What is the premise of the club?

We are a 90+ year old, non-profit organization that allows baseball fans to interact with their heroes.  We have off-season meetings and bring in former, and sometimes current, Major League Baseball players to give attendees a chance to meet them.  This hot stove event helps keep our baseball minds active throughout the cold off-season.

What does a typical meeting consist of?

Each meeting begins at 6pm (unless otherwise noted) and consists of a buffet dinner, a meet and greet, autographs, and photos.  Dinner is served at 6pm. We will then hear from the guest of the night shortly before 7pm. Some guests prefer to say a few brief words and then answer questions. Other guests go right into Q&A.  But the discussion (whether prepared by the guest or Q&A style) usually lasts about an hour.  At about 8pm, the Q&A ends and we transition into our meet and greet. The night concludes around 9pm.  

Menu may vary, but more often than not, there is a selection of pasta and sauce, roast beef, potatoes, green beans, sausage and peppers, salad, bread, and butter.  Cake or ice cream is provided for desert.  The VFW has a cash bar open for beer and soft drinks.

Each attendee is allowed 2 autographs.  Additional autographs are not available for purchase.  Attendees can bring in any item to be signed (at the guests discretion).  The Club usually will be selling 8x10 photos of the guest for $5 apiece for the guest to autograph.

Our meetings are open to members and non-members. To be a member, there is a one time charge of $45, and then each meeting will cost $35. To attend a meeting as a non-member, each meeting is $50. Young fans under the age of 18 can attend for $15, regardless of member status.

Member advantages include access to Red Sox tickets (the club owns a weekend season ticket package). When larger crowds are expected, meeting registration opens to members first, while opening to the public only if space remains.  This was the case at our Andre Dawson and Steve Garvey meetings in recent years.  Other advantages may vary based on the year and the availability (i.e. in 2018 and 2022, members were given the opportunity to get their picture taken with a Boston Red Sox World Series trophy).

Meetings are currently being held at the VFW Hall, 41 Veterans Drive, New Britain, CT.  But this may vary based on availability.

Memberships last officially from July 1 of one year through June 30 of the following year (i.e. July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023).  However, announcements for membership dues aren't usually announced until the first meeting of the year, which is usually around September or October of each year.