The Downtown Little League Senior Division Blue Jays successfully defended their championship at Murry Bergtraum Field the weekend of June 21 and 22, making it three titles in the past four years. The Blue Jays cruised to a 15-0 win over the Vanguards in the Saturday semifinal game behind a 10-hit offense and a strong pitching performance from Nick Meuceri, who struck out eight batters in five innings.
In Sunday’s title game, the Blue Jays edged the Jazz, 7-6. The winning run was scored by Peter Barbieri, without a hit, in signature Blue Jays fashion. Starting pitcher Will Gibbons went three innings, striking out four and allowing two earned runs; Philip Kay pitched the final four innings, with five strikeouts and two earned runs. Catcher Mark LaGreca smacked a two-run double in the second inning; Gibbons contributed a two-out, two-run single in the third inning to tie the score. LaGreca and Barbieri each had three R.B.I. in Saturday’s semifinal win; Philip Kay, Corey Greenblatt and David Benjamin added two R.B.I. each on Saturday.
The Blue Jays’ “mini-dynasty” was based on aggressive base-running, accurate pitching, good defense and timely hits. In their final game, they also showed their resilience, overcoming five errors and rallying from a 6-3 deficit to repeat as champs.
Michael Greenblatt, who managed the Blue Jays during their four-year run, announced he is retiring and will not return to the bench next season. “It was an honor for me to manage these kids over this run,” said Greenblatt. “I’m proud of the way they performed on a consistent basis.” A number of the Blue Jays core players, including Michael’s son Corey, will have passed the league’s maximum age limit, 16, by the beginning of next season.
“When we ask our boys to play Blue Jays’ baseball, they know exactly what we’re talking about,” said Coach Jeffrey Kay. “It means play hard and play smart. This is how they win and they know it.” The Jays were also coached by Michael Barbieri, whose son Peter set the tone for the team with his all-out approach on the basepaths. In the 2007 title game, Peter scored the go-ahead run — and eventual game-winner — by stealing home, barely avoiding the catcher’s tag. With the score tied at six in the sixth inning of this year’s title game, Barbieri walked, stole second base, stole third base and scored on a grounder by Corey Greenblatt.
The Blue Jays were assembled from several Downtown Little League teams; they joined a league of teams mostly from the Greenwich Village Little League as 12- and 13-year-olds. Games were played at the Bergtraum Field, on the Lower East Side, and also at Central Park’s North Meadow. In 2005, their first year, the Blue Jays were surprise winners. They lost in the playoffs in 2006, but came back to win the title again in 2007.
During the 2008 regular season, the Blue Jays secured the first seed in the playoffs with a 9-3 record; two of their losses were due to forfeits as a result of player-personnel issues. Ace pitcher Sam Gilberg was limited to two pitching starts because of a nagging hip injury; but he was able to play the infield in eight regular season games and also in the playoffs, contributing defensively and with several key hits. Two other starting pitchers, Gibbons and Meuceri, were able to pick up the slack. Gibbons was 4-0 with an E.R.A. of 1.62 and 31 strikeouts in 17 innings; Meuceri was 2-0 with 38 strikeouts in 20 innings. The 2008 Blue Jays pitching staff recorded 101 strikeouts in 61 innings and limited opponents to a .187 batting average.
Kay and Benjamin sparked the Blue Jays’ regular-season offense at the plate. Kay batted .500 with 10 hits in 20 at-bats and 8 R.B.I. Benjamin hit .462 and led the team in R.B.I. with 11. Raymond Perez had 8 R.B.I.; Greenblatt, Gilberg and Meuceri contributed 7 R.B.I. each. The Blue Jays stole 90 bases in their 12 games and had a team on-base percentage of .457.
