Looking Back On 2020 and Forward To What's To Come

I wasn't going to write about 2020. Let's be honest, it wasn't that exciting. There was nothing that specifically stands out, at least from a fun, good, point of view. But then I'm like, if I want to keep writing, I should write something. There's kind of that "I see other friends who blog (Rob Adams and John Nash, specifically) writing end of year posts, maybe I can/should. 

Overall, this has been a boring year, but in the same fate, an Ok year personally. However, plenty of friends have lost family members this year and plenty of others are dealing with tough times. Obviously, COVID-19 has been a big chunk of the year and has impacted all of us in many ways. 

From a local sports perspective, we had the 2019-2020 winter season cut short, no 2020 spring season, and an abbreviated 2020 fall season. At this point, the 2020-2021 winter season is put on hold, so we will see what happens in the coming weeks. There were some sports played over the summer and it was nice to see baseball. I got to see a bunch of Fairfield American Legion games, as well as Fairfield American and Fairfield National little league baseball. In addition, Rob and I broadcasted the CT State Little League baseball State Tournament. 

If I think about some local games and moments from the year that stood out, there aren't that many. More, there are behind the scenes moments that stand out. Those are stories we can tell at later times, or are for others to tell. In terms of games, here are a few that come to mind. 

1) Fairfield Legion walk-off vs Greenwich in the playoffs

Fairfield walks-off on Greenwich 7-6 to advance in the FCBL Playoffs #ctbase pic.twitter.com/tQyTMPDkLu

— Shawn Sailer (@ShawnSailer) August 9, 2020

2) Hamden defeating Montville in the Little League State Tournament

 

3) Despite it being a Warde loss, the Mustangs boys basketball FCIAC semifinal game was a fun back-and-forth game that came down to the final seconds. https://events.locallive.tv/events/37157 

I'm probably forgetting some games that I should include, but honestly there were not that many. I also tried to find games where I had video or audio. 

Oh, and I really need to learn more music so I can know what people are talking about and be more involved in conversations. That will be one of my New Years resolutions. If I can somehow relate the songs to sports, that would be much easier and much more likely that I will pay attention. 

Here's hoping things get better for everyone and we can enjoy 2021 and beyond. It's not going to change just because it's a new year, but hopefully things change soon. Also, as I wrote a couple blogs ago, hoping for a lot of sports soon. Thankful for many friendships built and those strengthened and looking forward to more of that.  

To better days.....

Nets, Not the Knicks? Yes, Go Nets!

Hopefully the current Nets are even more excitable as the Jason Kidd days. 

It's the opening night of the NBA season. You're writing about the NBA, you say. Well, for the first time in a long time, I'm actually somewhat excited about it. 

Being a Nets fan, there hasn't been a lot to cheer about since since the early to mid 2000's when they went deep in the playoffs a couple years, including going to the NBA Finals in 2001-2002 and 2002-2003. Well, tonight begins the long-overdue debut of Kevin Durant, as he teams with Kyrie Irving and the rest of the Nets. I'm also interested to see what DeAndre Jordan does for them. He's a inside presence that can work well with Jarrett Allen. 

People think it's crazy when I tell them I'm a Nets fan, and that I was a Nets fan when they were in New Jersey with Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson. I'm not sure why or how I became a Nets fan because they are the one team I started cheering for when they were not great in the mid-late 2000's, after the Finals appearances. There were some ups and plenty of downs with many coaching changes. I liked Lawrence Frank and he had some success early on, but when went through a really bad stretch and untimely got let go during the 12-70 2009-2010 season. Since then, they are on their 10th coach (including interim). That is not a recipe for success. Or should I say, that is due to the lack of success. 

The first game I went to was 2006 (I believe) at the Izod Center, then Continental Airlines Arena in *East Rutherford, NJ. I know they weren't good, but I miss the days of them in NJ. They will always be the NJ Nets to me, but I've continued to be a fan, once they moved to Brooklyn. I know some people said they would no longer be fans. To me, it's the same franchise, they just moved location.  

*I initially had written Newark. Thanks to Brian Koonz for pointing it out. I should know better, as it's part of the Meadowlands sports complex which includes Metlife Stadium and it's always said "From East Rutherford, New Jersey."

Now, back to present day. Having the stars is awesome, now as fans, we need to hope the work well together and bring the team success. This also allows players who had to be the go-to-guys before, like Joe Harris, fit in well as role players. A team with a lot of stars is helpful, but you need other guys to fill in the pieces in order to have a great team. 

It's a long season so it may take some time for the everything to mesh and for people like Durant, who is coming off an injury, to shake off some rust. It's a unique season but it can also hopefully we a fun season. It will be interesting to see what happens but I'm intrigued. 

Missing Sports

I haven't blogged in over two months. I keep saying I want to blog more, but I just don't have much to write about, and don't want to write about news you can get many other places. What's the point? I need to be better at finding topics and just write. Write for myself. It doesn't matter who reads or doesn't read. It doesn't need to be sports (even though, as I say below and everyone knows, sports are my life). I want to continue to keep my journalism passion and sharpen my writing skills. 

I look at what Rob Adams is doing over at his blog, Exit 55, with Project 365+. He's almost at two full years of one blog a day. Or John Nash at The October Weekend, who first challenged Rob to Project 365 in 2019 and continues to blog often. I'm not saying I'm going to be them, but I just see what they are doing and which I would write more. 

Now to my main point of this post. 

I miss sports, especially at the local level. I realize what's going on in the country (and the word) with the COVID pandemic is more important than sports, but I am still holding hope that there is a safe way to have local sports around here. 

Connecticut fall high school sports ended in early November* and as of now, winter sports don't start until January 19th at the earliest. Hopefully we get some sort of winter season in. In addition, no matter what happens with winter sports, the CIAC (Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference) has said they will try to give as much of a normal spring season as possible consider the spring athletes lost their entire spring season last year. 

*It was a modified season, but we got a fall sports season in without much disruption and the athletes and teams got to have a fall sports experience, which is the goal. 

I see photos from people in other parts of the country where games are being played. It makes me miss sports even more. 

As I said to someone else, not only is high school sports my job, it's my life. As pathetic as that may sound. I live for HS basketball and HS baseball. 

