By Bruce Hack Lexington Blue Sox Media Relations Director Lexington – On a picture-perfect day for watching baseball the Intercity League treated its fans to three great games on the Gerie DeAngelis Memorial Day of Baseball. All three games are played at Lexington High School in memory of Blue Sox manager Rick DeAngelis’ late wife, who was very involved with the Blue Sox and the Intercity League. The team that scores usually goes on to win the game. Today that proved to be true as all three games were won by the team that scored first. The games began with a noon start between the 0-2 Andre Chiefs and the 1-0 Middlesex Expos. Seven innings the Chiefs had their first win of the young season, 5-3. The Chiefs sent veteran pitcher Tim Dunphy to the mound and he led his teammates to a 5-3 win. The southpaw pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up 7 hits, 3 runs, walked one and struck out eight. He retired six straight and 8 of 9 batters in the third through fifth innings. The Chiefs jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first. With two outs Andrew Caulfield and Ryan Noone each walked and Joe Bove was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Caulfield scored on a wild pitch and Kyle DeRoma’s double drove in Noone and Bove for the 3-0 lead. In the second the Chiefs added two more runs. Christian Rosatti was walked with one out and scored on an RBI single by Juan Parra. After a walk to Teddy Dziuba and a strikeout Noone singled to scored Parra for a 5-0 lead. The Expos started chipping away at the lead in the bottom of the second. Eduardo Colemenares doubled with one out and scored on a two-out single by Amulfo Gonzalez to make it 5-1 Chiefs. Middlesex cut the lead by 5-3 in the bottom of the fifth on RBI singles by Dionys Quezada in the third, driving in Tom Muizulis, and the fifth that scored Jose Paulino. Roland Mendez came in in relief in the second inning for Middlesex and held the Chiefs to two hits with five strikeouts, giving his teammates a chance to comeback. Mendez set down the final 11 batters he faced, including the side in order in the fourth through sixth innings. For the Chiefs it was their eighth straight win on Day of Baseball, all as the road team. This was the Expos first game on the Day of Baseball. Game Two featured the host Lexington Blue Sox, won 3-0, versus the Malden Maddogs, who were the home team. Both starting pitchers hung up zeros through the first four innings. Lexington finally got on the scoreboard in the fifth. Malden starter Matt Tyman had retired nine straight in the second through fifth innings. With one out, Blue Sox George Athanasiadas reached on an error. He moved to second on a wild pitch and with two outs, Jesnel Soto doubled to left for a 1-0 lead and the only run the Sox would need. Nate Wolf, Eli Perez and Clay Sowell (RBI) singled in the top of sixth to begin the rally. Morgan Brown reached on an error to load the bases. Athanasiadas singled to right to drive in the Blue Sox third and final run. Lexington started Jack Schwartz pitched five shutout innings, giving up two hits. He walked two and struck out six in his first win of 2022. Steve Bangs and Borja Jones-Berasaluce combined to complete the shutout, the fifth the Blue Sox have recorded on the Day of Baseball. The final game of the day was Melrose against Reading and the Americans picked up their first win of the 2022 season with a 6-3 win. The Americans struck in the top of the first as Pat Costigan and Jack Beverly walked to start off the game. A nicely turned 4-6-3 double play by the Bulldogs put them an out away from ending the threat. A Reading error allowed Costigan to score for a 1-0 Melrose lead. The Americans broke the game open with a four run third. Walks again to Costigan and Beverly started the inning. Cory Bright doubled scoring Costigan. Gianni Zarrilli the took one deep over the left field fence for a three-run home run and a 5-0 lead. The Bulldogs were blanked for four innings, but put a crooked number on the scoreboard in the fifth inning, scoring three runs. Brendan Albert started the rally with a lead off double. Andrew Croteau reached on an infield single and went to second on a throwing error that Albert came home on. Luke Butler was hit by a pitch to place Bulldogs on first and second with no outs. All of this came off Melrose reliever Greg Johnson. He then got two ground ball outs, the second by Dylan Arnold driving in the second run. A single to left by Joe Cacciatore drove in Butler with the third run of the inning. Mike Peters came in from the Americans bullpen and gave up a single to Patrick Solomon to put Bulldogs on the corners. Peters got the third groundball out of the inning to end the threat. Mike Nestor started for Melrose and pitched four hitless shutout innings. The lefty walked four and struck out six in his first win. Nestor pitched 1-2-3 innings in the first and third and also picked off a runner in the fourth. He also batted and went 2-for-3. Christian Loeschler pitched a 1-2-3 7th with two strike outs for the save. Reading starter Graham Seed went three innings, allowing five runs, on two hits, four walks (3 of them scored) and two strikeouts. Seed also hit and walked once. These two teams met on Day of Baseball in 2015 with Reading winning 11-3. That was the last Bulldogs victory on Day of Baseball, as they have now lost four straight games. After a day off, four teams return to

Hector Roman Jr. and two time Batting Champion Derek Bauer had three hits each to lead the Malden Maddogs to a 9-5 opening night win over the Andre Chiefs at Maplewood. It was the only ICL game played. Juan Parra, Dave Lightbody, and Kyle DeRoma all had two hits for the Chiefs while Andrew Caulfield added a solo homer. Rob Carrillo (1-0) went four innings to get the win with relief help from Brian Pelrine. Lefty Jonathan Richard (0-1) took the loss as Anthony Delprete (4 innings) and Bryan Saffelle (2 innings) also worked for the Chiefs. Each team banged out 10 hits but Chiefs’ pitching issued 9 walks. Games in Lexington and Melrose were both rained out. ICL action continues tonight with the Blue Sox and Bulldogs meeting at Lexington High at 8:00 PM and the Chiefs visiting the Middlesex Expos at Brandeis University at 8:15 PM.

