Boston Colonials Vintage Base Ball

Colonials Play Hard, Drop 2 in Hartford

2009-07-10T09:10:00.000-07:00

HARTFORD - The local nine traveled to Connecticut to compete in the Colt Meadows Vintage Invitational Tournament on June 27. Though missing several members of the squad, the team played with grit and determination. In the end, the vintage ballists from Boston fell in two games to the Hartford Senators and the Olneyville Temperance Cadets. The Colonials battled to the last frame, though.

Catcher Brendan Reilly, once known as "Nature Boy," was given the new vintage nickname of "Stitch" after taking a throw from Hartford's Chris Moran in the forehead while sliding into home. The imprint of the stitches stayed on Reilly's head long after the ball bounced off it with resounding crack louder than that made by contact between ball and bat. Stitch remained behind the plate and caught the second game as well.

Steve "Saber" Smith hurled the entire first game and all but the last two innings of the second. He battled through several back and forth contests with opposing strikers and showed no signs of backing down.

Next up for the Colonials is a rematch with the Cadets in Boston on July 11.

Colonials Kick Off 2009 Season With A Win

2009-06-11T13:07:00.001-07:00

BOSTON, MA - The Boston Colonials kicked off the 2009 regular season with an 18-15 victory over the New Hampshire Granite. Though the score may be misleading, there was some excellent defense turned in by both clubs. Steve "Saber" Smith hurled 9 frames for the boys in green, earning the win. Other highlights included:

Brendan "Nature Boy" Reilly's successful steal of home plate
Nature Boy, showing an accurate arm in his first game behind the plate, throwing out an albeit hobbled Pat "Blue" Reilly in a steal attempt (thanks to Blue for providing his gritty services to the Granite)
Pete "Big Red" Aiello making an absolutely ridiculous, horseshoe shoved up the a**, one-handed catch mere seconds after being mocked by Blue
Pat "Nickname TBD" Brennan making a timely and beautiful catch in right field to silence a late rally from the Granite

The local nine saw excellent offense and defense from all of its new vintage ballists, including John "Steel" Banks, Pete Zak, Jon Marcus, Pat Brennan and Rob Nee. Along with veterans Nature Boy, Big Red, Saber, Drew McConville and Derek Martel, and a handful of players who could not make the season opener, the Colonials are confident this will be a very successful season.

Boston Colonials 2009 Schedule

2009-06-11T12:55:00.000-07:00

Here is the 2009 Season Schedule for the Boston Colonials. We have a lot of new players and a fun season ahead, so come out and watch. Additional games may be scheduled so keep checking back.

5/23 @ Olneyville Cadets, Warwick, RI (Exhibition)
5/30 vs New Hampshire Granite in Boston (W, 18-15)

6/20 vs Chicopee Skipmucks, 1 p.m. in Rhode Island
6/27 @ Hartford Tournament in Colt Park, Hartford, CT vs Olneyville Cadets and Hartford Senators

7/11 vs Olneyville Cadets in Boston

8/1 vs Boston Beaneaters in Boston
8/8 vs Olneyville Cadets in Boston

9/5 vs Hartford Senators in Boston
9/12 @ New Hampshire Granite, Nashua, NH

Colonials Best Pioneers in First Meeting

2008-06-10T07:50:00.000-07:00

BRIGHTON, MA - In the local nine's highly anticipated first home game of the season, the Colonials defeated the Whatley Pioneers by a score of 15-9. After several two-hour drives to meet on the fields of their opponents, a battle-tested team from Beantown returned to Cassidy Field after a valuable week off.

The Pioneers are new to the vintage game, though they have experience in other leagues and proved to be determined opponents. Solid striking from every part of the Boston lineup led the way as Boston improved to 4-3 on the year.

Both teams showed tremendous hustle and never let up despite the 95+ degree weather that could only be described as hell on earth. The Colonials look forward to their second meeting with Whatley on their home field in July.