Between helping out the basketball team at Ludlowe and being on the Ludlowe baseball coaching staff and then of course dealing with all the other Ludlowe and Warde teams as part of my job, there's not much else. There's still work to be done, and I'm able to get ahead on some things, but not as much as I'd like just due to the uncertainty of the seasons. 

I've enjoyed all the professional and college sports we have gotten to watch. From MLB, to the NFL, to college football and college basketball, as well as the NBA and NHL and so much more. I've been home more so I've watched a bunch and it's been great to watch. To those who say it's not real, or it doesn't matter, you're not a real sports fan. 

We will see what happens. Hopefully we have some answers soon. And hopefully there is more from me around here. 

Another Year of Little League Baseball in the Books

The postgame ceremony as Hamden win the state title

Another year of broadcasting little league baseball came to an end on Sunday. It's the third straight year that Rob Adams and I have broadcasted little league baseball.

The two previous years, we did just Fairfield American (FALL). This year, we did Fairfield American and a lot more. We covered FALL in the district tournament and when Fairfield National (FNLL) defeated FALL in districts, they asked us to broadcast them in sectionals. In the middle of all that, Rob was asked to be the voice of the CT Little League State Championship, so we did that also. 

We called 17 games over a six week stretch in three different locations, Bridgeport, Milford and Stamford. 

Hamden, who defeated FNLL in sectionals, went on to win the state championship, 12-1 over Montville on Sunday afternoon in Stamford.

It was a blast. It's great when we get to know the players, coaches and families. Sometimes we get to know them more than others. 

"Robcasting is the best 'casting" was a comment from multiple Hamden players before Sunday's Championship Game. That's a testament to the great job that Rob does. 

During the state tournament, Hamden seemed to be the team we got to know the best, as we were near their dugout often. We had a great back and forth between us and the players and coaches of Hamden. That's not to say all the other teams weren't great also, it just seemed as though we connected with Hamden the most of the teams in the state tournament. 

In a year where things were crazy and nobody knew what was going to happen with sports, it was great that the kids where still able to get the opportunity to play in a district, sectional and state tournament. There is no regional tournament or Little League World Series this year, so the state tournament was the final stage.  

It's obviously about the kids and teams, but in a time where spectators are limited to family, we had a responsibility to "bring the action" to those who were unable to attend. 

Thanks to all the coaches, players and those who were a part of putting the tournaments on for having us and all the help. I'm going to miss people, but a big shoutout to Perry Pierce and Chris Kaelin, as well as the city of Stamford for putting on a fantastic state tournament. Thank you to the Fairfield American coaches, Rick Krollman, John Palladino, Tony Dodder and Greg Wolf. Thank you to the Fairfield National coaches, Jason Takacs, Michael Bertot and Dave Dobbs.  

 Thanks to Rob for once again allowing me to ride shotgun on the broadcasts. Rob did a tremendous job as always. His professionalism, dedication and commitment is off the charts and was shown even more during this run. 

Congrats to all the teams we saw this summer on a job well done. 

Hamden celebrate the state title.

The "booth photo" from Milford as we worse masks to call the game

Fairfield National Topples Stamford North To Advance To Section One Final (Broadcast of game included)

Fairfield National Little League defeated Stamford North 15-0 in three innings in the Section One Tournament on Sunday afternoon in Milford. Fairfield advances to the Section One Championship next Sunday. They will face the winner of Hamden and Stamford North, who play next Saturday. 

Brady Takacs led off the game by drilling a full count offering over the wall in left-center field to give Fairfield a quick 1-0 lead. Later in the inning, with the bases loaded, Nick Crosley hit a pop-up to short right field and an infield fly rule. However, the ball fell between the second baseman and the right fielder. Jimmy Dobbs was able to come in and score on the play to give National a 2-0 lead. 

Fairfield broke the game open in the second inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Nick Garofalo was hit by a pitch and Dobbs walked to increase National's lead to 4-0. The next batter, Henry Vincent singled to right field to bring in two more runs and increase the lead to 6-0.

Later in the inning, Crosley doubled off the wall in right field to bring in two more runs to make it 8-0. Crosley moved to third on a wild pitch and then came in to score as Tommy Galvin reached first on an error. 

The offense just kept on coming in the third inning. With on on and one out, Garofalo drove a 1-2 pitch deep down the left field line and snuck it just inside the foul pole for a two-run home run to make it 11-0. 

A walk to Dobbs and singles by Vincent and Dylan McDonald loaded the bases. Crosley then walked to force in a run and make it 12-0 as the bases remained loaded. Vincent then came in from third to score on a wild pitch before the scoring was capped on a two-run pinch hit double by Kellan Gilligan. 

On the mound for Fairfield, Garofalo allowed one hit and walked two, while striking out five in the rule-rule shortened three inning game. 

You can hear the broadcast as Rob Adams and I had the call on Robcasting Radio. Follow Rob, Robcasting Radio and myself on Twitter for updates about the broadcast of the championship game and more. 

We called the game wearing masks....We do what is asked of us. I am betting I could not be heard....considering it's tough to hear me normally. 

Dobbs Pitches Fairfield National Past Hamden In First Sectional Game

Jimmy Dobbs' complete-game lifted Fairfield National Little League Past Hamden by a 3-1 score in the first game of the Section One Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Ralph Clarkson Field in Milford. 

Fairfield National got on the board in the bottom half of the first. Nick Garofalo doubled to left with one out. Dobbs then reached on an infield single on a high chopper up the third baseline as Garofalo moved to third. Dobbs moved up to second on defensive in-difference before and groundout to third off the bat of Henry Vincent brought Garofalo home. 

Hamden tied up the score in the third. Eric Jagielew walked to lead off the inning. He moved to second of a wild pitch. With one out, Nate Marczak reached on an error and Jagielew moved to third. Two batters later, with two outs, Kam Gamm hit a popup to short right field that was dropped and allowed Jagielew to come in to score and tie the game at one. 

Fairfield National took the lead in the bottom of the fifth. Dobbs reached on an error and moved to second on a wild pitch. Vincent lined a soft single into center field and Dobbs moved to third. Vincent would move to second on defensive in-difference. Then, back-to-back wild pitches allowed Dobbs and Vincent to come in and score and give National a 3-1 lead. 

