Dodgers
are the 2008 Season Winners!
The
Dodgers finished their season with an overall record of
18-1 including a sweep of the playoffs to claim the regular
season championship and playoff championship in 2008.
The championship season was especially sweet for
those few members of the team that remember the 2006
season, when the Dodgers finished the year with a record of
3-18. It was a sweet form of revenge for Beckley
Stearns, Sam Berube, Ryan Bergeron, Owen Shepcaro and Joe
Richard to finally hold the trophy.
The Dodgers won the regular season with a 15-1 record,
finishing five games ahead of the second place Pirates.
The Dodgers then swept the playoffs defeating the
Braves 7-1 in the first round, the Pirates 4-2 in the
second round and then 11-1 in the championship game.
Joe Richard collected two wins on the mound with victories
over the Braves and the Pirates in the championship game.
Sam Berube pitched game 2 and collected the win in
the 4-2 victory. Owen Shepcaro and Justis Mattis each
came on in relief and closed games one and two
respectively. The Dodgers played their best baseball
when it seemed to matter the most. Throughout the
playoff tournament the Dodgers committed only one error,
walked only four batters, hit six home runs in three games
and recorded 24 hits and 11 stolen bases.
Of particular note were Owen Shepcaro's three home runs,
with two coming in the final game. It was Shepcaro's
walkoff blast, off of a Bryan King fastball in the bottom
of the fifth, that ended the playoffs and started the
celebration. Zach Leavitt anchored the defense
working behind the plate at Catcher for games 1 and three.
Newly converted outfielder Beckley Stearns became a
vacuum at SS, while Bergeron in CF, Charlie Kendall in RF,
Justis Mattis at first base and Sam Fox in LF all played
fierce defense throughout the week. Playing key roles
were Brian Reaney, Andrew Morrissey and Jack Fox.
It was the final game in a Dodgers uniform for Bergeron,
Berube, Richard, Leavitt and Stearns. Shepcaro,
Mattis, Morrissey and Reaney are each expected back next
year to complete their final year before moving onto the
big field.
The final game was attended by 132 devoted fans.
The Dodgers wish to thank all volunteers, parents and
players for making this a tremendous season of baseball.
Thank you to everyone.
Saturday, June 7
Braves
6, Cardinals 2
The
Braves and Cardinals had a good game Saturday morning at
Flash Jenness Field. The Braves were up first and got on
base with singles by Tyler Dewsnap and Nick Mackey and a
walk by Chris Latimer, however, no runs were scored.
The Cards batted in the first, but were held to a
one, two, three inning by the Braves.
The Braves would score two runs in the second thanks to a
double by Tyler Dewsnap and singles by Cody Mallory and Eli
Wilson. The Cards were held off again, and did not
score.
In the third, the Braves would score one run as Cody
Mallory walked, stole second and scored on a single by Nick
Connor. The Cards bat was moving as Curran Sullivan,
Chris Cummings and Connor DiCesare all singled but did not
score.
The fourth inning was scoreless for both sides.
In the fifth, the Braves would score two more runs with
singles from Tyler Dewsnap, Nick Connor and Ben Rowland.
The Cards were held off once again in a one, two three
inning.
In the sixth, the Braves bats were moving with Nick Mackey
walking and singles by David Muse, Cody Mallory, Nick
Connor and Ben Rowland, scoring Nick Mackey. The Cards led
off in the sixth with a threatening single by Curran
Sullivan followed by a triple by Ben Mardin scoring Curran
Sullivan. Ben Mardin stole home and the Cards were on
the board with two runs, but it was not enough as the
Braves Cody Mallory caught a fly ball to end the game.
Monday,
June 2
Cardinals
17, Braves 7
The Cardinals and Braves had an exciting game on Tuesday at
the Flash Jenness Memorial Field. The Cardinals came out
strong with 3 hits and 3 runs in the first inning.
Although held scoreless in the first, the Braves
whittled away at the Cardinals over the next 3 innings with
1 run in the 2nd, 1 in the 3rd and 5 in the 4th inning to
take a 7 to 3 lead into the bottom of the 4th. The
Braves had timely hitting from Riley Turner (single), Nick
Connor (single), Nick Mackey (double), Zane Keebler
(triple) and Eli Wilson (triple). Tyler Dewsnap
pitched 3 1/3 innings with 6 strikeouts.
