Bridgeport North End Little League: My Site News

WELCOME TO THE 2012 NELL SEASON:  This is the 1^st edition of the 2012 NELL News letter. We had another great season in 2011 and are looking to expand upon last year’s success with some new talent and collaboration with the Clubhouse of Fairfield CT. We had a great opening day ceremony marked by appearance from the Mayor, Bill Finch, City Council President Tom McCarthy, City Councilwoman Michelle Lyons, our District II Administrator Lou Bleggi and inspirational words from our guest speaker, former major league player and Bridgeport LL alum, Angel Eccheverria.  

This year is the 2^nd in which the league has invited 4 year olds to participate in our T-ball Clinic that runs on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Many thanks to the Recovery Network of Programs for supporting this clinic with a generous donation.

In our newly formed relationship with the Clubhouse, we will be playing games against their teams on Sundays for our Major and Minor Division. They have agreed to send one of their trainers (Angel) every Saturday during the season to our clinics and have also agreed to train one of our major teams each Wed from 7 – 8:30 at their facility. This has been a great deal for both organizations as we have given them use of our fields for games on Sunday and will look to increase our collaboration in the coming future.

Some upcoming events include Picture day this Saturday at NELL fields. Your team moms should have schedules for everyone along with the picture order form. Our City League Tournament will also be coming up on May 20^th and will be held at Park City complex this year. Teams from Black Rock, Park City and Carribe will compete against a NELL team of 11 and 12 YO’s.

Our NELL clinics have been underway since the beginning of the season with our 9/10  and 11/12 going on Saturdays from 3 – 4:30 PM.  

IMPORTANT NOTE:  NELL will be conducting a raffle again this year. 1^st prize is a 46 inch LCD television and home theater system. 2^nd prize is an 8 G IPOD Touch, 3^rd prize is a Weber Grill and there is a $100 gift card from Stop and Shop. Sue Allen, will be overseeing the raffle and will be distributing 1 book of 20 tickets to every player in our Lower and Junior divisions on Saturday. The hope is that each player can sell 1 book of 20 tickets at $2 per ticket.

NELL would also like to honor another fallen great, Sammy Montalvo who passed away earlier this year. He was part of the Rays trio of Joe Sicsico (Sponsor), John Kardos Sr., (Manager) and Sammy that ran the Rays for over a decade. Sammy will be deeply missed by all.

In our game action, the Reds gained some revenge from last years Romano loss to the Yankees by beating the newly named Yankees (now referred to as Phillies) 10 Zip. Marshawn Spruill threw a complete game shut out for the win. The Rangers needed a thrilling come from behind win to upend the Rays 7 – 6 in their first game of the season. Isaiah Colon came in relief and threw 4 solid innings for the Rangers. Gil Villegas hit a game tying bases clearing double in the bottom of the 5^th to tie the game at six and Kyle Federici hit a walk off single to win it in the bottom of the 6^th. Colon finished the game with 9 K’s allowing 3 runs. Chris V from the Rays was 2 for 2 with 2 walks to lead the Rays attack. Angelo Rodriguez went 5 innings but couldn’t hold the lead in the 5^th to keep the Rangers from coming back. He finished with 7 K’s and had a long double to the fence to help his own cause.

On the 16^th, the Rays beat the Reds 12 – 5 with a team pitching effort with C Peeples, D Liveramento and C Velez. The Rangers got the best of the Phillies on 4/17 winning 13 – 3 in 5 innings. Scotty Moutinho pitched 5 innings with no earned runs while striking out 9. Pete Mitchell was 2  - 3 with a triple and an inside the park HR. Gil Villegas continued his hot start to the season with a 4 – 4 performance including a double, triple and 2 RBI’s. Jarret Hughes and Lenny Samultulski each went 2 – 3 while Walt was 1 – 2 with 2 RBI’s. The Reds thumped the Phillies 13 – 1 on 4/20 behind another solid pitching performance from Marshawn Spruill who went the distance for the Reds.

On 4/21, the Rangers kept up those hot bats beating the Rays 13 – 3. Pete Mitchell and Kyle Federici each threw 3 innings with Mitchell striking out 8 and Federici getting 7 K’s. Mitchell and Federici also did some damage at the plate with Mitchell getting 3 RBI’s with a double and Federici getting 2 RBI’s on a 1 – 3 day. Anthony Maldonado also had a good game for the Rangers going 2 – 3 with a double, single and 2 RBI’s. Chris Peeples and Angelo Rodriguez were the loan hitting stars for the Rays each roping a double with Rodriguez’s just missing clearing the fence.

On 4/24, The Rangers kept the bats rolling with a 13 – 1 win over the Reds. Isaiah Colon went 3 innings, striking out 6 while giving up no runs. Pete Mitchell was 3 – 4 with 2 RBI’s and Kyle Federici had an inside the park HR and 3 RBI’s. On 4/28, the Astros snuck past the Rays 5 – 3. Hayden Gorley, looking for rookie of the year went the distance pitching a complete game for the Astros. Angelo Rodriguez countered with 5 2/3 innings but could not hold off the Astros.