That would be more than enough for Dobbs. He threw a complete game, allowing one unearned run on three hits, while walking two and striking out six. 

Fairfield National will be back in action on Sunday at noon against Stamford North. 

Rob Adams and I broadcast today's game on Robcasting Radio. We will have the rest of Fairfield National's games in the Section One Tournament and Robcasting will have the state tournament in Stamford, whether Fairfield National makes it or not. 

Fairfield National Defeats Fairfield American To Win District Two Title

Fairfield National Little League defeated Fairfield American 4-1 to win the 12-year-old District 2 Championship on Tuesday night at Blackham School in Bridgeport. It's the first District title for Fairfield National.

Fairfield American took the first lead of the game in the second inning as Ian Moore connected on a home run to deep left field that was a no-doubter off the bat. 

Fairfield National came right back and tied the game at one in the bottom half of the inning. Henry Vincent led off the inning with a double to right. Two batter later, Dylan McDonald singled to bring in Vincent and tie the game. 

National took the lead in the third. Nick Garofalo reached on an error leading off the inning. Two batters later, with runners at second and third, Vincent grounded out to first base allowing Garofalo to come home and put National up 2-1. They had an opportunity to add on as Nate Jackson hit a fly ball to medium-deep center field and the runner tried to score. He successfully beat the throw home but was called out on appeal for leaving third base too soon. 

Fairfield National was able to extend their lead in the fifth. With two outs and nobody on, Jimmy Dobbs was intentionally walked. That brought up Vincent who drove the first pitch over the left-field fence for a two-run home run to give National a 4-1 lead.

On the mound for National Nick Garofalo was terrific. He threw five innings allowing one run, on one hit - the home run, while walking two and striking out six. Garofalo was named District tournament MVP. Tommy Galvin picked up the save, working around a hit to throw a scoreless sixth. 

Although it came in defeat, Nate Swinford was solid on the mound for American. He threw four and two thirds innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits. He walked three and struck out seven. 

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I had a blast once again joining Rob Adams on Robcasting Radio for Fairfield American's run. Thank you to the coaches, players and families for all their help and was great to get to know you. Always love covering little league baseball and any sports in Fairfield. Hopefully more with Fairfield National going forward. Either way, it's been fun to cover Fairfield American (and Fairfield National) again. 

Fairfield National Tops Fairfield American, Forces Winner-Take-All Game

FNLL's Jimmy Dobb's pitcher to a FALL hitter 

Fairfield National (FNLL) 12 district little league defeated Fairfield American (FALL) 8-1 in the first game of the Championship Series in the District Two Tournament. The National win forces a winner-take-all championship game on Tuesday at 5pm at Blackham School in Bridgeport. 

American took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning, but that was the only run they could muster all game, as they left seven on base on the day. 

In the first, Brennan Davis worked out a two-out walk and Nate Swinford singled to put two men on. The next batter, Ian Moore doubled to deep-left field to plate Davis. FALL had a chance for more but a runner was caught between third and home on a wild pitch to end the inning. 

National tied the game and took the lead in the bottom half of the frame. Nick Garafalo and Jimmy Dobbs worked back-to-back one-out walks before Henry Vincent singled to center to bring home Garafalo to tie the game. Two batters later, Dylan McDonald doubled to left field to bring in Dobbs and Vincent and give FNLL a 3-1 lead. 

FALL got the first two men on in the second and two men with less than two outs in the third, but could not do any damage. 

FNLL added another run in the bottom of the second. With runners at second and third and one out after Jake Capolla reached on a fielders choice and Brady Takacs doubled, Garofalo grounded out to first bade to bring in Capolla. National held a 4-1 lead. 

The game was broken open in the fourth. With two on and two out, Dobbs singled to left to bring in Capolla. The next batter, Vincent tripled to left field on a ball the took a funny bounce off the turn and rolled all the way to the fence to bring in Garofalo and Dobbs to put FNLL up 7-1. 

FNLL capped the scoring in the fifth. McDonald reached on an error to lead off the inning. The ground ball went all the way to the wall and McDonald ended up a third base. Four batters later, with two out and runners at second and third, Takacs reached on an infield single to shortstop and McDonald came in to score. 

Jimmy Dobbs was terrific on the mound for National. He threw 6/2 innings, allowing one run of four hits and striking out five and walking five. He came out as he reached the maximum pitch count. Tommy Galvin three two pitches to close out the victory.  

Here's the broadcast as Rob Adams and I had the call on Robcasting Radio. 

Remembering 19 Years Ago, Supporting Friends and High School Sports

19 Years. September 11th, 2001. An awful day for the country with the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in NY and the Pentagon in DC. 

We all have memories from that day. I wrote last year about my memories. As I got older and heard more stories and read things, I have learned more, obviously, even at six years old, I knew it was a bad day We think about all those who were lost. I think about my cousins, who lost their cousin in the towers that day. I also know people who lost family members due to long-term health effects of being down near the towers. 

We think of all the first responders. I think of my family in law-enforcement. We think of the civilians who helped out. Those who survived. Those who lost their lives. We remember. We honor. We NEVER FORGET! 

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Continued thoughts are with my friend Rob Adams, who lost his mother last Friday. Only met Mrs. Adams once but a nice lady who I enjoyed reading about her life through her Facebook and Rob's Facebook and blog posts. Rob did a tremendous job taking care of her this past year, and the past number of years. Please go read Rob's blog posts, especially those from this past week, on his mother and his family. 

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I realize in comparison to the last two items, the next topic means very little......

High School fall sports in CT have been a big discussion for months due to the pandemic. As of now, everything other than football still will be played. There is still no final decision on football as the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC), the governing body of high school athletics, is going back and forth with the Department of Public Health. Hopefully we will have a decision one way or another very soon. We need to. We'll see that the Fall and the rest of the school year holds for  school and sports. 

Fairfield National Powers Way Past Fairfield American in District 2 Pool Play

Fairfield National's Nate Jackson delivers a pitch during the fifth inning

On the strength of two home runs, Fairfield National Little League defeated Fairfield American 6-3 in pool play of the District 2 tournament on Wednesday night at Blackham School in Bridgeport. 

