Weirton Little League Team Selling Malaysian Airplane For Tag Day

WEIRTON - Temperatures are on the rise, and that means that Little League season is just around the corner. However, times have been tough in the Ohio Valley, and funding a youth baseball team is not easy. Chris Gillette, manager of the Weirton Marlins, has come up with a plan that will raise more than enough money to make it through the season.

"I recently came into possession of a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777," said Gillette. "It's sitting out in the lot by Main St. We're selling it for $165 million."

Declining to say how exactly an average Weirton man got his hands on a wide-body jet airliner, Gillette instead discussed how he would use $165 million to fund a Little League baseball team.

"We're going to train in the mountains of Nepal this year," he said. "I think the high-altitude training will give us the edge this season."

Among other things, Gillette also said that he plans to hire a professional team masseuse, limousines and luxury hotels for away games.

"There are games as far away as Bergholz (Ohio) this year," he said. "Home-field advantage is a huge factor in Little League and I want my team loose."

Gillette said that if for some reason the airplane does not sell, he will find a use for it.

"We could always just use it to fly to the away games," he said. "Getting it here from Kuala Lumpur was simple enough."

After some helicopters began to circle overhead, Gillette looked around nervously before running into the forest. He was not available to comment further.