Braintree Hosts, Wins Baseball Classic

The Third Annual Win Bates Baseball Classic was held in Braintree over the weekend, and included the local Senior Babe Ruth and Legion teams.

Win Bates, for whom the tournament is named after, died earlier this year. Bates was an avid Braintree sports enthusiast and reported on local area sports for over 35 years in area newspapers like the Patriot Ledger and Brockton Enterprise. Braintree defeated Medfield's Legion team in the tournament's championship game, 6-1.

Here’s a recap of Braintree play in the tournament:

Medfield 5, Braintree Senior Ruth 4

In the first of two games, Jake Mintz of Medfield fought near 90-degree mid-day heat and a pesky Braintree squad to pitch a complete game win 5-4. 

Mintz opened the game by walking the first batter but after quickly picking the runner off at first base, he then put down the next two batters looking at third strikes. With a 4-0 lead after three innings, Mintz yielded three hits that combined with a second baseman error only to find the game tied at four. But Mintz found a second wind and retired the next nine of 10 batters to seal the victory. Overall, Mintz scattered six hits, struck out eight, walked two and hit two batters in his 101-pitch effort.

After two outs in the first, a Will Cousins’ base hit off the pitcher’s glove, a dropped fly ball to right due to solar glare and a Mike Keleher single produced an early two-run lead. Gabe Mirabelli and Brian McCloud each scored in the next two frames to lead 4-0. With the score knotted at four in the bottom half of the fifth, Vin Palumbo opened with a base on balls and a Derek Bauer lined triple to right center put Medfield ahead for good. Braintree’s hurler Kurtis LaPaglia also put in a 100-plus-pitch effort, keeping many Medfield batters off-balanced in the loss.

Braintree Legion 4, Medfield Legion 0

In the second game of the day for both teams, Medfield Post 110 and Braintree Post 86 squared off in a classic pitching duel between Braintree’s Christian Fox and Medfield’s Derek Latosek through four scoreless innings. Fox remained dominant throughout as he struck out 15 Medfield batters in seven innings. Latosek struck out four and pitched out of several jams each inning until the fifth when two walks, a double and an error combined for four runs, enough for the win and a place in the Sunday championship game.

Championship Game: Braintree Legion 6, Medfield  1

Medfield had to regroup quickly to face a rested Braintree squad, who had bested them the day before 4-0. Kyle Latosek started for Post 110 and took a 1-run lead into the fourth. After getting two Braintree hitters to fly out to centerfielder Derek Bauer, Latosek showed signs of tiring when he gave up a double and left a 2-out 0-2 curve over the middle for a run scoring single by the Braintree catcher Zancy. 

The fifth inning proved to be the difference in the game as Braintree led off with a double and a sac bunt to move the go ahead runner to third with only one out. After two walks to load the bases Latosek got Braintree’s leadoff man to hit an infield fly for two outs. 

With two strikes and two balls on the next batter Latosek hit the batsmen to force in a run. Braintree’s third hitter Lee then laced a bases clearing double off Latosek and then scored on two wild pitches by pitching replacement Derek Bauer to put the home team up 6-1.

Starting pitcher Delano and reliever Radcliffe, who earned the victory, combined for eight strikeouts and only let up three Medfield hits although Post 110 continued to hit the ball hard and remained competitive save for the five run fifth which could have easily gone their way.

Related Topics: America Legion baseball, Medfield American Legion baseball, Post 110, Win Bates Baseball Classic, and braintree