Fairfield American got off to a strong start, scoring three runs in the first inning. Ian Moore led off the game with a single to center. Four batters later, with runners on first and second, Nate Swineford singled to center to bring in Moore. 

Two batters later, with the bases loaded, Cole Krollman singed to center to bring in Brennan Davis, who had walked, and Swineford to put American up 3-0. 

National came right back in the bottom half of the inning. Nick Garfalo singled with one out, the next batter, Jimmy Dobbs homered to right-center field to cut the American lead to 3-2. 

National would tie the game an inning later. Nate Jackson led off with an infield single to shortstop. After a strikeout, Jake Capola walked and Brady Takacs singled to right to load the bases. The next batter, Garfalo, worked a full-count walk to bring in Jackson and tie the game at three. 

After the three-run first inning, American would be shut down offensively for the remainder of the game, managing just two hits over the final five innings against three National pitchers. Garafolo picked up the win, throwing four innings, allowing three runs on three hits, while striking out six, walking two and hitting one. Jackson threw two-thirds of an inning, bridging the gap to Tommy Galvin, who picked up the save. 

National broke the scoreless tie in the fourth. Galvin reached on a lead-off walk. After back-to-back strikeouts, Garfalo, the left-handed batter, drove all ball to the opposite field that easily cleared the left-field fence and landed on the field on other main field in the complex. 

American had their chances, as they left eight men on base, including leaving the bases loaded in both the fifth and sixth innings. 

National improves to 1-0, American drops to 1-1 in District 2 Pool Play. 

Here's the broadcast as Rob Adams and I had the call on Robcasting Radio. 

Trumbull Defeats Fairfield 19U, Wins FCBL Championship

Trumbull won the 2020 Fairfield County Baseball League (FCBL) Championship on Wednesday night as they defeated Fairfield 8-0 at Trumbull High School. 

The start of the game was a pitcher's duel as Trumbull's Ryan Caroll and Fairfield's Phil Hogan traded zero's through the first three innings, with an infield single for Trumbull the only hit to that point. 

Trumbull would break through in the fourth. Brandon Csizmadia led off with a walk and stole second. The next batter, Chris Briganti drove in Csizmadia with a single to left field. Two batters later, after Briganti moved to second base on a wild pitch, he came in to score on a double to right by Ryan Gomes.

Caroll, who would be named championship game MVP, held Fairfield without a hit through the first four innings. Fairfield's first, and only hit of the game, was a fifth inning two-out single to center field by Charlie Mount. 

Trumbull broke the game open in the fifth. Despite getting only one hit in the inning, they capitalized on three Fairfield errors, two walks and a hit batter to score six runs against three Fairfield pitchers. 

After a lead off walk, Hogan came out in favor of Alex Wiggetman. Justin Delaney hit a ground ball to shortstop but the thrown was dropped at second and runners were at first and second with nobody out. Matt Massaro then came up and laid down a sacrifice bunt but the throw was thrown down the first field line, allowing both runners to score and Massaro to end up all the way at third. That gave Trumbull a 4-0 lead. 

Massaro would come in to score during the next at bat on a balk by Wiggetman. Two batters later, with runners on second and third, a wild pitch bounced to the right of Fairfield catcher Jack Hernandez allowing one run to score. Hernandez's throw to pitcher Anthony Espinoza covering home plate was high and got away, allowing the second runner to score. 

The scoring would be capped later in the inning as Dan Massaro, who had walked earlier in the inning, came in to score on a wild pitch. 

Trumbull got strong pitching from Caroll (5IP, 1 hit, 1 walk), Bryan Kraus (1IP, no hits, only runner reached on error) and Dan Massaro (one perfect inning). 

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It was a pleasure to follow and informally cover Fairfield Legion this summer. I look forward to more in the future! Thank you to coaches Sars Ford (also the GM of Fairfield Legion), Lance Kreizer, Chris Bugyi, Will Mitola and Connor Bennett for your help in allowing me to cover your teams. To the families and players, it was enjoyable to chat with you, and I hope you enjoyed the coverage. You athletes and families deserve it. 

Fairfield 19U Defeats Ridgefield in FCBL Semifinal

Joey Sangiuolo delivers a pitch to Johnny Briody 

Fairfield 19U defeated Trumbull 5-1 in the Fairfield County Baseball League Semifinals. They advance to the championship where they play Trumbull. They will need to beat Trumbull on Wednesday and Thursday to win the championship, while Trumbull will only need to win once. 

Ridgefield got on the board in the top of the first. Alex Hanna led off with an infield single to shortstop. He stole second and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Jason Hartnett. The next batter, Johnny Briody drove a ball deep enough to right field for the sacrifice fly and Ridgefield led 1-0.  

Fairfield came right back in the bottom half of the frame. One-out walks to Jack Pierce and Christian Homa put two runners on for Blake Benway. Benway drove the full-count pitch to deep left-center field for the two-run double to give Fairfield the lead. 

Two batters later, Fairfield would add another run as Anthony Espinoza doubled over the center fielders head to bring in Benway. 

After some struggles in the first inning, Fairfield pitcher Joey Sangiuolo settled down. He allowed just the one run on four his, while striking out four and walking one in a complete game.

Between his sidearm delivery and his mix of a fastball and multiple off-speed pitches, Sangiuolo was able to keep the Ridgefield hitters off balance all game long. 

Fairfield would tack on in the sixth. Brady Pomer, Espinoza and Charlie Mount all singled to load the bases with one out. The next batter, Sam Weinstein laced a single to center-field to bring in Pomer and re-load the bases. 

Jack Hernandez followed that up with a perfectly executed safety-squeeze sacrifice bunt to bring in Espinoza and cap the scoring. 

Fairfield 19U Comes From Behind To Walk-Off Greenwich In FCBL Playoffs

Fairfield 19U baseball came from behind to defeat the Greenwich Cannons in walk-off fashion 7-6 on Sunday morning at Kiwanis Field. The win moves Fairfield into the semifinal of the Fairfield County Baseball League Playoffs. 

Fairfield won the game in the bottom of the seventh on a two-out bases-loaded error of the bat of Joey D'Elia to shortstop, as the ball could not be fielded cleanly. 

