By Michael Letendre

Our trip down memory lane continues this Sunday as TBE looks back at the Bristol Merchants of the Greater Hartford Twilight Baseball League.

Today’s focus is on the 2001 campaign which was the first year for the franchise in GHTBL play.

Several Bristol players took the field for the Merchants that year.

Head coach Ed Smith Jr. led the troops while Ryan Maclure, Corey Parker, Ed Dickman, Mike Kulak, Ryan Madore, Jarrett Bayliss, Pat Holden, Matt Mockler, Keith Mirante (Plainville), Nate Milbrandt, Ryan Smith, Aaron Seibert, Dave Grobowski, Ryan Flaherty, K.C. Tenukas, Tony Spinelli, and Paul Nocera all suited up for the squad.

It was a tough beginning as Bristol finished at 7-21 – last place in the league.

However, there were some highlights along the way as the program was building for the future.

On June 1, in the Merchants first ever game, Bristol defeated Newman by a 4-0 push.

Bayliss picked up the shutout via a four-hitter that included five strikeouts in Bristol.

And then on June 13, Bristol sent KGA packing by a 12-2 final – moving to 2-2 on the campaign.

Parker went 5-for-5 with a double, triple, three runs scored and two RBI. The win was the biggest of the season for the Merchants.

Dickman went 2-for-3 with a home run while Kulak added two hits with a double, two runs scored, and two RBI for Bristol.

Ryan Madore won the contest over a six inning, three-hit, seven strikeout effort for the Merchants.

On June 21, Bristol defeated Newington by an 8-6 final, moving to 3-4 overall.

Parker, Holden, and Mockler each generated two hits apiece as Bristol pulled out a big win against the Capitols.

Parker added two RBI while Mirante and Mockler tallied RBI singles to put the game away.

Milbrandt and Ryan Smith collected sacrifice flies and Seibert won the contest over a relief appearance.

And on June 23, Bristol won at Newman’s by a 7-3 push, evening its record at 4-4 after eight games.

The Merchants scored six runs in the seventh inning as the squad turned a two-run deficit into a four-run push. 

Milbrandt and Flaherty were all 2-for-3 with two RBI for the Merchants.

Milbrandt smashed out a two-run triple to pace host Bristol over the shutout of KGA, 4-0, on July 7.

The Merchants (5-7) broke a three-game losing streak while KGA fell to 7-7 overall.

July 14 saw Bristol scoop up a 4-3 win against Vernon from Bristol Central – moving to 6-9.

Parker dropped in two hits and collected three RBI while Seibert fanned seven – winning the game from the hill – as Bristol broke a two-game losing streak

From that point on, Bristol finished the campaign at 1-12 – ending the regular season at 7-21

The Postseason Tournament

People’s ended up the regular season champs with a 26-2 record.

That meant the Bankers opened postseason play as the number one seed in the GHTBL tournament.

Mr. G’s was the runner up at 18-10, with Newman (No. 3, 16-12) and Newington (No. 4, 14-14) rounding out the top four.

Seeds five through eight included KGA of Middletown (No. 5, 13-15), East Hartford Coca-Cola (No. 6, 10-18), the Vernon Orioles (No. 7, 8-20), and finally, the Bristol Merchants (7-21).

Day one of tournament play started with No. 4 Newington Capitols versus No. 5 KGA while top ranked People’s battled No. 8 Bristol.

Playoff Format

If everything went according to plan – and that meant Mother Nature left McKenna Field in East Hartford alone – the tournament took six days to complete.

In 2001, with eight teams, all the squads were in action and postseason byes didn’t come into play until the league expanded.

Over the two-day opening round, four winners advanced while the four losing squads played elimination games.

Here’s a quick recap of Bristol’s postseason in 2021:

August 9 – No. 1 People’s 9, Bristol 2

The best team in the league didn’t have any problem with Bristol – moving to 27-2 overall in a 9-2 victory over the Merchants.

Kulak had two hits while Nocera threw three innings of one-hit ball out of the bullpen.

Bristol dropped into the loser’s bracket of the GHTBL playoffs as KGA upset Newington in first round play, 5-2.

August 11 – No. 4 Newington 5, Bristol 4

Jay Landeen, Brian Marshall, and Kevin Beaudoin all hit home runs against Bristol as Newington defeated the Merchants, 5-4, in an elimination showdown.

Kulak and Parker each nabbed three hits apiece for Bristol, falling to 7-23 in its final game of the campaign. 

Forgettable Fact

This would be the only time in Merchants’ history that the squad did not win a game over postseason play or finish the year with a sub-.500 record.

People’s Bank won its second straight GHTBL Playoff Championship while also winning the Regular Season title.

Next week, we’ll look at the 2002 Bristol Merchants as a new coach takes charge of the program.