June 22, 2012 7:59 pm •
Longtime Rapid City Post 22 head coach Dave Ploof will be honored Thursday at the 51st annual Roll Call Congressional Baseball Game in Washington at Nationals Park.
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), a Rapid City native who played on two of Ploof’s 33 state championship teams, will honor his former coach by wearing the Post 22 uniform. Ploof and his wife, Patty, will be Brady’s guests at the congressional game and at a dinner with the South Dakota legislative delegation.
Ploof’s record-setting career in American Legion baseball includes 2,483 wins, eight World Series appearances and the 1993 national championship. Brady, who went on to play baseball at the University of South Dakota, starts at second base in the seven-inning game and is a two-time MVP for the Republican team. He is serving his eighth term in Congress.
“It’s really going to be exciting,” Ploof said Friday. “Kevin was a real fierce competitor. He wrestled for me at (Rapid City) Central and did an outstanding job, and he played on a couple of varsity teams at Post 22. He competed tough, and he won. And he’s a winner in life.”
Ploof said he and Patty will spend the entire week in Washington, with the visit to the nation’s capital a first for them both.
“I’m proud to have played for coach Ploof. He made a big impact on my life, on the lives of countless ballplayers and on American Legion baseball in America,” Brady said in a statement. “It’s an honor to shine a spotlight on his achievements as well as the unprecedented tradition of excellence of the Rapid City Post 22 program. Plus, I’m thrilled to be a Hardhat for one more game.”