On 4/28, the Reds worked hard for a 12 – 7 win over the Phillies. Eduardo Martinez roped two doubles to lead the Reds attack while Jarret Hughes pitched well for the Phillies. On 5/1, the Rangers kept up their winning ways with an impressive 19 – 3 victory over the Astros. Pete Mitchell broke the game open with a bases clearing opposite field HR for his 1^st career grand slam and Anthony Maldonado had an inside the park HR for the Rangers. Will Garay had 2 singles for the Stros while Matt Lindsay got an inside the park HR to lead the Astro charge.

In our Minor Division, we had the Cubs winning 1 4 – 4 over the A’s on 4/17. Shane Santiago went 3 innings with 6 K’s and Jeremy Everlith had a good game for the Cubs. Nicholas Garcia and Nicholas Jones played outstanding for the A’s in the loss. On 4/20, the Cubs and A’s went at it again with the Cubs winning 12 zip. Sebi Badolato pitched 2 innings for the win and Everlith had another good game. Nick Jones had another good game for the A’s.

The Mets pitched to a 4 nothing shutout over the A’s on 4/21. Led by Gary Rosso Jr. and Darrell Warren’s 3 shut out innings apiece, the Mets looked impressive. Nick Jones and Nick G, each went 3 innings for the A’s in the tough loss. On 4/24, the Cubs pulled out a squeaker over the Mets 3 – 1. Jaden Orozco went 4 innings for the Cubs while Nick Floyd came on in relief for the Mets and went 4 innings. Sebastiano Badolato had a great game for the Cubs while Reishaun Rodriguez did well for the Mets. The Mets came back on 4/27 and snuck past the cubs 6 – 4 behind a trio of pitchers, Miguel, Nick and Daryl. Maki Beckwith and Nick Floyd had good games for the Mets.

On 4/28, the Cubs outpaced the A’s 8 – 3. Jayden Orozco and Elijah Martinez had good games for the Cubs while Juan Colon and Enrique Valentin did well for the A’s. The Whitesox and Mets battled each other with the Sox coming out on top 3 -1. Drew Smith had a great game pitching going 3 + innings while Nick Floyd got his 1^st hit of the season for the Mets. On 5/1, the Mets doubled up the A’s 6 – 3 with Miguel F and Gary R having great games. Tyler L and Victor P had good games in the loss.

That’s it for our game action. We want to thank several of our sponsors for their continued generosity towards our league. Mark IV construction is a big contributor with funds and material to help keep our league going. We also want to thank La Caguena Restaurant for their continued support as well as donations of those tasty Spanish treats in the concession stands. Joe’s Fuel is a long time sponsor and don’t forget the Rule to buy Joe’s Fuel. Also, Tri-State Embroidery and Tri-State Property Care for helping with all of our uniform needs as well as the landscaping business which came out and cut our lawns for free just before opening day.

Please continue to frequent our concession stand for those delicious bacon egg and cheese sandwiches that are flying out of the stand. Be brave and ask for one with some chili on it or go for a special buffalo wings and fries for lunch. Don’t forget your drinks and sweet tooth needs at our side snack Shoppe.

CITY LEAGUE TOURNAMENT THIS WEEKEND:  Congratulations to this year’s lone NELL representative team to the annual City League Tournament. NELL will be competing against Black Rock, Park City Little Leagues and Carribe for the 6^th Annual City League Tournament. Coached by Andy Thomson, Willie Hernandez and Ernest Texeira, the team will be comprised of the following players: Matt Lindsay, Lenny Samultulski, Christopher Peeples, Angelo Rodrigues, Dimitrius Gordon, Eddie Martinez, Kyle Federici, Isaiah Colon, Scott Moutinho, Gilberto Villegas, Anthony Maldonado and Peter Mitchell. The tournament is hosted by Park City Little League with opening ceremonies at 9:30. NELL’s 1^st game will be at 1:30 P against Park City with Carribe and Black Rock squaring off in the early game. They will also be collecting new toys for a cancer drive.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  NELL will be conducting a raffle again this year. 1^st prize is a 46 inch LCD television and home theater system. 2^nd prize is an 8gb. IPOD Touch, 3^rd prize is a Weber Grill and there is a $100 gift card from Stop and Shop. Sue Allen, will be overseeing the raffle and will be distributing 1 book of 10 tickets to every player in our Lower and Junior divisions on Saturday. The hope is that each player can sell 1 book of 10 tickets at $2 per ticket.

Parents please note that the clinics that have been occurring on Saturday’s for the 9 – 12 YO’s is cancelled for the remainder of the season. Unfortunately, we could not get the assistance needed to help run this clinic.

In our game action, the Rays and Astros slugged it out on 5/4 with the Rays topping the Stros 14 – 12. The Rays kept their winning ways by besting the Phillies 10 – 4 on 5/5. Chris Peeples pitched a complete game getting help offensively from Angelo Rodriguez. On the 5^th, the Rangers saw some tough competition from the Reds Marshawn Spruill who eventually caved to the Ranger bats, 7 – 1. Spruill gutted out 3 innings while Daniel Allen was 1 – 3 with the lone RBI for the Reds. Matt Carrara played outstanding defense at 3^rd keeping the score close. The Rangers got a complete game from Scott Moutinho who gave up 1 unearned run and struck out 11. Petey Mitchell was 3 – 3 with a double and 3 RBI’s.