Curran Sullivan started for the Cardinals and had 4
strikeouts over 3 1/3 innings. Ben Mardin came on in
the 4th and struck out the 2 batters he faced and 3 of the
4 batters he faced in the 5th.
Offensively, the Cards were led by Jono Harrison (triple
and single), Chris Cumings (2 singles), Connor DiCesare
(double), Curran Sullivan (4 singles), Logan Adams and Mark
Whittaker (2 singles each), Nick Ritzo (2 doubles and a
triple), Ben Mardin (triple) and Tommy Griffith (single).
The catchers for both teams played outstanding games behind
the plate: Mark Whittaker for the Cardinals and Cody
Mallory (also had 2 singles) for the Braves.
Saturday,
May 31
Dodgers
7, Cardinals 6
The
Dodgers and Cardinals played a close and well fought game
on Saturday morning with the Dodgers winning in the bottom
of the sixth after a walk-off double by Justis Mattis.
The Dodgers never led until Mattis' hit gave them the
winning run.
Tied 1-1 at the end of one; 3-3 at the end of three, and
6-6 at the beginning of the sixth inning, the Cardinals
were able to get two runners aboard but could not get the
go ahead run across. In the bottom of the sixth, Ryan
Bergeron reached first on an error and then stole second
with a passed ball. With two outs, and Bergeron on 2nd,
Mattis's double to right center brought Bergeron home for
the win.
The Cardinals recorded 8 hits during the game with notable
hits from Xavier Quinn, Curran Sullivan and Nick Ritzo.
The Dodgers collected 6 hits, for Zach Leavitt, Sam
Berube, two hits from Mattis and Sam Fox, who collected his
first major league hit of his career with a single in short
right during the second inning.
On the mound, Nick Ritzo went 3 1/2 innings for the
Cards while Tommy Griffiths came in to finish the game.
The Dodgers were led by Zach Leavitt who went a
strong five innings. Sam Berube closed the game and
collected the win.
Wednesday,
May 28
Dodgers
6, Cardinals 0
The
game was forfeited due to insufficient number of
players.
Monday,
May 26
Dodgers
10, Cardinals 5
The
Dodgers came out on top 10-5 against the Cardinals on
Monday night. Pitchings for the Cardinals were Curran
Sullivan and Ben Mardin. Sullivan struck out 3 and
walked 8 before coming off the mound due to reaching his
maximum number of pitches. Mardin came on in the
fourth and struck out 1 while walking none.
Offensively, the Cardinals were led by Xavier Quinn
and Nick Ritzo, each with two singles, with Sullivan and
Mardin each adding a single as well.
The Dodgers were led by Joe Richard on the mound.
Richard recorded 6 strikeouts, while giving up six
hits. Owen Shepcaro came on in relief during the
fourth inning and struck out three and gave up only one
walk. The Dodger pitchers, and good play in the
field, combined to limit the Cardinals to singles only and
did not surrender an extra base hit throughout the game.
The Dodgers helped their own effort with singles from
Sam Berube, Ryan Bergeron and Beckley Stearns, three
singles from Richard, a double from Shepcaro and a 4-4
night at the plate by Justis Mattis. Mattis hit two
singles, a double and his second HR of the season. In all,
the Dodgers collected 11 hits during the game.
Saturday,
May 24
Dodgers
vs. Braves
The Dodgers and
Braves ended their three game series on Saturday, May 24
with the Dodgers coming out on top. As with every
game in the series, both teams scored early. On
Saturday the Braves wasted no time once again by jumping
out to a 2-0 lead in their half of the first. The
Dodgers scored five of their own to take back the lead 5-2
at the end of one. The game was eventually ended due
to the 10 run rule.
On the mound, Nick Mackey and Tyler Dewsnap went the whole
way for the Braves, while David Muse, Cody Mallory and
Chris Latimer played well in the field. The Dodgers
received another fine effort from Sam Berube who went the
whole way for the Dodgers on 60 pitches. It was
Berube's second complete game of the season and his fourth
win overall.
Offensively the Braves were led by Mackey who hit a triple
and collected three RBI's, Will Stewart with a single and a
run, and Dewsnap and Muse each with singles. Owen
Shepcaro was the standout hitter of the day for the Dodgers
going 2-2 with a grand slam. Shepcaro's hit was the
first grand slam of his career and second home run this
season.