Earlier in the inning, Fairfield tied the game on on a one-out single to right by Sam Weinstein. 

 

That ending was just a small part of a major comeback for Fairfield as Greenwich got out to a strong start. 

Fairfield starter Chris Domizio was strong through the first two innings, but ran in to some trouble in the third. Harrision Feinberg doubled to left field with one out. He moved to third on a wild pitch and then Hunter Gruenstrass,grounded out to third to bring in Feinberg and get the Cannon's on the board. 

Ben Nash then doubled and Ian Colalucci walked before Jack Griffin singled to left to bring in Nash. Cage Lasley then doubled home Colalucci and Griffin to give Greenwich a 4-0 lead. That would be the end of the day for Domizio. 

Josh Wittenberger would come on a walk the next two batters to load the bases. He then got a ground ball to first off the bat of Chris Genero but the throw from Blake Benway was dropped and that allowed Genero to reach and Lasley to come in and score. 

Fairfield would get on the board bottom half of the inning. D'Elia singled with one out and stole second. The next batter, Christian Homa doubled to left to bring in D'Elia and get Fairfield on the board. 

Greenwich got that run back in the fourth. Gruenstrass singled to lead off the inning and moved to third on two wild pitches.Ben Nash then doubled to deep right field to bring home Gruenstrass and increase the Cannons lead to 6-1. 

Fairfield got another run back in the fourth. Benway led off with a triple to right field. The next batter, Jack Varcoe then singled to right to bring in Benway and cut the deficit to 6-2. 

An inning later, Fairfield clawed even further back into the game. D'Elia reached on an error and Homa singled to put two on with two outs. The runners moved to second and third on a wild pitch and Blake Benway came to the plate. Benway would strike out swinging but reached first base on a wild pitch that also allowed D'Elia to score and Homa to go to third. 

A walk to Jack Varcoe loaded the bases before a walk to Brady Pomer brought in Homa to cut the deficit to 6-4. Charlie Mount then came up with a bases-loaded walk of his own to cut the score to 6-5. 

Fairfield still trailed 6-5 heading to the bottom of the seventh. Benway reached on an error and Varcoe singled. Pomer then hit into a fielder's choice to put runners on first and second with one out. Mount then hit a slow roller to second base that could not be fielded cleanly to load the bases. That set the stage for Weinstein's game tying hit with one out. After a strikeout, D'Elia came up and put the ball in play and was able to help Fairfield come up with the win. 

Fairfield advances to the FCBL semifinals where they will host Ridgefield on Monday at 5:30 at Kiwanis Field. 

Fairfield 19U Defeats Westport In Pitcher's Duel To Advance In Playoffs

Fairfield 19U defeated Westport 1-0 on Saturday morning at Kiwanis Field to advance in the losers bracket of the Fairfield County Baseball Playoffs. 

It was a pitcher's duel between Fairfield's CJ Montiero and Westport's Ty Pauley. 

Both pitchers threw up zero's for the first five innings. Westport had two men on in the second and fourth innings but could not push any runs across. For Fairfield, they had runners on in the first two innings but were then held without a base runner for innings three through five. . 

Fairfield's run came in the bottom of the sixth. Jay Joliet led off with a single to center field. After Joey D'Elia sacrificed, Joliet to second base, Christian Homa came up to the plate. The left-handed hitting Homa lined the first pitch he saw into left-center field and Joliet was able to come in and score. 

Westport threatened to tie the game and take the lead in the top half of the seventh. With the bases loaded and one out, Brian Rabacs lined an 0-1 pitch down the third base line that Joliet snagged on a line for the second out. Joliet dove to third to try to double the runner off but Kevin Rabacs, who had singled to lead off the inning, was able to scamper back before Joliet's tag. 

Montiero was able to finish off the win by enduing a fielders choice to shortstop. 

In addition to the great defensive play from Joliet, Fairfield got some great defense from D'Elia and Montiero. 

In the fifth, Brian Rabacs hit a slow roller between the pitcher's mound and first base. Montiero pounced off the mound and picked up the ball with his glove and in one motion, flipped it over the Blake Benway at first for the out. In the sixth, D'Elia made a great catch going back on a ball in center field. 

Fairfield will host Greenwich on Sunday at 10am at Kiwanis. 

Stratford Defeats Fairfield 19U in Extras in First Round Of Playoffs

Anthony Espinoza pitches during extra innings on Thursday

Stratford defeated Fairfield 19U 4-2 in  13 innings in the first round of the double-elimination Fairfield County Baseball League Playoffs. The game started on Wednesday and finished on Thursday due to darkness at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield on Wednesday. 

Stratford put up a run in the first inning, before Fairfield came back to take the lead in the third. 

In the third, Anthony Espinoza led off with a double. Jack Varcoe then laid down a bunt and the third baseman threw the ball down the right field line, allowing Espinoza to score and Varcoe ended up at second. 

Two batters later, after a past ball put Varcoe at third, he came in to score on a ground-out to shortstop by Jack Hernandez as Fairfield led 2-1. 

Stratford came back to put up a run in the third to tie the game at 2. 

The game would be a pitchers duel and remain tied inning after inning. After the ninth inning on Wednesday, the umpires said one more inning and if nobody scored, the game would be suspended. Well, the game remain tied at two and would have to be picked up on Wednesday. 

The first two innings of the resumption (the 11th and 12th innings) were scoreless for both sides, with Stratford getting the lone base runner, Stratford would take the lead in the top of the 13th. Three singles and a wild pitch led to two Stratford runs to take the lead and eventually win the game. 

Fairfield got strong pitching from the trio of Joey Sanguiolo, CJ Montiero and Anthony Espinoza, including three shutout innings of relief from Montiero, who struck out five. 

Fairfield will play Wilton, who fell to Ridgefield on Wednesday, on Friday at 5:30 at Kiwanis Field in an elimination game. 

Some photos from the storm damage at Kiwanis Field. Full reporting here! 

Hogan Leads Fairfield 19U Past Greenwich

Fairfield and Greenwich in action on Saturday morning at GHS. 

