The trip to the small village was one of several trips planed by New York Mets fan Capt. Gary A. Maynard, USN Commanding Officer.

``The purpose of this visit is to boost morale of our hard-working sailors and to give them an appreciation of another facet of American history,’’ said Scott Kalbach, public affairs specialist of Navel Weapons Station Earle.

Kalbach said the captain feels he should be exposing his sailors to the unique cultural icons of the Northeast of the country and tries to offer his sailors at least one ``eye-opening’’ trip a month.

``As baseball is the national pastime, he (the captain) considers the Hall of Fame to be a singular experience for not just fans of the game, but for all Americans,’’ said Kalbach.

Capt. Maynard said he has been to the Hall of Fame several times, the most recent visit being five or six weeks ago, and he wanted the sailors to be able to have the opportunity to see it as well.

``So far I think the sailors are enjoying the trips,’’ said Capt. Maynard.

According to Kalbach, only the most outstanding sailors can volunteer for the trips. The skipper said his senior list advisor chooses the group of people who get to go on each trip.

The trip took a little longer than expected, but the sailors were fashionably late, showing up in their Navy outfits late Thursday morning. After a five and a half hour ride in the rain and fog, the sailors were taken to the Bullpen Theater to watch a movie. The service-members were well-received by the general public and were given a round of applause.

Once the movie was finished, the general public was asked to leave the theater and Hall of Fame Senior Vice President Bill Haase came in to give the sailors a brief welcoming.

Haase said he did not want to take up too much of the service-members’ time because they arrived late and there was much to see.

Haase first thanked the sailors for coming and for doing what they do day in and day out in order to keep the country safe. He then gave a short overview of the Hall of Fame and baseball itself.

According to Hasse, it is pretty tough to get into the Hall of Fame. He said those who make it are ``really, really special.’’

``Only about 1 percent of all players get selected,’’ he explained. ``That is one out of every 100 players.’’

Hasse concluded the welcoming by telling the service-members they are an example of a real team.

``You guys are the meat,’’ said Hasse. ``You guys are in the trenches.’’

Capt. Maynard then took center stage by thanking Hasse for the hospitality of Hall of Fame employees. He gave Hasse a token, a challenge coin, to show his appreciation.

``I will forever cherish this,’’ said Hasse.

The sailors then spread in separate directions to enjoy their time in Cooperstown however they wanted.

While watching a moving film, sailors Robby Ruggles, Kevin Yankosky, and Peter Kolias said the trip was definitely a treat.

``I am not even really a baseball fan and I am definitely impressed,’’ said Seaman Yankosky. He added the rural area of Cooperstown reminded him of home. He said he is from Pittsburgh where there is a lot of farmland.

Kolias, Petty Officer 3rd Class, said he was particularly excited to be able to see the World Series rings showcased at the Hall of Fame.

The three sailors said they were going to spend some time at the museum and then walk around the village and grab some lunch. They said they had until about 4 p.m. to explore whatever they wanted and then they would head back home.

Chief Petty Officer Lawrence Pabalan said he was looking forward to the trip and said most of the sailors that came to the Hall of Fame love baseball. He said he was specifically enthusiastic about getting to see the gallery with all the plaques.

``It (the trip) gives us time off, a time to relax,’’ said Chief Pabalan.

The village was not at all what Chief Pabalan was expecting. He said he saw more mountains than what he is used to and thought the museum would be closer to a major city. Chief Pabalan also said the trip was much farther than what he had anticipated.

``It is so different in person than what you see on television,’’ said Chief Pabalan.

Naval Weapons Station Earle’s history began in 1943, when a pressing need developed for an ammunition depot in the greater New York area to support the war effort. A board was established to locate a suitable site, and choose Earl’s location in New Jersey because it offered many advantages such as a safe and operationally advantageous port to take on ammunition, and access to commercial rail facilities with lines coming from the west, where the majority of ammunition shipments originated. The rural location of the site also allowed for minimal dislocation of the local population.