The game was played in front of a holiday crowd of 59 under
beautiful sunny skies at Flash Jenness Memorial Field.
Thursday,
May 22
Dodgers
12, Braves 3
Zach
Leavitt extended his home run streak to two games on
Thursday night as his fifth inning blast over the fence
helped the Dodgers to a 12-3 win over the Braves. "At
first I didn't think it was going to go, but then I heard
the (roar) of the crowd and knew it had a chance" said
Leavitt after the game. Leavitt's third home run of the
season helped to break open what had been a very close
game. Leading 2-1 after four, Leavitt started a four
run rally to give the Dodgers a little room before winning
by the final 12-3.
Cody Mallory, Nick Mackey, Tyler Dewsnap and Zane Keebler
all hit singles for the Braves, with Mackey adding a double
later in the game to go 2 for 3 at the plate. Mallory
also played very well at Catcher and led the Braves in the
field. Mallory's hustle behind the plate stopped two
Dodgers trying to score on passed balls, and picked off
Leavitt after trapping him in a pickle between home and
third. David Muse and Riley Turner handled pitching
duties for the Braves.
The Dodgers were led by Leavitt, Sam Berube with a single,
double and triple, Joe Richard's two singles, Beckley
Stearns a single, Owen Shepcaro a double, Justis Mattis a
double and single, and Charlie Kendall with three singles.
Charlie Kendall started the first regular season game
of his career and pitched well through three full innings
of work. Kendall recorded three K's and gave up two
hits. Mattis came on in relief and did a fine job
through the next 1 2/3 innings striking out three more.
Richard finished the game for the Dodgers and
recorded three K's.
The Dodgers juggled their line-up to give Kendall the
start, and received fine efforts in the field from Andrew
Morrissey, Jack Fox and Brian Reaney. Sam Fox also
continued his strong play in right field with a nice catch
off of a Dewsnap fly ball to end a scoring threat by
the Braves during the second inning.
Attendance: 49 (new '08, Thursday night high).
Tuesday,
May 20
Dodgers
7, Braves 6
The
Dodgers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead during the first
inning against the Braves on Tuesday night but found
themselves having to battle from behind late in the game to
eventually win 7-6. The Braves played well and had
the Dodgers on their heels throughout most of the game.
Zach Leavitt got things started for the Dodgers in the
bottom half of the first, leading off with his second home
run of the season. Leavitt was followed by hits from
Sam Berube and Joe Richard, and a fielder's choice to make
the score 3-0 after one. The Braves didn't waste much
time evening the score and eventually took the lead, 4-3 by
the end of two. Hits from Tyler Dewsnap and Ben
Rowland, combined with aggressive base running put the
Braves in front where they remained until the bottom of the
fifth. Trailing 6-5, with one out and two runners on
board, Beckley Stearns became the "man of the hour" for the
Dodgers as his double to right center drove in the final
two runs and created a 1 run lead.
On the night the Dodgers had 6 hits including the HR and a
double by Leavitt, two doubles from Richard and a single
and the 2 RBI double from Stearns. Ben Rowland had a
two hit night for the Braves going 2 for 3 with a double
and single. Dewsnap's single was the other hit for
the Braves. On the mound the Dodgers were led by Owen
Shepcaro, Leavitt and Richard. Shepcaro recorded 2K's
through the first two innings, Leavitt 3K's through three
innings with Richard recording 1K in the final three outs.
Nick Mackey pitched the first inning for the Braves
with Dewsnap taking over in the second and going the rest
of the way. Dewsnap recorded six strikeouts through
four innings of work play!
Attendance: about 43.
Saturday,
May 17
Braves
9, Cardinals 5
The
Cards started out strong in the first inning scoring two
runs as Ben Mardin walked and Nick Ritzo tripled. The
Braves retaliated with singles by Jamie Meade and David
Muse and a triple by Nick Mackey to put the Braves up 3-2.
Tyler Dewsnap gave the Braves another run as he hit his
first solo home run in the second inning!
In the third Mark Whittaker and Xavier Quinn of the Cards
singled and scored with help from Chris Cummings, but Tyler
Dewsnap's SECOND home run of the night, with Nick Mackey
and Chris Latimer on base, gave the Braves a 7-5 lead.