John “Pancho” Webb, a star with both the Hosmer Chiefs and the Medford Mustangs in the late 1960’s and 1970’s, has passed away. He was scheduled to be inducted into the Intercity League Hall of Fame. Pancho was drafted by the Red Sox and spent time in their minor league system. He is member of the Medford High Hall of Fame where he was a standout infielder, hockey player, and a place-kicker/wide receiver on the 1967 MHS Class A champion undefeated team. Pancho’s obituary is below: John J. Webb a life-long resident of Medford passed away unexpectedly at home on January 17, 2022. He was 70. He graduated from Medford High School, Class of 1969. John was born in Lynn, the cherished only son of John T. and Anna E. (Galanti) Webb. Survived by his sister Karen Saporito and her husband Richard of Wilmington, MA. Uncle of Nicholas Saporito and his wife Tamara of Medford, Jessica and Dan Kretzenger of Tewksbury and Michael and Kristen Saporito of NH. Great-Uncle to Sophia, Bella, Charlie, Thomas and Tessa. John who was known to many as ‘Pancho’ was raised and educated in Medford and played sports throughout his life. He was a star athlete, especially with the Medford High Mustangs Baseball team and was inducted into the Medford High School Hall of Fame. John relocated to Florida for a short period when he was drafted by the Boston Red Sox Farm Team; this was such an exciting time for him and quite an accomplishment. Soon after, Major League Baseball went on an extended strike and all the rookies were released. John then returned home to his family in Medford. John took a job with the Boston Housing Authority for several years and he continued to follow his favorite Boston Sports Teams. At John’s request all Funeral Services will be private.

Amateur baseball players have always been interested in using statistics, seeing videos of their play, and leveraging data analytics for improving their performance. However, most of this technology wasn’t available to them without a big-league budget. Provided are 4 apps a baseball league could incorporate to provide its players with both a competitive edge and a more enjoyable experience. The ICL is only using one of these software tools today, but perhaps others are on the horizon. Plus, several of these apps have ties to our local baseball community! 400hitter 400hitter is statistics software that includes player stats, league standings, league scheduling, umpire assignments, player registrations, and more. The Intercity League began using it in 2006, and has every year since. While it does not provide real-time play-by-play like GameChanger does, it us the best baseball software on the market for amateur baseball leagues. 400hitter was created by Mike Ganley, a player in the Boston Men’s Baseball League. His tool was quickly caught on, and today is used by the ICL, Boston MABL & MSBL, and most of the amateur leagues across Greater Boston, including the Yawkey, Park, Commonwealth, North Shore, and Cranberry leagues. 400Hitter keeps track of a player’s statistics across their career, wherever they play. So when a player changes teams or leagues, their statistics remain linked – as long as their league is in the 400hitter network – as most Boston-based leagues are. Having career stats for players and teams also allows for features not found in other stats apps, such as career leaders by league, career leaders by team, day vs. night splits for a player, and rookie stats. Plus, each game’s line scores, box scores and summary can be viewed online as well as shared via social media. 400hitter costs $75 per team and must be used for an entire league to function accurately. Ganley finished his amateur career in 2009, and today is the Director of Baseball Systems for the Boston Red Sox. You know his work with 400hitter helped him move up to the majors! ChangeUp ChangeUp goes beyond what a typical pitch counter does to track pitches within a baseball game. It allows coaches to manage pitcher workloads and assess pitcher performance across multiple teams and leagues. This has never been more important across amateur baseball. Pretend Sean Sullivan is pitching on your team. Most managers would love to have him, as he has a career record of 60-29 with a 2.37 ERA. But did you know that in addition to pitching for the Alibrandis in the Intercity League he also pitched for the Boston Bombers in the Boston MSBL? How can a manager track detailed game appearances and pitching performance across multiple teams in different leagues? They could look it up, page by page in 400hitter, but that wouldn’t really provide any date tied to a player’s pitching availability, or about what innings they are most effective in. Now, this data can be available as long as all a players’ teams and leagues are using ChangeUp. The Futures Collegiate Baseball League is using ChangeUp today, and the app founders hope their app catches on! At the competitive amateur level, pitchers use ChangeUp data analytics to understand how effective they are, and managers use it ensure they get strong performance from their staff with fewer trips to the disabled list. Overall, the ChangeUp pitching app allows users to: • Accurately track pitching performance across unlimited teams and seasons. • Ensure compliance with mandated pitch count restrictions and required rest. • Access powerful analytics focused on effectiveness, durability, and safety. • Observe trends and growth by seeing historical player profiles. The ChangeUp platform tracks pitchers from their very first appearance until they hang up their cleats, enabling lifelong career profiles that support training and development. Now pitchers can track their personal growth over a single season or a lengthy career – one pitch at a