The Pioneer League Missoula Osprey start their season on the road in Helena on June 16, then inside Ogren Park at Allegiance Field in Missoula on June 19.

Vice President and General Manager of the Missoula Osprey, Jeff Griffin, said due to the nature of Pioneer League baseball, he has no idea who will be on the roster at this time.

"The Major League Baseball draft is in early June, so a lot of these guys who will be here this summer are off playing college baseball or in the high school ranks playing Legion baseball, so our roster is wide open at this point," Griffin said. "Once the draft is complete, they'll take a look and sign some guys and ship them out here about the 13th of June. We open on the road in Helena on June 16th, then we'll have our home opener on June 19th."

Griffin said the life of a minor league baseball player can be a grind, with lots of time spent on buses traveling through the Pioneer League circuit.

"We are a professional baseball team, and it's their job to play baseball," Griffin said. "The guys are at the ball field working out in the morning, and then they have team practice before the game. When they're on the road, it's a bus league, so we're on the road to the three Montana cities, and there are four teams in the south, like Idaho Falls, two teams in Utah, and then the long trip to Grand Junction, that's 800 miles on a bus."

Griffin said the experience at the ballpark is all about fun...win or lose.

"We approach every game as if we're going to lose 15 to nothing," Griffin said. "Then, if you leave the game and give me a high-five and say I had a great time...then I know I did my job. You might have caught a free t-shirt, got peanuts during the peanut inning, your hot dog was hot, your beer was cold, and we took good care of you while you were here. That's what it's all about."

Tickets are available by calling 543-3300, and individual tickets go on sale on Saturday, May 17. Tickets may be purchased at the MSO Hub in downtown, Missoula, or on the Missoula Osprey website.

Vice President and General Manager of the Missoula Osprey, Jeff Griffin

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