By Michael Letendre
The end of the regular season for the Greater Hartford Twilight Baseball League means it’s time for the annual postseason tournament.
And the Bristol Greeners, playing in the league over the past three seasons, will be in the postseason mix once again.
The postseason tournament, held in its usual double-elimination format, starts this Monday.
The Greeners, finishing the regular season at 1-23, will be slotted in the eighth position in the fray and squares off against one of the top seeds.
Both the Rainbow Graphics and Vernon Orioles finished the season tied for first place at 16-8 – earning a co-championship – while the Record-Journal Expos and East Hartford Jets each racked up 15-9 records, just a game out of first place in a tie for third.
Bristol’s first round opponent will be Vernon.
Greeners versus the Orioles
Vernon was 3-0 against Bristol this season – outscoring the Greeners 25-1 over the three encounters.
But on July 5, from Frank J. McCoy Field, the Orioles had to hold on for all seven innings as Vernon escaped with a huge 1-0 victory.
The Greeners were limited to three total hits with Jon Pierce leading the charge with a double but ended up stranded in the end.
Nick Swancott and Sean Borden also scooped up hits for the Bristol outfit.
Nohilly again threw a complete game, allowing just six hits, the lone earned run and six strikeouts.
About the Tournament
The 2023 GHTBL Playoff Tournament starts play at two sites: Palmer Field in Middletown and McKenna Field in East Hartford, a facility the GHTBL has called its postseason home for several years.
By the completion of double-elimination tournament, a playoff champion will be crowned.
Postseason admission in the GHTBL will be $10 for one adult all-tournament pass while kids ages 14 and under can attend for free.
Concessions will be available at Palmer Field and are always a delight.
Bristol is slated for the first game from Palmer Field at 6 p.m. on Monday evening.
“The traditional format of the Greater Hartford Twilight Baseball League is to present the Regular Season and Playoff Tournament as two separate seasons,” according to the GHTBL website. “The regular season dictates the seed of each team for the Playoff Tournament. No less than five regular season appearances qualify a player for the playoffs.
Redemption Time for the Greeners
The postseason will be a fresh start for the Greeners, coached by Trevor Mays, as the program endured a tough regular season.
The Greeners lone win came on Wednesday, May 31 from Muzzy Field.
Trevor Nohilly threw a 4-3 complete game gem to lead the locals to the win over the East Hartford Jets.
He allowed seven hits while fanning six to help Bristol earn its only triumph of the campaign.
AJ Lorenzetti went 2-for-2 with a run scored and an RBI while Josh Nohilly also garnered a hit for Bristol.
Sean Borden and Gil Roy each collected RBI tallies as the Greeners moved to 1-3 on the season.
From there, Bristol lost 20 straight games to end regular season play, hoping to reverse those fortunes in the playoffs this coming week
Champions Cup
On Friday, August 18, the Connecticut Champions Cup commences in what should be a tremendous weekend of local baseball action.
Several different men’s leagues will link up as the best of the best looks to win the biggest event of the summer.
“The competition has been organized by four summer leagues in our state – GHTBL, Connecticut Twilight League, West Haven Twilight League and Tri-State Baseball League,” said the GHTBL website. “[The] GHTBL Managers will be selecting an all-star team. Special edition hats and jerseys are to be provided by the league. The cup format will be a double-elimination tournament.”
Each league will be represented by a grouping of its best players.
Tournament sites include Ceppa Field in Meriden (Friday, August 18), Fussenich Park in Torrington (Saturday, August 19) and the finals commence from our own backyard at Muzzy Field in Bristol on Sunday, August 20.
GHTBL – Postseason Seeding
1. Vernon Orioles; 2. Rainbow Graphics; 3. East Hartford Jets; 4. Record-Journal Expos; 5. M&T Bank; 6. South Windsor Phillies; 7. Middletown Mets; 8. Bristol Greeners.