On 5/7, the Astros Zipped the Phillies 7 – 0 behind a combined shut out performance of young guns, Hayden Gorley and Chuck Clemmons. The Rays upended the Reds 7 – 1 with 4 + innings of pitching from their ace, Angelo Rodriguez. Chris Velez came on in relief to save the rain shortened 5 inning game. On the 10^th, the Astros and Rangers squared off in a match up of 12 YO Flame Throwers. Matt Lindsay kept the potent Ranger offense in check with 5 strong innings yielding 4 runs while recording 10 K’s. However, he was outmatched by Peter Mitchell’s, 4 innings of 2 hit 1 run ball to go with 10 K’s of his own. Scott Moutinho led the offense for the Rangers going 2 – 3 with an RBI and pitched 1 ½ innings of scoreless relief to seal the victory. On the 11^th, the Rangers thumped the Phillies 13 – 0 behind 4 strong innings from Kyle Federici. Federici gave up 1 hit in the complete game shut out and struck out a career high 11 Phillies. Blasé’ Gintoli led the offense going 2 – 2 with a Triple, single, 2 walks and 4 runs scored.

On 5/12, the Rangers playing their 3^rd game in 3 days, picked up a come from behind win over the Reds 8 – 6. Down 6 – 2 after 5 innings, the Rangers came roaring back to tie the game at 6 in the top of the 6^th ruining a stellar performance from 10 YO phenom Joaquin “SpongeBob” Brasher. Brasher kept the Rangers off balance for most of the game, recording 2 K’s and getting  a great defensive effort from his entire team. 9 YO Rookie of the year candidate, Eric Garlarza was 3 – 4 for the Reds while Marshawn Spruill and Taevian Jackson each collected 2 hits. However, it was the Ranger bats that came alive with Scotty “Rock Crusher” Moutinho’s monster double of the Green Monster in the top of the 6^th that got the Rangers within 1. This followed a 2 run triple by Pete Mitchell. Kyle Federici led off the 7^th inning with a double and came around to score on Isaiah Colons base hit to build a 2 run lead. Moutinho came in and shut the door in the bottom of the 7^th with a scoreless inning striking out 2.

The Rangers closed out a 4 game in 4 day weekend with a Mother’s day classic against the Fairfield Clubhouse team. After a shaky start to the game, the Rangers Ace, Scotty Moutinho came on in relief of Gil Villegas and threw 5 innings of 2 run ball striking out 7. With the team down for the 2^nd day in a row in the 6^th inning, Kyle Federici led off the top of the 6^th with a bunt and would later come around to score on Anthony Maldonado’s 2 run single in what would be a 5 run outburst for a 7 – 3 win. Maldonado finished with 3 RBI’s and the team got a great defensive effort behind the plate by Pete Mitchell who called for a 1 – 2 – 5 double play to end a Fairfield threat in the 4^th.

In the Minor Division, the A’s snuck past the Mets on 5/4 behind 3 solid innings from Nick J. Enrique V had a great game for  the A’s as did Elisha F and Miguel for the Mets. The Cubs thumped the Mets on 5/5 behind 3 shut out innings from Shane. Trevor led the offense for the Cubs while Marven and Miguel had good games for the Mets. The White Sox upended the A’s 10 – 4 in the late game on 5/5. Elijah Barnes was the lone standout for the A’s.

On 5/10, the Cub blanked the A’s 5 – 0 behind 2 innings from Elijah and Jayden O. Sebastiano B and Jayden P also had good games for the Cubs while Nick Jones and Angelo F were the outstanding players for the A’s. On 5/11, the Whites ox pulled off a nail biter with a 3 – 2 victory over the scrappy Mets. Joey O pitched 4 innings and Drew had a good game for the Sox. Marven and Miguel both played well for the Mets in the loss. The Mets got in the Win Column with a 9 – 5 victory over the A’s on 5/12. Miguel and Nick F played great for the Mets while Nick Jones and Ruben Bruce played great for the A’s. 

COACHES: Remember to fill out game sheets and provide more details regarding games for the NELL News letter.

That’s it for our game action. We want to thank several of our sponsors for their continued generosity towards our league. Executive Offices which does all of the leagues printing, Recovery Network of Programs which sponsors our T-Ball Clinic, Merrit Canteen a long time and current sponsor for our Major Division Reds and D and G Auto and Trailers the current Mets Sponsor have all made our league what it is today. Thanks again to these great local businesses and the owners that not only provide financial support but also support our league through volunteerism with coaches and league officials.

Please continue to frequent our concession stand. We have expanded the menu and trust me, those Turkey Wraps are to die for. If you’re in the mood for something fishy, try our Shrimp or Clam Dinner and don’t forget the side stand for your sweet cravings or ice cream fix.