The 2023 Connie Mack World Series parade brought an overflow crowd to downtown Farmington on a blazing-hot Friday morning for the 10 a.m. start time. Top baseball players from around the country received a warm welcome.

The annual event, hosted by Scott Michlin, Devin Neeley and Jenny Lee Ryan, brought out friendly Farmington baseball fans and community supporters.

Parade Grand Marshal Mark Williams led the parade with a wave to the crowd that lined street for nearly a mile as the temperature rose steadily from 86 degrees at the start.

Twelve teams from across the U.S. will compete in the 2023 Connie Mack World Series, including the local winner of the Connie Mack local qualifying tournament, the 505 Panthers.

Jerrod Noble, whose wife, Kimberly, sang the national anthem, said “It's one of the big events, an awesome event where people come together.”

Kimberly, who has sung at previous Connie Mack events, performed powerfully and flawlessly for an appreciative crowd.

To lead the parade, the crew from Fly High gymnastics performed a few acrobatic tricks in front of the judges’ stand. A young man did a flip over their banner, then performed a back flip.

The Beat House dance team, wearing denim cutoffs and white tank tops, performed a well-choreographed routine with silver pompoms.

“I love it, I think it’s so wonderful to see our community come together … and be so supportive and excited,” said Darlene Heimer, adding, “I love baseball and my daughter is sponsoring some of the players.”

Christie Clugston, Heimer’s daughter, is a first-time host family for Connie Mack players. “We’ve said we want to do every year, and we just decided this was the year that we wanted to do it,” she said.

She said they have a family member who’s on the Dallas Tigers and a nephew who plays baseball for Piedra Vista High School.

Clugston said the three players they are hosting are really “mannerly and polite, and so far it’s been a blast.”

“We come out to Connie Mack and support the 505 Panthers. We love baseball. Kids grew up in this area, and baseball is a big thing here,” Clugston said.

“I think it's amazing that our town gets to be part of something that's so big,” Clugston said.

Mayor Nate Duckett, who’s campaigning for a second term as Farmington mayor, had his team out cheering for the local team, the 505 Panthers. They called out their “Go Panthers” cheer and tossed plenty of candy to the crowd.

Several Farmington High School cheerleaders performed gymnastics skills and kicked in to their performance for the judges.

Samantha Taft, who made a great catch of a small black rubber baseball that was tossed from one of the parade entrants, said she loved the parade and plans to attend some games. She said it made it special to have family in the parade.

Tammi Thornton said her daughter Kya, an eighth grader, was on the Farmington High School cheer team for the first time. Thornton said it was “good to see the whole city come out and support the event.”

Everett Chandler, an eighth grader at Heights Middle School, plays first base and pitches for Next Level. Chandler said he’s played baseball since starting with T-ball. He plans to try out for the eighth grade team and wants to play in high school.

He said the parade was “cool” and was there to support his sister, who was in the Kelly Greens dance team from Farmington High School.

Grant Pennington said this was his family’s third year hosting Connie Mack players. They hosted the Florida Legends the past two years and are hosting two players from the Mississauga Tigers from Ontario, Canada, this year.

Pennington said the parade was “good as always and always a good time. The kids love it.”

Pennington’s wife, Jessie, agreed.

“It's awesome. I love the relationships that the boys make with my own kids,” she said. “I do this for my own kids, who are ages 14, 13, 10 and 8. She said her three boys all play baseball.

“They really look up to these kids and they're good examples, and I would say they definitely leave a lasting impression on my kids,” Jessie said.

She conceded that she is very busy, saying “It takes a village.” She added that they have stayed in touch with players they’ve hosted previously, and some have returned to visit.

SoCal Renegades coach Si Pettrow spoke with the Tri-City record about what makes the Connie Mack World Series different from other events.

“It really is the way the town treats these kids. We’ve traveled to a lot of tournaments, and by far, this is the one where you’re really treated like a part of the family. The kids have an instant family from the moment they arrive in Farmington, and those relationships last a lifetime.”

Albuquerque Baseball Academy coach Tim Campos said he was glad to be representing New Mexico in the series.

“It really is an ideal situation where we have the best players from across the state on this team. I’m really happy with the talent that’s grown up and played with and against each other in high school and at the amateur level and have a chance to play in this event.”

Gene Trujillo will be playing first base for Albuquerque Baseball Academy.

“I've grown up and competed with these guys over the years, and there’s nothing better than being able to come together one more time for a chance to represent ourselves and the state,” Trujillo said. “We've got a lot of talent on this roster from all around the state, and we've really found a good chemistry on the field.”

Other World Series teams include Albuquerque Baseball Academy; Colton Nighhawks from Irvine, California; D-BAT United of Dallas; Dallas Tigers; Dulin’s Dodgers of Melissa, Texas; Midland Redskins of Midland, Ohio; Mississauga Tigers of Ontario, Canada; NOLA Cardinals from New Orleans; Oklahoma Express of Claremore; Southern California Renegades; and the Tulsa Sandlot of Oklahoma.