Even with a chill in the air and snow on the ground, members of the Brattleboro River Rats baseball team have been working out in preparation for the start of the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League Season next month. Brattleboro’s only adult baseball team is also looking for a few players to fill some open spots on the squad
“Thanks to the league, we’ve been able to practice on Saturdays in the Landmark College gym in Putney”, says River Rats player-manager Kevin McElhinney. “Players have been able to work on their hitting against the pitching machine and loosen up throwing arms with teammates and members of other teams in the league. A few of the guys have been also working out at the indoor sports facility down in Bernadston. We hope to be ready for our pre-season games against Landmark in early April, and have all the winter rust removed by the league season opener against the Walpole Wild Blue on April 21.”
McElhinney, who is starting his first year as player-manager after having been a team member since the River Rats’ inception in 2006, is optimistic about the team’s chances this year. “In last year’s playoffs, we took the league champion Claremont Cardinals to the limit in the best of three opening round. Many veterans of that team are back with us, including Caleb Record, Will Bissonnette, Brian Benjamin and Abe Klein. Greg Elbaum returns to pitch and we have some promising newcomers. Jamie Norton played for Ludlow a couple of years ago, and Mike Lang of Brattleboro has been working out with us over the winter and is anxious to hit the field.”
The Rats’ manager says if there are players out there who want to get back into baseball, now is the time to contact him. “There’s nothing like playing real hardball on a real team, and the Connecticut River Valley League is the perfect place to play. We get a chance to tune up against some talented young ballplayers at Landmark, and then play a 14 game regular season schedule on Sundays from April to August. It’s a wooden bat league with a 20 year old minimum age and a minimum pitching age of 30. It’s competitive, but friendly and has a great family atmosphere. The league fees are reasonable, there’s an exciting double elimination playoff held over two weekends in August, and best of all, you make tremendous friendships with your teammates.”
The River Rats play their home games at Dummerston Field, and interested players can contact manager McElhinney by email at kdm59@yahoo.com , or apply through the league site at www.CRVBL.org .
