in 1988, orleans reached the championship series again, powered by ccbl hall of fame slugger frank thomas, who was said to have hit the longest ball ever out of eldredge park, and hit three home runs in one game at wareham. the team lost in the finals to wareham, but thomas went on to a stellar career with the chicago white sox and was inducted into the national baseball hall of fame in 2014. eldredge park hosted the ccbl all-star game in three consecutive seasons from 1988 to 1990. the 1988 event featured the league's inaugural all-star home run derby, won by the cards' mighty frank thomas. the host team claimed the derby crown each of the three years, with mike thomas matching thomas' feat in 1989, and mike gropusso doing the same in 1990.