THOMASTON—The Steve Blass Northwest Connecticut Pirates defeated the Tri-Town Braves 11-1 in the Northwest District 6 Majors League Championship game June 14.
The Pirates, made up of players aged 10 to 12 from the six Region 1 towns and Norfolk, won by run rule with a 10-point lead after five innings, a fitting end to a dominant season. The 2024 champs did not commit a single error in the game.
Brody Ohler pitched from start to finish and earned the win with a total of 10 strikeouts. He let up just two hits and one run, all in the first inning. A radar, operated by 11-year-old spectator Jeffrey, clocked Ohler’s fast ball at 62 MPH.
When these two teams met in the regular season June 8, the Tri-Town Braves, made up of players from Litchfield, Warren, Morris, and Goshen, defeated the Pirates 6-3. Under the lights at Reeves Field in Thomaston for the title match, the Braves could not repeat their prior success against the Pirates’ defense and ended the season as runners up.
The game went on despite heavy rain at start time Friday night. “We’ll have a nice shower,” said the umpire as he walked out onto the field.
By the time the rain let up in the third inning, the Pirates had climbed to a 7-1 lead. They added three more runs in the fourth inning to go up 10-1.
With two on in the bottom of the fifth, Ohler launched a deep double and brought home Thomas Nichols. With the lead at 10 runs, the game ended by run rule and the Pirates piled up in the infield.
“Everything worked out great, even in the rain. Great season,” said Coach Tom Downey after the win.
Brody Ohler went 3-for-3 at bat with an RBI. Greyson Brooks, Whitlow Cheney, Ronin Hinman, J.T. Farr, and Will Nichols brought in one RBI apiece.
The Pirates advanced to the greater District 6 majors tournament to play the top teams in Litchfield County. Region 1 last won the county district title in 1984.
Story courtesy of the Lakeville Journal
