TROY — Over the weekend the South Troy Dodgers 18U baseball team saw their season come to an end in the most sour of ways.
After a come-back from behind victory on Saturday, the Dodgers had to beat the undefeated (in regionals) Connecticut Bombers twice in the same day.
Winning the first game of the doubleheader by 10 (12-2), South Troy was one step closer to a berth into the championships the following weekend in New Mexico.
In game two, the Bombers showed their strength, doing what the Dodgers did the day before, coming back from a deficit to win.
Despite the end to their travel league season, a few Dodgers will still be playing competitive baseball on some of the biggest stages. Early this week Kody Skype signed with the Albany Dutchmen of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball league, one of the most prestigious in the country. In an impressive twist, another Dodger will be playing with the very team that knocked his team out for the AABC title that they were playing for all season.
Catcher Anthony Butler received some BIG news immediately following what he thought was the end of his travel league season. The Connecticut Bombers asked Butler if he would be interested in joining their team as they moved on to the championships. “It has always been a goal of mine to get to Farmington, New Mexico, and when they walked off I thought my dream was over. I was devastated. When Kevin Rodgers called me over and said the Bombers would like you to go to New Mexico with them, I was in shock. It was a lot to take in right then and there, still being upset over the loss, but it’s nice that I get to fulfill my dream of playing in the Connie Mack World Series,” Butler said.
Although he will be joining a group of kids he hardly even knows, Butler is still very excited, “ I’m excited to play with these guys, they’re good kids. Every time you play another team you always hate them, until you play for them. We are all out on the field for the same reason, to try and win a baseball game, it’s going to be fun experiencing the time of our lives with a bunch of new ball players.”
I know what you’re thinking. How is this okay? In the simplest of answers, let’s just say the rules are different for travel ball. It’s more about player development and less about hard core competition. With that said this definitely isn’t Funball, and not everyone gets a trophy just for showing up.
The Bombers will kick off their championship quest Saturday against Top Tear at 5:15pm (MST). Stay tuned for updates from New Mexico.