Phil Hogan's complete game two-hitter led Fairfield 19U past the Greenwich Cannon's 2-0 on Saturday morning at Greenwich High School. 

Fairfield got on the board in the top of the first against Greenwich starter Zach Karson. Jack Pierce walked and stole second base. Two batters later, Joey D'Elia doubled to to the wall in right field to plate Pierce and give Fairfield a 1-0 lead. 

Fairfield added another in the third inning against Cannon's reliever Alex Roath. Christian Homa led off with a single. Pierce then sacrificed Homa to second base. Two batters later, with runners on second and third, Blake Benway singled though the left side of the infield to plate Homa. 

Greenwich had their best chance to break through against Hogan in the fourth as they got a runner to second with one our and had runners at first and second and two outs but could not plate a run. 

Hogan walked three and struck out five in addition to allowed just the two hits. One base-runner reached on an error.  

The Cannon's pitching was very good also. Four Greenwich pitchers, Karson, Roath, Jake Mondschein and Zack Alza allowed just the two runs of six hits. 

Fairfield will now gear up for the playoffs next week, while Greenwich will have a final regular season game on Sunday at Trumbull at 10am. 

The playoff brackets for both the 19U and 17U tournaments can be found at greenwichcannons.com 

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Rob Adams and I broadcasted the game on Rob's channel, Robcasting Radio. Thanks to Rob for having me along for the broadcast. Fun to get out there and help Rob out and provide some (very little) color commentary, especially with Fairfield being involved. 

We had a few technical issues, but as always, Rob is able to find a way to get the broadcast done, one way or another. He knows how to fix issues and will try multiple ways to fix them, if need be. To be clear, neither issue was Rob, or anyone's, fault. We (mostly Rob) worked though them to produce the best broadcast possible. 

Here's the broadcast with Rob and I on the call. Due to the technical difficulties, Rob recapped the lost portion of the game. 

 

Stay turned for Rob's broadcast schedule on his Twitter or the Robcasting Radio Twitter.

Favorite Athletes

The past and the present of the Packers

There are so many challenges or "games" on Facebook and other social media platforms going around. 

One of them is to list 10 athletes you have enjoyed watching the most. Some people are doing it one day at a time on Facebook. Rob Adams has done in on Facebook and included it as part of his #Project365 on his blog. I saw John Nash do it in one blog post on his blog. 

I decided I liked Johm's idea and I would do that. Why not? It's fun and I like talking sports. This doesn't have to been seen in person, in case be, and many of these are, athletes who I have only seen on TV. 

So here we go, in no real particular order. 

1) Brett Favre - The Gunslinger. Not the best guy, but a great competitor and player. 

2) Aaron Rodgers - A fantastic athlete. Will always be a debate between him, Favre and Bart Starr as the greatest Packers QB. 

3) Alex Rodriguez - Yes, there are plenty of issues with him, but I just became I big fan. It also goes with the fact that even though I am a huge Yankees fan, was never a big Jeter fan (I will likely get yelled at for that).

4) Mariano Rivera - The GOAT. The best closer in MLB history. 

5) Jason Kidd - Leader for the Nets during their prime years in the early to mid 2000's. The Kidd, Carter, Jefferson trio was a lot of fun to watch. 

6) Mike Piazza - Yes, as a Yankees fan, I shouldn't like him. But I was a Mets fan growing up, and his 9/11 HR is so much more than sports. (Note the uniform he is wearing there. It's not black! #BlackIsNotAMetsColor) 

7) JJ Redick - Loved him at Duke. Great three-point shooter. Sold role player in the NBA, but never a star. 

8) Tim Tebow - The man at Florida. His playing style was great for college, didn't work in the NFL. His baseball career, well.....LOL Mets. 

9) Ray Allen - I didn't like any of the teams Ray played for in the NBA but he's a UConn guy (even though I don't remember him playing at UConn much). Three-point master. (Had to go with this video on this one. Great call by Mike Breen) 

   

 10) Amani Toomer - Well, just like with the Mets, I grew up a Giants fan, so I figure I should include a Giant. I'll still root for them as long as they don't play the Packers. I had a bunch of guys I thought about for the Giants but Amani seems like a good guy and was a solid player. 

I likely left out someone who I should have added. Or maybe I added someone I should not have. Thoughts on my choices? Who are your favorite athletes you've seen? 

Sangiuolo Pitches Fairfield 19U Past Westport

Joey Sangiuolo delivers a pitch during Sunday's game

After getting swept in a doubleheader against the same Westport team on Saturday, Fairfield 19U bounced back in a big way on Sunday. 

Joey Sangiuolo's three-hit complete game shutout lifted Fairfield past Westport 3-0 on Sunday morning at Owen Fish Park in Fairfield. 

Sangiuolo allowed two hits in the second inning, one of which did not leave the infield. 

In the third, with Fairfield leading 1-0, Westport's Chris Veneruso came up with a man on second and two outs. Veneruso singed to center field and the runner tried to score to tie the game but Christain Homa threw a strike from center field and Jack Hernandez applied the tag to the runner to preserve the lead. 

Fairfield got on the board in the second inning. Ryan Cowles tripled to deep left field with one out. The next batter, Anthony Espinoza singled to deep shortstop and Cowles was able to come in and score. 

Fairfield tacked on in the third. Sam Weinstein was hit by a pitch leading off the inning and Charlie Mount followed up with a single to center field. Hernanez then laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. Two batters later, Jack Pierce singled to left field to bring home Weinstein and Mount to increase Fairfield's lead to 3-0. 

Over the final four innings, Sangiuolo allowed only a walk and nothing else. For the game, he struck out seven. 

Fairfield will be back in action on Monday vs Trumbull at Trumbull High School at 5:30. 

Fairfield 19U Defeats Ridgefield in Tight Affair

Fairfield 19U baseball defeated Ridgefield 5-3 on Thursday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

With the bases loaded and one out, Sam Weinstein grounded into a fielders-choice to short that allowed Joey D'Elia, who reached on an error, to come in and score. 

Ridgefield got two runs in the fourth to take the lead. In could have been a bigger inning if not for a nice diving catch in left field by Jack Fitzpatrick leading off the inning. 