In the fourth, Will Stewart of the Braves, singled with his
first major league hit.
Curran Sullivan of the Cards would score in the fifth with
the help of teammate Xavier Quinn who doubled. The
Braves Cody Mallory and David Muse would score as well and
the Braves would hold on to win 9-5.
The pitching was strong for both teams as Chris Cumings
started for the Cards with three strike outs and Ben Mardin
came into the game in the fourth and had one strike out.
The Braves pitcher David Muse started and had four
strike outs and Nick Mackey came into the game in the
fourth and had seven strike outs for the save.
Saturday,
May 17
Dodgers
6, Pirates 5
The Dodgers won a
close game against the Pirates on Saturday by the final
score of 6-5. Sam Berube pitched another strong game for
the Men in Blue going 5 2/3 innings before reaching the
pitch count limit. Owen Shepcaro came on in relief to
close the game. On the day, Berube gave up 9 hits,
struck out 7 and for the second game in a row, walked 0.
Shepcaro struck out the only batter he faced.
Pitching duties for the Pirates were managed by Colby King
and Carter Madden in relief. King surrendered 11 hits,
struck out 5 and walked 2 through 3 2/3 innings.
Madden came on in the bottom of the fourth to strike
out 2, while giving up one hit and walking 2.
The Pirates jumped out to an early lead in the top half of
the first by combining a single from Bryan King with a
double by Bobby Mussig. The Dodgers answered in the
bottom of the inning with a lead off double by Zach Leavitt
(3-3 on the day) and singles from Sam Berube and Ryan
Bergeron (2-2). Bergeron's hit drove Leavitt across the
plate but Berube was tagged out while trying to score the
go-ahead run. The relay from the outfield was right
on the money as Bryan King (C) applied the tag. The
Dodgers increased their lead to 5-1 into the fourth but the
Pirates were able to string together three more hits,
including a solo home run by Bryan King and hits by Bobbie
Mussig and Robbie Carr to bring the score to within one.
The Dodgers scored one more in the fourth when
Berube's double off the fence in right center brought
Leavitt home. Carr hit a blast over the fence with
one out in the top of the sixth to make the score 6-5.
Carr's homer put everyone in the near capacity crowd
on the edge of their seats as the teams played the final
two outs. Carter Madden and Griffin Clark each added
singles to put the go ahead runs on base. Berube then
used his final four pitches to record the second out and
his seventh K before handing the ball off to Shepcaro.
Both teams played well throughout the close contest.
Jack Fox was a magnet at 2B for the Dodgers ending
two potential Pirate rallies. Andrew Morrissey and
Sam Fox saw a lot of action in right field and played well
for the Dodgers as did Justis Mattis at 1B. Charlie
Kendall and Beckley Stearns also added key hits.
Stearns went 2-3 at the plate with 2 RBI's. The
Pirates received a fine team effort from Sam LeCompte, Jack
Leger and Kerry Eaton.
Attendance: 108
Thursday,
May 15
Dodgers
11, Pirates 0
NO HITTER!
Joe Richard recorded the first no hitter of his career and
the first of the '08 season in Rye Little League on
Thursday night against the Pirates. The ten run rule
was invoked after five innings with the Dodgers winning by
a final score of 11-0.
The Pirates managed just one base runner all night, as
Robbie Carr reached first base safely on an infield error.
While the error eliminated the possibility of the
perfect game, it saved the no hitter. In the bottom
of the fifth, and only two outs away from the perfect game,
Carr hit a line shot grounder down the first base line that
was gloved by Justis Mattis in a diving play over the line.
Mattis dropped the ball as he turned to tag first
base allowing Carr to reach safely. It was an amazing
stop by Mattis, that seemed sure to get through otherwise.
Richard gave up no hits, walked none, and struck out
10 on the night while throwing only 56 pitches.
The Pirates were led in a fine effort by Bobby Mussig and
Robbie Carr on the mound. The two combined for
9 strikeouts and allowed 7 hits on the night. Carter
King played well at catcher for the Pirates holding the
Dodgers to only one stolen base on a wild pitch.
Griffin Clark also played well at 3B.
