MLB Hall of Famer Dave Winfield was present for the game at Growden Memorial Park following the unveiling of his first statue — commemorating his famed ‘Midnight Sun Moonshot’ home run hit to the Fairbanks Curling Club — a few hours earlier. Among others, Winfield was introduced before the game. He then threw the first pitch following a flyover.

Back in Fairbanks for the first time since his playing days in 1972, Winfield reflected on the 49th state’s uniqueness, something that has stuck with him a through half-century and several different teams during a two-decade MLB career.

“The state itself is majestic, with mountains, rivers, glaciers, wild animals in the water and in the forest,” Winfield said at a press conference following his statue unveiling. “And it’s just different. It’s different.”

Winfield brought his family along to bear witness to another inherently Alaskan phenomenon: the midnight sun and the game played under its near-24-hour glow.

“That’s something for a small town, certainly at that time, to have a tradition that goes back 119 years,” Winfield said. “There isn’t even a ballpark in the United States that has been in existence for that long…So you have quite a tradition here, and I’m glad that I’m part of it.”

The ‘Panners put on a summer solstice showcase for Winfield and the thousands in attendance, piling up 18 hits to their opponents’ eight.

The game started well for the hosts, as Jacob Badawi chased down a ball from centerfield for the second of three flyouts during an opening inning in which the ‘Panners relented just one hit.

The Goldpanners deployed 6-foot-7 ace Treyson Peters to start the game. After he pitched a scoreless first inning, two stolen bases moved a pair of Studs into scoring position. A third walked batter loaded the bases and, despite a couple of outs first, Seattle scored a run.

Following an extended injury intermission for the Studs, the Goldpanners tied the game up when Griffin Harrison singled, stole second base and was driven home by Rocco Caballero.

The Studs scored a single run again in the third inning. With two outs in the bottom of the third, Mikey Bell cleared the left fielder and the fence for a two-run home run, giving the Goldpanners their first lead of the game at 3-2.

Badawi recorded an RBI in the fourth inning, Dane Grant took over on the mound to open the fifth inning and quickly recorded three outs, and Matt Chavez then drove in Bell for another run to extend the home team’s lead.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Bubba Rocha knocked a solo home run over the fence in the same area that Bell had. An RBI from Chavez, scoring Matt Leiterman, made it an 8-2 game.

Jesse Espinoza drove in two more runs with a single to left field before inning’s end. The seventh frame went by quickly for both teams. Shaw Lee took over on the bump for the ‘Panners in the penultimate inning and relented solo home runs to his first two batters. After that, neither team scored over the remainder of the final two innings as Noah Smith closed the game for Alaska.

Bell and Chavez led the ‘Panners with three hits apiece. Four different Goldpanners recorded two RBIs, and Peters earned the win on the mound.

The Goldpanners began the series against the Studs on Thursday, setting the tone with a 5-4 victory. The two teams will play twice more this weekend, on Saturday, June 22 at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.