

Outfielder Jacob Fabry was excited to be selected by the Surge for a second straight season.

“It’s fantastic. When I found out I had the opportunity to come back I was very excited,” said Fabry.

Fabry, who is one of five players returning for another year in OOB, will also be taking on the role of assistant coach this season.

“I just kind of see it as more responsibility and trying to see how I can help these guys transition from the college level to the pro level,” said Fabry of his role as player/coach. “You know a lot of these guys are right out of college and (I’m) just kind of being a mentor.”

Outfielder Bryan White is also back for another summer with the Surge after joining the club midway through last season.

“It feels good. Last year, I had a taste of it and this year I have the opportunity to start a full season,” said White. “Right now, I’m just trying to build on what I did last year and take it to this season.”

White believes true baseball fans will like what they see when they visit The Ballpark.

“(It’s going to be an) atmosphere of pure baseball, pretty much that’s what we’re trying to go out and put on the field,” said White.

The Surge outfielder also feels young players will learn a lot from watching this year’s OOB team.

“We are trying to show kids how to play the game the right way … hustle, grind, that’s everything that we are about, so we are trying to display that on the field,” said White.

Hall is hoping fans from across southern Maine will give the Surge a chance – and he feels they will make it well worth the $5 price of a ticket.

“This is a great group of guys. We will put on a show for everybody, pitching, hitting, we have some speed this year. It will be fun … it’s going to be a blast this summer,” said Hall.

While fans of the Surge will recognize some players who played in OOB last summer, Markakis is also hoping to add some Maine natives to the roster.

“We are doing our best to get some Maine talent in here. It never goes unseen, the Maine talent, I played here, I know what it’s capable of, so it’s definitely well deserving,” said Markakis, who played college ball at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.

When the Surge take the field tonight, Nathanson will hand the ball to another returning player in 6-foot-4 right-hander Alan Carey.

“Our opening night starter is Alan Carey, he’s hitting 93 miles per hour now,” said Nathanson, who will lead the Surge through a 55-game regular season, which includes 38 games at The Ballpark.

Nathanson is thrilled to have Carey, Fabry, Hall, infielder Chris Ray and White back in OOB.

“They are all leadership kind of guys and that makes it a little bit easier. They can show the guys the town, show them the clubhouse and get everybody comfortable quickly,” said Nathanson.

Nathanson is confident his team will put a product on the field that will not only compete in the Empire League – but provide entertainment for the fans.

“We have tremendous team speed … we have a lot of great athletes. We have five outfielders and they all can fly and they all have very good arms. We have some pop in the bats as well,” said Nathanson.

The Surge will welcome in the Sullivan Explorers tonight for a 6:30 p.m. game at The Ballpark. Tickets are just $5 and can be purchased at the gate or online at oobsurgebaseball.com.

— Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at [email protected] or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @ JournalTsports.