On this the last day of August, here’s a look back at the Brass City Bombers, who made the month one they’ll never forget.
Brass City played seven games in the month, and all of them came before the first 10 days had elapsed. Each of the games took place in the Connecticut Collegiate Baseball League’s double elimination playoffs.
The Bombers shut out the Simsbury SaberCats, 5-0, on Aug. 3 to open up postseason play. The next night, however, was not so kind as Brass City watched a late lead melt away in a 4-2 loss to the Manchester Meagles.
From here on out, the Bombers faced elimination. Brass City was in a must-win situation five times, and it came through all five of those times. The Bombers used a big fifth inning to down the Glastonbury Arrows, 7-3, on Aug. 6. Jimmy Fahey and Billy Oldham combined for a 1-0 shutout the next night against the Hamden Miners.
On Aug. 8, Brass City needed a late rally to beat the Manchester Meagles, 4-3. The rally was capped by Nick Lorusso’s long walk-off single.
On. Aug. 9, the second-seeded Bombers took on the top-seeded Manchester Eagles at East Catholic High School. Brass City needed to win the opener to force a winner-take-all second game, and it did just that. The Bombers pounded their way to a 10-9 victory over the Eagles. In the second game, Brass City’s offense erupted again in a 13-1, six-inning pasting of Manchester to clinch the CCBL championship.
Locals who played on the Bombers included Jack Drewry and Robert Taylor of Wolcott, along with Tim Zupkus of Holy Cross. Drewry and Zupkus were joined by a few players from their NVL high school days, along with a solid amount of talent from throughout the western part of the state. It all meshed together, and Brass City claimed the title in its inaugural season.
Photos
Here are my photos from the championship doubleheader.