time. Download ChangeUp for free from the Apple App Store. League plan prices vary based on need. Realplay Realplay delivers video of every swing, pitch, and catch that any player makes on a baseball or softball field. Their cameras capture every moment to help players improve, share their highlights, and hold on to memories. Justin Real is the founder of Realplay. Real started playing baseball in the Yawkey League in 2006 and joined the Boston Men’s Baseball League in 2010. He retired from amateur baseball in 2016 to start up his business. Today, his app provides video access to players unlike anything he ever had access to himself. Every baseball players using Realplay has access to video of their baseball performance – edited, tagged and posted for them after every game. Of course, it requires that a Realplay camera systems is installed at each fields where games are played. Perhaps there are some ICL teams that would be interested in installing cameras at their home field. The video they produce is unmatched at the amateur level. Their split-screen views allow players to understand how to make the physical adjustments that will help their game. Plus, Realplay offers photo and video albums that can be saved or shared on social media in an unprecedented way. Real-time feedback is now available in a way that never before existed. Realplay costs $7.99 a month for individuals, or $450 a season for a team. In December 2021, Realplay was named as one of the 101 Best Massachusetts Sports Companies and Startups. Switcher Studio Switcher Studio lets you sync multiple Apple devices to livestream directly to Facebook, YouTube, or other social media platforms. Today, Local Sports Productions presents many ICL games in such a way that makes the league broadcasts appear professional. Some managers even post occasional Facebook Live feeds directly from their phone. But with Switcher Studio, whoever is producing from their mobile phone can easily add player names to introduce athletes, player interviews, guests or sponsors to provide commentary. Plus, you can keep score and track counts with custom scoreboards.

By Bruce Hackett Watertown – The score was knotted at 1-1, the bases were loaded with one out in the bottom of the sixth, and the stage was set for Lexington to use one of its favorite plays – the suicide squeeze. As Julian Alvarez broke for home and batter Alex Krylov squared to bunt, the play didn’t quite happened as drawn up. Krylov didn’t get the bunt down as the pitch was high and Alvarez slid across home plate with the championship winning run. Despite switching the game to Victory Field in Watertown, the Blue Sox were ready to win their sixth consecutive championship, the first ICL team to accomplish the feat, It was also the Sox 16th ICL title. The inning started with Josue Feliciano singling to start the rally. Gage Gaunt got down the sacrifice bunt to move Feliciano into scoring position. Expos starter Cam Monagle intentionally walked Alvarez. Luke Hall delivered a double to left scoring Feliciano and tying the game at 1-1. Dahiandy Johnson is intentionally walked to load the bases and set the sweet championship winning play. The starting pitchers, Monagle and Lexington’s Jake Vesling dominated the first three innings. The Blue Sox sent the minimum nine batters to the plate as Johnson, who had singled in the second, was caught stealing for the second out. Monagle struck out a Sox batter in each of the first three frames. Meanwhile Vesling had allowed two singles through the first three innings with five strike outs. The Expos ended the scoreless streak when Andrew Mazzone took a 2-1 pitch the opposite way over the fence in left for the 1-0 lead to start the fourth. Dionys Quezada followed with a single, stole second, took third on a fielder’s choice but was stranded there as two strikeouts sandwiched around a caught stealing ended the threat. The Blue Sox got their second base runner in the fourth when Feliciano leadoff with a single. He would get no further. In the fifth the Sox doubled their hit total with two singles by Krylov and Will Potdevin, but they were both stranded and the score stayed 1-0 Expos. Vesling was making his first start of the postseason for Lexington. He responded with four good innings as he gave up four hits, one earned run, walked none and struck out seven. He was followed on the mound by Borja Jones-Berasaluce who pitched two scoreless innings with two hits, no walks and 2 strikeouts to put him in to position to get the win, his first this postseason. Then closer supreme Manny Delcarmen came in to pitch the 7th and Middlesex was retired in order with two strikeouts. This was the lowest scoring finals game since Lexington beat Reading 2-1 on August 24, 2017 for the 2017 title. It is tied for the third lowest scoring playoff game since 2006. The lowest is a 1-0 win by Andre over Lexington on August 23, 2013. Congratulations to the Middlesex Expos for a great first-year season in the Intercity League. They finished second in the regular season and second in the playoffs. Since 2006 this was the eighth meeting in the finals between top two teams. The number one seed having now won five times. Another Intercity League season has come to close. After a season away due to a global pandemic the players and their teams were ready to get back on the fields. It was a great season with four teams battling for the top three spots which gave that team a bye in the playoffs. The race for playoff spots went down to the last week of the regular season. As the lights go out for the final time for the 2021 season all the players, coaches and team staff want to thank the fans for their attendance and support. Everyone looks forward to seeing you in 2022.