In the bottom of the fourth, Fairfield re-took the lead. D'Elia and Blake Benway each singled before Jack Varcoe singled to right to bring home D'Elia to tie the game. The next batter, Charlie Mount grounded out to short to bring home Benway to give Fairfield the lead back. Weinstein came up and drove a fly ball deep enough into center field to score Varcoe from third and give Fairfield a 4-2 lead. 

Fairfield added another in the fifth. Christain Homa led off with a triple to right field. Two batters later, Anthony Espinoza.hit a ground ball to short and Homa, who was running on contact, beat the throw home and got under the tag from the cather. 

Ridefield produced a run in the sixth on a single, hit-by-pitch and another single to cut the deficit to 5-3. They had a chance to do more damage but Alex Wiggetman was able to work out of a bases-loaded jam to preserve the lead. 

Wiggetman threw six innings of three run ball to pick up the win for Fairfield. He allowed three runs on six hits, while striking out three and walking one. He also hit a batter. Chris Domizio struck out one in a perfect seventh inning to pick up the save. 

Fairfield improves to 18-2, 8-2 in the division. They will be back in action on Friday against Wilton at 5:30 at Tunxis Hill Park in Fairfield. 

Fairfield 17U Comes From Behind To Defeat Westport

Fairfield 17U defeated Westport 12-5 on Wednesday night at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Westport got out to a quick start in the first inning. They scored four runs on three hits, and capitalized on a Fairfield error. The big blow in the inning was a two-run single by Jacob Ragaza. 

Fairfield got a run back in the bottom half of the inning. Jack Fitzpatrick led off with a triple to deep left field and Sean McAdams followed up with a sacrifice fly to left to bring home Fitzpatrick and get Fairfield on the board. 

Fairfield had a big second inning and was not only able to tie the game, they were able to take the lead. With runners on first and second and one out, James Blanco hit a hard ground ball that ricocheted off pitcher Jacob Lessing and allowed Aidan Gouley to come in and score. A walk loaded the bases and then Fitzpatrick singled to left to bring home two more runs as Griffin Dodder and Blanco crossed the plate. Three batters later with the bases again loaded, Danny Pierce singled to left field to plate to more and give Fairfield a 7-4 lead. 

Fairfield added a run in the third. Steve Titus and Gouley each singled to put runners at the corners. With Gouley in motion, a ground ball to short by Dodder turned into a 6-3 putout and a run for Fairfield. 

Westport got a run back in the fourth. With two outs and a runner at third, Jacob Lessing hit a ground ball to second that McAdams made a sliding play up the middle but the throw to first was dropped allowing a run to come in and cut the deficit to 8-5. 

Fairfield tacked on a run in the fourth. With runners at second and third and one out, Sam Swanson singled to right to bring in Jack Martin, who walked to lead off the inning. 

The fifth inning saw another run go up on the scoreboard for Fairfield. After Titus and Gouley walked to start the inning, Dodder laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. A ground ball to short brought Titus in to increase the lead to 10-5. 

The scoring was capped in the sixth. With runners on first and second and two outs, Titus doubled to left field to bring home Swanson and Pierce. 

After a tough first inning on the mound, Martin settled down to throw three innings plus, allowing five runs, but only one earned, on three hits, while striking out three and walking four. Charlie Mitola came out of the bullpen to throw four innings. He allowed one hit and two walks, while hitting one. 

Espinoza Leads Fairfield 19U Baseball Past Ridgefield

Anthony Espinoza delivers a pitch during Tuesday's game

Fairfield 19U defeated Ridgefield 6-1 on Tuesday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. Anthony Espinoza came up big with his arm and his bat. 

On the mound, he threw four innings, allowing one unearned run on one hit, while striking out four and walking two. The only hit was an infield single on a slow roller to third base. 

At the plate, Espinoza went two-for-three, including a two-run double in the first inning which proved to be all he and Fairfield needed. 

Christian Homa singled to lead off the game. Jack Pierce then followed up with a single of his own. Following a walk to Ryan Cowles to load the bases, that set up Espinoza. He drove the first pitch he saw over the left fielders head to bring in Homa and Pierce. 

Leading 2-0, Fairfield tacked on in the third. Cowles singed to left with one out and Espinoza followed up with a single to right and Cowles moved to third on the throw. Blake Benway then drove a sacrifice fly to deep center field to bring in Cowles and increase the lead to 3-0. 

Ridgefield got on the board in the fourth thanks to a hit, a couple walks and a couple of errors. 

Josh Wittenberger came out of the bullpen for Fairfield and threw three scoreless innings to close out the win He allowed one hit and one walk, while striking out six. 

Fairfield blew the game open in the bottom of the sixth. Benway walked to lead off the inning. Joey D'Elia then tippled to deep right-center field to bring in Alex Wiggetman, who had pinch-run for Benway. Jack Varcoe then followed that up with a single to bring in D'Elia and cap the scoring. 

Fairfield improves to 7-1 in their division and 16-1 overall. They will be back in action on Wednesday in Ridgefield at 5:30 at Ciccuoli Field. They will return to Kiwanis on Thursday at 5:45 to host Ridgefield. 

Fairfield 19U topples Norwalk

Fairfield 19U Legion defeated the Norwalk Revolution 12-3 on Thursday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Fairfield got off to a quick start in the first inning and never looked back.Christian Homa led off with a single and Ryan Cowles doubled to put runners at second and third. Jamie Flink and Blake Benway then singled in Homa and Cowles to put Fairfield up 2-0. 

Later in the inning, with Flink at third and Benway at second, Brady Pomer singled to center field to bring in two more runs and Fairfield led 4-0. 

Fairfield added another run in the second. Joey D'Elia led off with a single and the next batter, Homa, singled him in. 

Norwalk got on the board in the third. The Revolution put up three runs on four hits. With two on and two outs, Will S delivered a two-run double and Mitch S came up with an RBI single to cut the Fairfield lead to 5-3. *

The roster we were given only has first names and it's tough to find rosters for summer baseball, especially this summer. I normally HATE using first names. 

Fairfield added on in the fourth. Jack Pierce led off with a single. After a strikeout, Homa singled and Cowles walked to load the bases for Flink. With Flink at the plate, a wild pitch went to the backstop and Pierce was able to scamper home. Flink would walk to re-load the bases for Benway. Benway hit a sharp ground ball to first base that went past the first baseman, allowing Homa and Cowles to come in and score and put Fairfield up 7-3. 

