MOSES LAKE — After playing countless baseball games for the better part of four months, the start of 2009 16-18 Babe Ruth World Series is less than 24 hours away as teams will gather tomorrow morning at Larson Playfield for the tournament’s opening ceremonies.

Some of the best teams from throughout the United States played through state and regional tournaments to qualify for the biggest baseball tournament of the year — the 2009 16-18 Babe Ruth World Series.

Teams began arriving at 3 p.m. Thursday afternoon when the Middle Atlantic Regional Champion team from Long Island, N.Y., and the New England Regional Champion from Cape Cod, Mass., arrived at the 2009 Babe Ruth World Series headquarters at the Holiday Inn Express in Moses Lake.

As teams arrived at the Holiday Inn Express, tournament participants sat through a Babe Ruth World Series orientation meeting presented by Babe Ruth League board member Bob Dickson and Alabama Baseball Commissioner Eugene Reynolds.

With the arrival of the Washington State Champion Puget Sound Roxx and the Midwest Plains Regional Champions from Minnetonka, Minn., Thursday evening, five of the world series teams were in Moses Lake and accounted for, tournament co-Director Randy Boruff said.

“It has gone very smooth,” he said. “We have had four teams arrive.”

Babe Ruth teams continued to arrive into the early hours Friday morning and Boruff said he and the tournament staff are prepared to get the event underway.

“I think we are ready to play ball,” he said.