Pearl Jam items being auctioned to benefit Miracle League of the South Hills

The Miracle League of the South Hills is gearing up for its annual Miracle Bash on Feb. 21, and grunge rock band Pearl Jam is not only donating autographed items for the auction, but they also are tweeting about the event — giving it quite the publicity boost.

But how? And why?

Well, Miracle League’s founder Sean Casey and Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder are friends.

Casey, an Upper St. Clair native and former Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman, and Vedder bonded long ago over Casey’s love for Pearl Jam and Vedder’s love for baseball, according to Miracle League of the South Hills Executive Director Tim Gebhart. “Over the past few years, Eddie has jumped on board to support the Miracle League of the South Hills by donating autographed items from himself and Pearl Jam — raising thousands of dollars for our programs,” Gebhart said.

The Miracle League has launched a capital campaign to raise funds to replace the surface of the field, which was specifically designed for children and adults with special needs to be able to play baseball. Gebhart said that on top of the capital campaign, the organization is also creating a new project called “The Next Inning,” which will be a building that houses the announcers’ booth and concession stand behind home plate. Miracle League will hire its athletes to work in the concession stand, giving them training in customer service, custodial work, accounting and more.

“It will also provide much-needed shade for our families, extending the covering from the building to each dugout over where the parents sit to watch their All-Stars play ball — creating our mini Miracle Stadium,” Gebhart said. “But the best part about this building, we are going to use it for a job training center for our athletes providing most of them with their first paid job.”

While the Feb. 21 event at the Library Fire Hall in South Park is sold out, anyone can bid on the online silent auction until 10 p.m. Feb. 21. In addition to the concert posters and two autographed guitars that Vedder has donated, there are many Pittsburgh-related items: art, tickets, sports memorabilia and more.

Additionally, Gebhart said, “For those that don’t want ‘stuff,’ you can donate to sponsor a kid’s registration fees, donate to the project, and other needs of the league right there on the app or auction site.”

To bid on auction items, download the Handbid app and search “Miracle League,” or visit events.handbid.com/auctions/2020-miracle-bash/items.