The familiar sounds of a bat hitting a ball, a slide in the dirt and the cheer of excited fans filled Fred Deadman Park on Monday night. After an extended delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Manchester Youth Baseball Association opened up their 2020 season with 5 games and hundreds of smiling faces.
In the 8U Division, Interstate Auto rallied for a 23 to 21 win over Lions Club and Dr. J’s bested KK’s 21 to 7. In the opener, Interstate roared out to a 14 to 4 lead before Lions Club erupted for 17 runs in the final 3 innings to take the lead going to the bottom of the 5th. In the 5th, Donovan Bean hit a walk-off inside the park home run to give Interstate the exciting win. Bean and Lawson Maychrzak each had 2 home runs for Interstate. Eli Morgan had a home run for the Lions Club. In the nightcap, Dr. J’s scored at least 4 runs in every inning as they swung the hot bats. Abe was the leading hitter for Dr. J’s with 3 home runs and a single. Lane had a home run and a triple for KK’s.
In the 10U Division, Chico’s Bail Bonds held up Coffee County Bank 13 to 9 and State Farm dumped First National Bank 14 to 3. In the opener, Chico’s got 4 runs in the top of the 1st inning and never trailed. Coffee County Bank did have an 8 run 2nd inning to cut Chico’s lead to 1 before the bail bondsmen pulled away. Chico’s was led by Raden Brewer who had a single and 2 walks. Coffee County Bank got a home run from Tucker Linzey. In the nightcap, State Farm built a 13 to 0 lead as they cruised to an opening night win. Xander Meeks had a home run and Brady Chastain had a triple for State Farm. First National did not have a hit but benefitted from 6 walks in the 3rd inning to score their 3 runs.
In the 12U Division, Powers Storage rolled to a 12 to 1 win over Shelter Insurance. Austin Gipson had a home run while Keaton Rowe had a double and single for Powers. For Shelter, Ian Smith ripped a triple and scored the lone run.
The 6U and 18U divisions will have their first games on Tuesday night as all 5 divisions will play in 9 games, weather permitting. The league will also be in action on Thursday and Friday of this opening week. The season is scheduled to run through Friday, July 17th.
Tuesday’s MYBA Schedule
6U Division – Tee Ball Field
5:00 PM – Cooper Sports vs. Lovelady Auto Parts
7:30 PM – Manchester Tire & Brake vs. Star Physical Therapy
8U Division – Fast Pitch Field
5:00 PM – Interstate Auto vs. Freedom Automotive
7:30 PM – KK’s vs. Lions Club
10U Division – National League Field
5:00 PM – Chico’s Bail Bonds vs. Coffee County Bank
7:30 PM – First National Bank vs. State Farm
12U Division – Aaron Miller Field
5:00 PM – Clower Automotive vs. Peoples Bank
18U Division – Babe Ruth Field(Looney Riddle Field)
6:00 PM – C. Braves vs. M. Braves
8:00 PM – Mets vs. Expos
