Week Two Recap, Notables, and Notes

WEEK TWO RECAP

What a great weekend of fall baseball in Sturbridge!  Each of the teams welcomed some new players to their roster and the Town Barn hosted players from Charlton, Dudley, North Brookfield, Oxford, and West Brookfield under sunny blue skies and great baseball weather.

The still undefeated WARRIORS (formerly Green) did not disappoint fans this weekend as they added two more to the win column for the season.   Big bats and solid base running by the Warriors kept both the North and West Brookfield teams busy, but it was superb pitching that brought victory to Sturbridge.  Dan S and the Roman Empire shut down any chance of NB making a comeback on Saturday and our very own "legendary" Griffin followed by Devin K shut out WB on Sunday.  It's a busy week coming up for the Warriors with games on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Despite a tough loss to North Brookfield on Saturday, the TORNADOES (formerly White) displayed some phenomenal baseball skills with pitching, fielding, and hitting!  The perseverance of this team paid off with a one-run win over Dudley on Sunday!    Dominic M, Jack S (five Ks on the books this weekend!), and Jack R rocked the mound both days.  A shout out to Joe A for hanging behind the plate for five innings - you ROCK!  But it was Hunter N who dominated the mound on Sunday with an epic six strikeouts.  Sweet!  I am quite sure we'll be seeing much more from this superstar rookie in the weeks to come.

It was a roller coaster weekend for the BLIZZARDS (formerly Gold).  Tyler Montgomery proved that hard work and practice does pay off as he struck out a few visiting Oxford batters in his Saturday pitching debut.  Mason F showed no fear at the plate with a solid drive into the outfield bringing in a Sturbridge run.  Nick S displayed great control on the mound and with his bat and both Scooter and "Who-da-man? Ben-ja-man" had a chance to show off their slick sliding skills at home plate.  Sunday morning's match-up with Charlton brought a very light roster to the field.  With only nine players present at the start of the game, Lil' Papi joined the Blizzards bringing the roster to 10.  His presence and willingness to play was key as catcher Ryan M ended up in a sling for a few innings after he caught a bat off his forearm.  A very big thank you to Nick S's aunt for providing immediate medical attention!

BLOG of FAME - Notables from Week Two
(These are by no means the ONLY great plays and players of the weekend.  Just a few that stuck with me from two very long days at the field.  When will YOU be mentioned in the BLOG of FAME?)

Jack R - super snag on the mound Saturday!
Hunter N - struck out six batters in one game!
JT - high pop fly was hit so hard it actually knocked over the second baseman Saturday (who subsequently dropped the ball, literally and figuratively)!
Joe G - turned a single into a run scored on Sunday!
Roman K - struck out seven in a row on Saturday!
Alex Y - wicked awesome catch behind the plate on Saturday and lightning speed to score a run off of a walk!
Devin K - two foolishly hard ground ball hits ended up in the outfield!
Callahan T - can make it from one base to the next in four strides!
Griffin P - struck out nine of 11 batters on Sunday!


NOTES

PLAYERS:  Keep a clean dugout and field!  Gum wrappers and water bottles should be thrown in the trash, not left under the benches or strewn about in the dugouts. Please, please, please ... do NOT spit your gum out on the ground!  Pitch in at the end of your game and help your coaches clean up the dugout and field.  They want to get home just as much as you and your parents do!

The schedules are just about set for the remainder of the season and I hope to be able to post the full schedule for all three teams by week's end.

Most field locations are posted on the SLL website (CLICK HERE).

We are still looking for volunteer umpires and scoreboard keepers at home games.  Please email the Fall Ball Director if you are interested in volunteering (there's no pay, but you will get the appreciation and admiration from the players and coaches!)

Calling all Fall Ball Press Agents and Photogs!  Watching the game and notice something spectacular that deserves a special mention on the blog?  Have a great shot that everyone needs to see?  Email me and I'll be sure to include it in the next post!  (lehunter@assumption.edu)