The New England regional champion players from Westbrook don’t know a lot about Van Buren, Ark., host site of the Babe Ruth Baseball 13-15 World Series. They know it’s hot, so they’ll wear new, lighter jerseys. They also know they’ve got something to prove.
“We’re looking to take care of some business this time,” said catcher Nick Finocchiaro, who, like most of the players, went to the Little League World Series in 2005 and the Babe Ruth 13 World Series in 2006.
“We’ve got one World Series win in seven games,” Finocchiaro said. “I think we’re really looking to take it by storm and put up some big numbers in the first game.”
Those first two trips to the World Series only involved a drive – to Williamsport, Pa., and to Hamilton, N.J. This year, the team plans to take a bus from Westbrook High School to Logan Airport in Boston on Thursday morning, fly directly to Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, and then get shuttled the remaining 80 or so miles to Van Buren. On Friday, Westbrook begins pool play against Eau Claire, Wis., the Ohio Valley champ, at 1 p.m. Eastern Time.
In Little League, Westbrook dropped two close games before getting its only win of the World Series. The next summer, the team struggled from the start, bowing out with a 0-4 record while being outscored 25-5.
“If you don’t bring your good stuff, they are going to destroy you,” said Westbrook pitcher and outfielder Sean Murphy. “That’s basically what happened when we were 13.”
Westbrook will play four games over five days in pool play in the 10-team tournament. The top three teams in the two pools advance to the playoff round. The title game is scheduled for Aug. 22.
Second baseman and cleanup hitter Zach Collett thinks the team has learned a lot from the previous trips and is poised to make a run this time around.
“I think we’ve been distracted a lot in the past,” Collett said. “In Little League, we were all there (mentally), we just lost some close games. But in the 13-year-old (Babe Ruth) World Series, we really weren’t focused. We just kind of showed up. This year, I think it’s going to be a lot different.”
The players will stay with host families in groups of two or four in Van Buren.
“Host parents definitely help,” Collett said. “When we’re all together in dorms, things can get pretty crazy.”
The bus trips, too, have a tendency to get a bit rowdy.
“Those are wild. They’ll need to tone it down on the plane or else we’ll get kicked off,” Collett said.
The Westbrook players may be excitable, but that’s partially due to them all getting along so well and being comfortable around one another.
“We’re all great friends,” Collett said. “We have great team chemistry. It’s great that we’ve done all these fun things together.”
Westbrook will potentially face teams from Texas, Florida and California – states that regularly churn out top baseball talent, states where the fields are playable 12 months a year.
“I don’t think they write us off, but they know we play baseball one season a year,” Collett said. “They play all year round, so they think they’re better. But that’s not the case.”
Murphy said he’s been on the computer researching the opposition, trying to figure out who the top players are. He said the Little League World Series trip remains a good memory, but that there was a lot of learning to do between Little League and Babe Ruth ball.
“It definitely seems like a long time ago,” he said. “Roles have changed because people were smaller then. The field was smaller and there was a shorter pitching distance, so you didn’t really have the time to wait on the ball. I don’t think it really helps you at all, looking back on it.”
What has helped many of the players is high school baseball. More than half saw some action last spring on the Westbrook varsity team, with several players working their way into the starting lineup. After goofing off a bit in eighth-grade ball – and seeing the effects when the Westbrook 14-year-old Babe Ruth all-stars lost their first two games badly at the New England regional tournament – the youngsters were put in their place by Westbrook High School coach Mike Rutherford.
“It definitely smartened us all up,” Murphy said. “Nobody fooled around. If you don’t do it right, he’s in your face the whole time.”
Collett, the Blue Blazes’ starting second baseman, said the varsity experience was huge for his development.
“That’s helped a ton, getting used to that type of pitching and playing at that level,” he said. “You always have to be intense. You always have to be ready to play.”
Westbrook, with an underclassmen-laden roster, made it all the way to the Western Maine finals before falling to Deering, the eventual state champion. The Blue Blazes are expected to be a top contender come next spring. So while the 13-15 World Series is the end of the line for this group in Babe Ruth, this isn’t the last you’ll see of this team.
“This is just the beginning,” Finocchiaro said. “We’ve got a couple more years together.”
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