Colonials Split Another Doubleheader, remain 2nd in Division

2008-06-07T05:38:00.000-07:00

EAST WINDSOR, CT - The local nine hit the road again for their second doubleheader in as many weeks Memorial Day weekend, this time travelling to Connecticut to face the Westfield Wheelmen and the Hartford Senators. As was the case in Rhode Island last week, Boston (3-3) showed grit and determination, splitting the day's contests and remaining at .500 on the year.

The first game pitted the Colonials against the Wheelmen in a tough contest. Both teams were in a tight race until the fifth frame when costly defensive miscues resulted in a seven-run inning for the Wheelmen, ending in a 12-4 loss for Beantown.

The second game of the day got off to a rocky start for Boston and things looked to go south. The boys in green battled back from a nine-run deficit with a "party at the bat rack," a term now immortalized in Boston Vintage Base Ball by Jay "Simba" Baroff. The final frames saw some tough defensive plays from a battered team behind the excellent pitching of Steve "Saber" Smith.

Smith took the ball when Boston was down and stopped the bleeding, leading his team to a 20-16 victory. The season series sits at 1-1 with these two teams, and Hartford is a team that the Colonials look forward to playing each and every season. This friendly rivalry deserves nothing less than a battle of a rubber match later this year, followed by the usual tomfoolery.

The next game for Boston will be the first home game of the 2008 campaign, played at Cassidy Field in Brighton against the Whatley Pioneers. Game to start at 1:30 p.m.

Boston battles hard, splits doubleheader in RI

2008-05-19T05:47:00.000-07:00

WARWICK, RI - The local nine played nearly eight hours of base ball Saturday at the Hen House, besting the Olneyville Temperance Cadets 12-9 and falling to the Game Hens 23-13. The first game was a vintage battle as the Colonials and Cadets traded the lead several times. The boys in green made a few costly errors early on, but then plugged up the holes and played some solid defense. Timely contributions from the entire lineup sparked a rally in the last few frames, picking up the team's second victory of the 2008 season.

Taking on yet another team from Rhode Island, where vintage ball is becoming more and more popular, the crafty Game Hens dealt Boston defeat number two on the season. Another late game rally seemed to be changing the landscape of this contest, but excellent defense from the Hens ended the day after the boys from Beantown tallied five quick runs. The Colonials finished the day with a 2-2 record on the year, tied with the neighboring Boston Beaneaters (1-0) for the top spot in the East. One thing has become obvious after Saturday's doubleheader. The battle for supremacy in this division of the New England Vintage Base Ball League is going to be a close one, with every team a viable contender.

Boston defeated by Senators, drop to 1-1

2008-05-01T07:41:00.000-07:00

EAST WINDSOR, CT - The Boston Colonials traveled to Connecticut on April 26th for our first meeting with the Hartford Senators of the 2008 season. While both teams swung the bat well, the ageless Senators simply "hit it where they ain't," leading to a 24-3 defeat for Boston and a 1-1 record on the young season. The local nine always enjoy playing our friends from Hartford and look forward to redeeming ourselves in the next match. The Colonials will meet the Mudville Nine for an exhibition May 10th on the Boston Common. The game will be played under the rules of 1858, found here: http://www.baseball-almanac.com/ruletown.shtml. We will return to league action May 17th in Rhode Island against the gentlemanly Game Hens.

Colonials Take Season Opener 18-12

2008-04-22T23:38:00.000-07:00

SIMSBURY, CT - The local nine kicked off the 2008 campaign with a win over the gritty Simsbury Taverneers on April 19th. Starting the season on the road, the combination of some new faces and seasoned veteran ballists gave the boys in green an 18-12 victory. The Colonials would like to thank the Taverneers for hosting the innaugural game of 2008 and look forward to future contests. Our next game will be in East Windsor, CT on April 26th against the Hartford Senators. A second game later that day in Conn. against the New Hampshire Granite may follow.