Fairfield increased their lead an inning later. With two on and two out, Homa once again came up big. He doubled to left to bring home Pomer and Jack Fitzpatrick. 

The scoring would be capped in the sixth when Fairfield would yet again add more. Jay Joliet's two-out single scored Flink, who had led off the inning with a walk. Joliet would work his way around the base paths and come in to score on a wild pitch. 

In addition to their great offensive performance, Fairfield got great pitching from Alex Wiggetman, Joey Sangiuolo and CJ Montiero. Wiggetman threw three innings, allowing three runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out two. Sangiuolo threw three innings, allowing no runs on three hits, while striking out three. Montiero pitched a perfect seventh, including two strikeouts. 

Fairfield 19U baseball edges The Clubhouse

Fairfield 19U Legion defeated The Clubhouse 3-2 on Tuesday afternoon at Kiwanis Field in Fairfield. 

Fairfield got off to a quick start, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first without the benefit of a base hit. Christian Homa led off with a walk, Joe D'Elia reached on an error by the shortstop and Jamie Flink walked to load the bases. 

The next batter, Blake Benway, grounded into a 4-6-3 double play. However, Homa was able to come in to score. Charlie Mount followed up with a ground ball to third and the throw to first was not fielded cleanly allowing D'Elia to come in and score. Fairfield led 2-0 after one inning. 

Fairfield added a run in the fourth to take a 3-0 lead. Mount reached for the second time on an error. Following a single by Sam Weinstein and a double play, Jack Varcoe came up with a running on third and two outs. He singled to left field to bring home Mount. 

The Clubhouse got a run in fifth to cut the deficit to 3-1. In the seventh they added a run and had the tying run at second but Weinstein was able to work into and out of trouble to pick up the save and the win for Fairfield. 

Fairfield got strong pitching from Anthony Espinoza, Brady Pomer and Weinstein. They improve to 5-1 and will be back in action on Thursday at Kiwanis vs Norwalk at 5:30.  

Live Baseball!

For the first time in almost a year, I saw live, local baseball tonight. 

I've been posting for weeks about needing to get out a watch and or cover some baseball. Brad Weinstein sent me the Fairfield Legion* schedule and I have been finding others as well. 

*American Legion is not sponsoring the league this summer, so it's non-legion sanctioned teams. 

In tonight's game, Fairfield defeated Stratford 2-1 on a walk-off single by former Ludlowe baseball standout and future Army-West Point student-athlete Jamie Flink. 

Jamie Flink’s walk-off single lifts Fairfield past Stratford 2-1 #ctbase pic.twitter.com/u5YIsyVhvV

— Shawn Sailer (@ShawnSailer) July 6, 2020

Tonight, I just watched. Hopefully I will "cover" some games soon, even if that just means keeping my own score sheets during the games and then writing a quick recap of the game on this blog. If there are other opportunities this summer, great. If not, I’ll do this.

Speaking of opportunities, Rob Adams has the opportunity to broadcast the Greenwich Cannons Legion team (who will play Fairfield later this summer). You can get the details of what Rob is doing here and follow him on Twitter at @double5 and @RobcastingRadio for more. I’m sure I will end up joining Rob for a game or two (or more) before the summer is over.

 You can follow me for updates of games and where I might be (not that you care) on my Twitter @ShawnSailer. In addition to Legion, I am going to try to get to a bunch on local games this summer, especially to see the Ludlowe baseball guys who recently graduated.

I miss writing/covering games and figure it’s good to still keep my toes in journalism and keep my writing skills sharp. I also need to write more here.

If you have any suggestions on games I should go to or feature articles I should write, Tweet at me, comment on the blog, or get me on my other social media platforms

I’m so happy baseball is back!

 

Ludlowe and Warde Graduation 2020

Flag and sunset during Warde graduation

Full disclosure: I was doing different things at each of the ceremonies, which is why I was able to more photos and different photos at Ludlowe's. 

Congrats to the Fairfield Class of 2020 who graduated from Ludlowe and Warde this week. It wasn't the ending of the school year you wanted or anyone wanted for you, but it was great that you were all able to celebrate you together as a class. 

The graduation's were held at Jennings Beach, with Ludlowe's taking place on Tuesday night and Warde's on Wednesday night. This was done so there could be a drive-in ceremony and still have the walking across the stage factor and may other parts of a traditional (non-pandemic) ceremony. 

The parents and families watched from their cars, along with their graduates. Each homeroom was called up one at a time as graduates were socially distanced and could take their mask off as their name was called and they crossed the stage, picked up their diploma case and take a photo. They were then directed to a table to pick up their actual diploma, then to a line where they would take a second photo, before they returned to their cars. 

Warde seniors graduate

I know it was a lot of work for all who were involved in making it happen, from the planning to all the set up to the actual event. And many people were part of it for both nights. So many people who were instrumental in making this happen, including First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick and the Town of Fairfield, Department of Public Works, Anthony Calabrese, Matt Narwold, and the Parks & Recreation Department, Mike Cummings, Greg Hatzis, Paul Cavanna and the Board of Education. In addition, all the other faculty, staff and volunteers who made it happen. I included a lot of people and groups, but I am sure I missed someone. No slight intended. 

Ludlowe headmaster Greg Hatzis addresses crowd

For the circumstances, I thought both nights went really well, and have even heard people who say they want graduation to be done this way going forward. We will see. 

Great speeches by all of the students who gave them. 

Ludlowe Valedictorian James Flink gives his speech

It was nice to see all the students, parents and staff, and at the very least, say a quick hello. 

Ludlowe staff and faculty create welcome line as families drive in

I know I am not supposed to play favorites, but this is a special class and one of my favorite classes. Fun, kind group of kids. Going to miss you all. 

Honored to work at both schools.Congrats, Class of 2020! You will all go on and do great things. 

Some more photos below...

Sign on big screen

Ludlowe graduates watch out of top of car

Warde graduates watch out of top of car

Prior to Warde ceremony

Ludlowe families watch from their cars