The Dodgers' seven hits came from Sam Berube with a triple,
Owen Shepcaro two doubles, Richard two singles, and Beckley
Stearns and Charlie Kendall each adding one single on the
night. Defensively Richard was backed up by Shepcaro
on 3B, Ryan Bergeron in center field and Sam Fox in right.
Zach Leavitt called a great game at catcher for the
Dodgers as he captained the team throughout each of the
five innings.
Attendance: 32.
Wednesday,
May 14
Cardinals
11, Braves 1
The Cardinals' bats were hot Wednesday as they scored 11
runs in just 4 innings to beat the Braves 11-1 in a game
shortened by the 10-run rule.
Nick Ritzo held the Braves to just 3 hits over 4 complete
innings while striking out 6. The Cards were led
offensively by Xavier Quinn, Curran Sullivan (including his
4th HR of the season) and Mark Whittaker all with 2
hits. Ryan Edey had his first Little League hit with
a double in the 3rd.
Chris Latimer led the Braves with 2 innings on the mound
and a single and a run scored.
Tuesday,
May 13
Dodgers
5, Pirates 3
The
Dodgers edged the Pirates 5-3 on Tuesday night. Sam
Berube pitched a complete game for the Dodgers going the
full six innings on 85 pitches, while giving up only 4 hits
and recording 8 strikeouts. Pirate hits came from
Colby King and Bobby Mussig. King turned a line shot,
that rolled to the fence in right center, into a double
with sharp base running and Mussig hit three singles on the
night. The Pirates were able to take advantage of
their hits, 4 errors by the Dodgers, and aggressive base
running to keep the game close. Berube walked none on
the night.
The Dodgers were led by Zach Leavitt with three singles,
and Joe Richard with a three run Home Run to straightaway
center field. Charlie Kendall added two singles and
Sam Berube another single to total 7 hits for the Dodgers.
Pitching for the Pirates were Bryan King and Robbie
Carr. The tandem of King and Carr gave up seven hits
and recorded 9 strikeouts.
Both teams played well as the game remained scoreless
through two. The Dodgers struck first when Leavitt
and Berube led off the inning with hits. The pair
scored on sharply hit grounder to Short that turned into an
error. The Pirates brought the score to within one
during the top half of the fourth to make the score 2-1.
Richard's 3 run homer later in the inning gave the
Dodgers a 5-1, and all the cushion they would need to hang
onto a 5-3 victory.
Attendance: 43
Monday,
May 12
Cardinals
3, Braves 2
In an exciting pitchers duel, the Cardinals squeaked out a
come from behind victory over the scrappy Braves Monday
night at Flash Jenness Memorial field.
Nick Mackey led the Braves on the mound with 7 strikeouts
and some fine defensive plays by the Braves infield.
Offensively the Braves collected their 2 runs on 7
hits. The Braves jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the
first on a walk to David Muse, a single by Cody Mallory and
a single by Tyler Dewsnap. Mallory and Dewsnap each
had 2 hits for the Braves.
Connor DiCesare (5 k’s) pitched 4 strong innings for
the Cardinals, who received some fine relief work from
Chris Cumings (2 k’s) over the final 2 innings,
getting the Braves 1, 2, 3 in the 5th with 3 ground outs
back to the mound. Chris worked himself out of a jam
to strike out the final batter in the bottom of the 6th for
the victory.
Offensively, the Cards where led by Curran Sullivan (3 hits
and 1 HR), Xavier Quinn (2 hits) and Chris Cumings’s
RBI single in the top of the 6th when the Cards took their
only lead of the game. Jono Harrison and Jake Naimark each
had their first Little League hits for the Cards.
Saturday,
May 10
Dodgers
11, Cardinals 3
The Dodgers won
their third in a row with a victory over the Cardinals on
opening day at Flash Jenness Memorial Field. Joe
Richard went most of the way for the Dodgers on the mound
before Sam Berube came in to earn the last four outs in the
bottom of the fifth and sixth innings for the Dodgers.
Richard gave up only three hits, with the most damage being
a three run HR by Curran Sullivan in the bottom of the
third. After the blast by Sullivan, Richard and
Berube combined to hold the Cardinals scoreless the rest of
the way.
On the mound for the Cardinals was Nick Ritzo and Sullivan.
