Sluggers Launch from Aircraft Carrier

The 53rd annual South Atlantic League All-Star Game got underway this morning in a pretty unusual location: The 800-foot-long flight deck of the USS Yorktown.

In an inflatable batting cage tucked between retired military aircraft, five home run hitters from the league's Southern and Northern division each got 10 chances to fire off into Charleston Harbor. Jet skis patrolled the water and collected the balls.

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RiverDogs officials, organizers of the all-star game, said they wanted a location for the first half of the annual home run derby that honored Charleston's military heritage.

"We had been doing military-themed promotions … and we asked 'what's one of the biggest military attractions in Charleston?,'" said Dave Echols, the Charleston RiverDogs general manager.

The top four sluggers — Hagerstown third baseman Matt Skole, Lexington third baseman Matt Duffy, Asheville first baseman Harold Riggins and Savannah center fielder Travis Taijeron — now advance to Tuesday's championship round.

See the All-Star Game roster.

Outfielder Mark Haddow and third baseman Rangel Ravelo from Kannapolis, second baseman Alen Hanson and right fielder Gregory Polanco from West Virginia, third baseman Zachary Johnson from Lexington and catcher Will Swanner from Asheville participated in the event but were eliminated.

The second round of the derby begins at 4 p.m. Tuesday at Joseph P. Riley Park in Charleston. Opening pitch for the All-Star Game will be thrown at 5:15 p.m., according to organizers.

The USS Yorktown, the centerpiece museum ship for Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum, made history when it was constructed for WWII combat in the Pacific. It later went on to serve in Vietnam before being retired to Mount Pleasant in the late 1970s.

But lately the ship has been the scene of all sorts of other historic moments. along the ship's flight deck.

Back in March, reigning PGA champ and struck a target in Charleston Harbor.