The New England Collegiate Baseball League’s All-Star game will take place this Sunday, July 24, at Martha’s Vineyard’s very own Shark Tank stadium. Serving as the team’s first time hosting an event of its kind in its 12-year existence in either of the leagues that they have played in (the FCBL prior to the NECBL), the game marks a special moment for the Sharks.
Not only will the Sharks be playing host to the NECBL’s midsummer classic, they also boast the league’s most All-Star selections, with an impressive seven players being chosen to play for the NECBL’s South team on Sunday. Pitchers Alejandro Torres (U. of Miami), Stephen Quigley (Connecticut), and Camron Hill (Georgia Tech) will get a chance to represent the Sharks on the mound, while catcher Thomas Bramley (Penn State), and infielders Logan Chambers (Tennessee), Dorian Gonzalez (U. of Miami), and Michael Snyder (Washington), will showcase their skills in the field and the batter’s box. All seven players have been standouts for the Sharks, with the three pitchers all being in the squad’s top four in earned run average, and all four position player selections posting admirable statlines in batting average, hits, and runs batted in. Moreover, these players have played pivotal roles in leading the Sharks to their current record of 22-13, good enough for second in the NECBL Coastal Division, where they stand a mere 2.5 games behind the first-place Newport Gulls. In a season full of streaks both hot and cold, the Sharks are playing their best baseball yet, heading toward the All-Star weekend, having won seven games straight and nine of their last 11.
There is potentially one more Sharks All-Star. Danny Crossen is leading the fan vote.
The MLB All-Star game, also this week, has lost popularity and respect in recent years due to the game losing some of its meaning, as the league that wins no longer receives home-field advantage for their team that makes it to the World Series. But the circumstances for this game are the opposite. While the game serves as a great way to watch high-level baseball and provides players with an opportunity to play alongside some of the best ballplayers in the league, whom they normally wouldn’t get to play with, it also has implications for many of the All-Stars’ baseball careers. It is expected that scouts from all 30 MLB organizations will be present Sunday afternoon to watch the prospective professionals compete against each other, taking advantage of the swaths of talent from one of the best collegiate summer baseball leagues being on display in a singular game.
The All-Star game is scheduled to start at 4:30, following the conclusion of the NECBL Home Run Derby (2 pm start), in which one player from each of the 14 NECBL teams will compete for the title of home run king. Competing for the Sharks in the event will be first baseman Ryan Nicholson (Cincinnati), who has recorded one home run, 19 hits, and 11 RBI thus far this season, with a batting average of .224.
The Sharks and NECBL are incredibly grateful for the event’s many sponsors who have helped put the All-Star game and Home Run Derby together, Russ Curran, Sharks general manager, said. Contemporary Landscaping and the Morgan Real Estate Group have provided the North and South teams with special All-Star game uniforms and hats, a nice touch that the game has not featured in past years. The players will be given meals courtesy of Winston’s Kitchen, and the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby are sponsored by East Coast Metal Roofing and Cape Cod 5 Bank, respectively. Broadcasting the game will be the Shark’s broadcaster Eli Kleinmann, chosen to represent the South in the commentating booth alongside North All-Star broadcaster Matt Scalzo of the Sanford Mainers.
Gates for the Home Run Derby open at 1:30.
