PCYBL 12U Pirates comeback from 8-1 deficit tops off 3 straight Ws on way to GHVBL title
August 9, 2023 at 10:15 p.m.
"The Pirates win the pennant. The Pirates win the pennant."
That, of course, is a takeoff on what is arguably the most famous sports radio call of all time—Russ Hodges announcing the "shot heard 'round the world," New York Giants outfielder Bobby Thompson's walk-off home run against Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca of Mount Vernon at the Polo Grounds in New York City on Oct. 2, 1981, to win the National League pennant by a score of 5-4 to take the decisive third game of a three-game playoff for the pennant in which the Giants trailed 4-1 going into the ninth inning and 4-2 with two runners on base when Staten Island's Thompson came to bat.
Dim the Knights
The local Pirates win isn't in quite the same league, but it was the shot heard all around Port Chester and in a local league of its own nonetheless, albeit not quite as dramatic.
By any other name, it was a great comeback, a Port Chester U comeback for the ages and quite a turn of events.
The Port Chester Youth Baseball League (PCYBL) 12U Pirates rallied from an 8-1 deficit to beat the Newburgh Knights 11-8 last Sunday (8/6) at Rogers Park in Danbury, Conn., to win the Greater Hudson Valley Baseball League championship.
Explosive 4th inning
The locals’ comeback win started with a fourth inning base hit by Brandon McConnell that triggered a 10-run rally that included a dazzling array of base hits, walks and bunts up and down the lineup by the likes of Carter Chan, Evin Eski, James Doherty, Jay Dileo, Joe Szygiel, John Halliday, Jonathan Smith, Sophia Faraci, Ty Frimere, Tyler Hastings and Jorge Herrera.
It was like a Fourth of July display of fireworks that lit up the Danbury sky.
And the Pirates needed every one of those hits, walks, bunts and runs because they started out error prone, almost as though they were jittery with the championship pressure getting to their fielders and starting pitcher Joe Bologna. Whatever it was, the Knights got off to that early 8-1 lead.
Chan, Dileo pitch in
But Chan came in to quiet the Knights’ bats for two innings, the Pirates staged that big rally in the pivotal fourth inning and Dileo came in to shut down Newburgh the rest of the way. It helped that there were about 60 Port Chester fans cheering them on at every turn.
And they had a lot to cheer about because this was a game to remember, just as an earlier playoff game win reversed a horrific loss in a game to forget because they got beat so badly during the regular season.
The earlier in the season game to forget was against the Ardsley Heat where everything that could go wrong for the Pirates did. So maybe the Heat went into the playoff game against Port Chester underestimating the Pirates because Ardsley seemed to think they had the Pirates beat before the semi-final playoffs game ever started last Thursday (8/3) in Ardsley. But they thought wrong.
Jay Dileo pitched a gem of a game against the Ardsley Heat on Thursday, Aug. 3 in the 12U semi-finals which the Port Chester Pirates won 7-1.Brian McConnell
Cool off Heat
Port Chester came out swinging, Dileo pitched a gem of a game and Port Chester won 7-1 on a barrage of timely hits, bunts and aggressive base running that showed how badly the Pirates wanted to cool off the Heat.
And they did with a loud group of cheering Port Chester fans—parents, former Pirates players and various groups of current age group Pirates players and coaches—urging them on to cool off the Heat.
That's exactly what the Pirates did, chilling out, playing cool, calm and collected while the Heat melted.
The Pirates warmed up for that takedown with a 13-1 win over Westchester Elite of Yorktown last Monday (7/31) at Lyon Park with Bologna no-hitting the Elite over four overpowering innings while everybody on the roster teed off like it was batting practice. It was a win, baby, win atmosphere, the players looked like they were enjoying themselves and the team seemed ready to rock 'n' roll deep into the playoffs.
And they did. Winning all three games in the playoffs highlighted by that comeback against the Knights in the finals.
After each of those games, there was a team bonding dinner at the Colony Grill, the winning spirit, the winning chemistry, the sum being greater than the individual parts as obvious as the mozzarella and sauce on the pizza.
'Couldn't be prouder'
"These kids really appreciate each other and exemplify what it means to be a teammate and play a team game," Brian McConnell, one of the coaches, said after the championship win. "We, as a coaching staff, couldn't be prouder."
And Port Chester couldn't be prouder either.
That team first attitude helps explain why the Pirates won the pennant, the Pirates won the pennant with a shot heard all around Port Chester. And their team play represents the PCYBL style of play at its best. Even as elsewhere in age group baseball circles they are talking about the Massapequa team that beat East Hanover of New Jersey in the semifinals of the Little League World Series Metro Regional Championship in Bristol, Conn., to win a place in the regional final at 7 p.m. Friday (8/11) against the winner of the game between East Hanover and Southfield of Rhode Island. Whoever wins that semifinal game will advance to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.
Hereabouts it doesn't matter whether it's Massapequa, East Hanover or Southfield. Because Port Chester has the 12U Pirates, the Greater Hudson Valley Baseball League champions. And that is mighty fine indeed.
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