Revere Youth Baseball: Cardinals win Major League

After a strange season during which last season’s runners up finished second-to-last in the regular season standings, the Cardinals have shown nothing short of brilliance. Completing their Cindarella run, the Cardinals defeated the Red Sox, 9-8, on Sunday, winning the 2018 Revere Youth Major League Baseball.

“It was a team effort by both teams,” League Vice President Jason Smith said.“It was an amazing back-and-forth.”

The Cardinals (4-8-3) seemed to have control of the situation when the blazed out a 4-1 lead, but the Red Sox (9-5-1) were relentless, tying the game as they entered the bottom of sixth inning.

With the score tied at 8-8 and the Cardinals with a chance to win the game, Red Sox head coach Pat Keefe dug deep into his playbook defensively. With Cardinals’ Jason Teebagy at third base, Keefe intentionally walked Ollie Svendsen to set up a double play.

After Svendsen stole second base, Keefe again opted to walk the Cardinals, this time Phil Boncore. With the bases loaded and the in-field in, Matt McGowan hit the winning run to bring Teebagy home and give the Cardinals the championship.

“Everybody wants to win, but the sportsmanship, everybody having great time and watching great baseball—at the end of the day, that’s what we want,” Smith said.

Despite the sweep, the series was a nail-biter from start to finish. The Cardinals claimed a close 6-5 victory in game one, after the Red Sox’ Dom Bellia’s attempt at the tying run was ruled out at home plate.

In the Babe Ruth League, the Colts beat the Pals to claim the title. The league had looked for competitive games across the board and got just that this season, Smith said.

With the season now over, the league now looks ahead into the Fall, where there will be the league’s first Fall softball in years, Smith said. Multiple coaches will help during weekly group practices to meet players at differing skill levels.

“We had a great season,” Smith said.“The league is flourishing. The kids had a great time. The coaches, the board, the city, all of our great sponsors. … The community aspect is what we’ve been focusing on, and it was gangbusters.”