Baseball Fans Trump Marcellus Shale Prospectors

Williamsport hotels boot gas workers to make room for baseball fans

Philly.com

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – It was a faceoff between two great American traditions: prospecting and baseball.

And here at the birthplace of Little League, there was no question about which would prevail – America’s pastime, of course.

At issue was this city’s limited supply of hotel rooms during the Little League World Series, which starts Friday.

The city’s 1,100 hotel rooms have been occupied largely by out-of-state natural-gas workers since drilling in the lucrative Marcellus Shale reserve took off last year.

But many of the heavy-duty pickups and the utility trucks with the Texas and Louisiana license plates are now heading down the road – some as far away as 80 miles – on a two-week hiatus.

They are making room for minivans carrying fans and families of Little Leaguers swarming into the city for the 10-day international tournament.

Read entire article here.