Both turned in strong performances throughout all six
innings. Ben Mardin, Connor DiCesare and Tom Harrison
all turned in strong defensive performances for the
Cardinals.
Zach Leavitt contributed a single, while Ryan Bergeron
continued his momentum at the plate with a triple in the
third. Justis Mattis also collected two singles, and
Owen Shepcaro a double. The Dodgers looked to keep
their hitting advantage by adding aggressive base running
to their offensive effort. Leavitt, Bergeron and Sam Berube
all stole home for the Dodgers, while Beckley Stearns added
three stolen bases, including home.
Of note, Xavier Quinn added a double late in the game for
the Cardinals while trying to start a rally, but the Birds
were stopped for good when Sam Fox made a game ending catch
in RF off of a blast deep into right by Nick Ritzo.
The ball seemed forever suspended in air as Fox
hustled into position, and with two hands on the glove made
the catch and final out of the game.
The final score was 11-3 Dodgers, with Richard collecting
the win.
Attendance: a season high - 92.
Thursday,
May 8
Dodgers
14, Cardinals 12
The Dodgers topped the Cardinals in what turned out to be a
slugfest on Thursday evening at Flash Jenness Memorial
Field. After jumping out to an early 2-0 lead in the
second, the Dodgers increased the lead to 10-4 by the third
and looked to end the game early by 10 run rule in the
fourth. But the Cardinals never quit and fought back
to make it 11-8 in the fourth and then picked up two more
in the fifth. The Dodgers increased their lead with
three more runs in their half of the fifth before getting
the final out, while holding onto a 14-12 lead.
Justis Mattis pitched the first two innings for big Blue,
and was followed by Owen Shepcaro in the third and fourth,
and Zach Leavitt in the fifth and sixth. Leavitt
collected the win on the night. The Dodgers made some
uncharacteristic errors in the field, but got what they
needed, when they needed it from Jack Fox at 2B and Ryan
Bergeron in CF to secure the win. The Birds were led
by Ben Mardin and Connor DiCesare on the mound.
Offensively the Dodgers were led by Joe Richard and Justis
Mattis. Richard led off the second with a triple and
added a 3 run HR in the fifth. Mattis also hit a
three run HR in the third. Zach Leavitt added a
doulbe while Ryan Bergeron, Beckley Stearns, Owen Shepcaro,
Andrew Morrissey and Sam Fox also added hits on the night.
For Sam Fox, it was the first hit of his major league
career.
The Cardinals recorded hits by Curran Sullivan with a
double, and Nick Ritzo and Ben Mardin each with two hits
apiece.
Tuesday,
May 6
Dodgers
15, Cardinals 3
The Dodgers
prevailed in their first game of the regular season by a
winning score of 15-3 over the Cardinals. The game
remained close through the first four innings until the
Dodgers were able break it open in the top half of the
fifth.
The Cardinals jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom
half of the first with the combination of a lead off single
by Tommy Griffiths and a two run blast over the center
field wall by Nick Ritzo. Falling behind quickly may
have provided a jolt the Dodgers needed, as Sam Berube took
control on the mound and recorded 11 strikeouts throughout
five innings of pitching. With the game tied at 2
after four innings, the Dodgers rallied for 5 runs in the
fifth and 8 more in the sixth to insure the victory.
Berube was supported by a strong defensive effort in the
field by Ryan Bergeron - robbing Nick Ritzo of a second hit
with a diving snow cone catch in Left, Owen Shepcaro at
Short, and Charlie Kendall at Second. Shepcaro came
in to pitch the sixth inning allowing one hit and striking
out 3. At the plate, the Dodgers combined for 15 hits
with the most notable being Shepcaro's 220 rocket over the
left center fence. Zach Leavitt contributed two
triples, Ryan Bergeron a single, double and triple, Justis
Mattis with two doubles and a single, Kendall two singles,
Beckley Stearns with a double and Joe Richard and Sam
Berube collecting one single each.
In addition to the first inning fireworks by Griffiths and
Ritzo, the Cardinals collected another double by Griffiths
and Curran Sullivan. In addition to Ritzo's fine
effort on the mound through 4 innings, Curran Sullivan, Ben
Mardin and Mark Whitaker all pitched for the Cardinals.
Xavier Quinn played a solid game at Catcher as well.
Attendance:
37.