The NECBL Welcomes a New
Team
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Jonathan Crane (left) and son Noah Crane |
Laconia Daily Sun Photo/Ed Engler |
The New England Collegiate Baseball
League said good-bye to an old friend and hello to a new member
of our family. The New England Collegiate Baseball League Board
of Directors approved the sale and move of the Manchester
Silkworms to Laconia, New Hampshire. The Laconia Muskrats will
start play in the 2010 season at Robbie Mills Park.
Noah Crane, who pitched at the University of Massachusetts,
coached at Dartmouth College and for three seasons served as
head baseball coach at Mascoma Regional High School, will be the
general manager of the franchise and his father Jonathan its
president. In 2005 Noah also worked for the Greenville Drive, a
Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox.
The Crane family has teamed up with the city of Laconia and
Laconia Savings Bank to make more than $200,000 worth of
upgrades to Robbie Mills Park to meet the NECBL’s standards.
Mayor Matt Lahey and the city have enthusiastically welcomed the
new team. Mayor Lahey called Laconia Savings Bank’s contribution
“unbelievable, but not out of the ordinary.” “Thank you for the
opportunity,” said Mark Primeau, president and CEO of the bank.
A “Name the Team” contest was held and Muskrats was picked as
the winner. Noah Crane said that he is near to filling the
28 places on the roster. “I’ve got contracts with 20 to 22
players,”, Crane drew on his contacts in the baseball community
up and down the east coast in seeking players. At the same time,
he said that the prestige of the NECBL among college coaches led
many to recommend their players to the league.
Jonathan Crane said that he was pleased and excited to bring the
NECBL to the Lakes Region where as a youngster he spent his
summers on Meredith Neck and, as a newlywed, honeymooned at the
Steele Hill Resort. “I’m a baseball nut,” he confessed, “and I
raised my family to be baseball nuts. We are looking to provide
quality baseball and family entertainment for the community. We
want to produce a winner, but we’ll also have a mascot,
competitions for the kids, fireworks and so on.” “This is all
about participation from the community,” Jonathan continued.
“We’ll need all sorts of volunteers. And when together we
succeed, there will be profits to redeploy into the community.”
Portions of this article are taken with permission from articles
written by Michael Kitch for the Laconia Daily Sun.
Former All-American Andrew Bailey takes AL
Rookie of the Year Honors
The NECBL and the Lowell
All-Americans would like to congratulate Former All-Americans
pitcher Andrew Bailey as he secured the 2009 American League
Rookie of the Year Award. Bailey now a closer for the Oakland
A's, won the honor by a comfortable margin beating out the young
Texas SS Elvis Andrus and Tiger's righty Rick Porcello. The
young righty garnered 13 first place votes, 6 seconds and 5
thirds to amass 85 total points as Andrus and Porcello finished
at 65 and 64 points respectively. Bailey was a member of the
All-Americans in 2004 and set the franchise record in
strikeouts, mowing down 79 players in 62 1/3 innings as he
posted a 3.32 ERA and led the team in wins with a 4-4 record.
Bailey, who was selected as an NECBL All-Star, kept opposing
batters off the bases as they hit a meager .188 off him in a
sign of what was to come.
After his career at Wagner College, Bailey was selected by the
Athletics in the 6th round (188th overall) and breezed through
the minor leagues making his Major League debut with the A's
this spring. He took full advantage of the opportunity with a
fantastic first half that earned him a trip to the All Star game
to play with some of the games elite players. Bailey did not
stop there as he continued to put up great numbers the whole
season, ending with a 6-3 record with a miniscule 1.84 ERA and a
.88 WHIP, to go along with 91 strikeouts and 26 saves. Once more
the NECBL and All-Americans congratulate Andrew Bailey on a
tremendous rookie campaign and look forward to watching his
career prosper in the seasons ahead.
Andre Ethier Wins Silver Slugger Award
Former Keene Swampbat and current
LA Dodger right fielder Andre Ethier was announced as a 2009
Silver Slugger Award winner. Since 1980, winners of the Silver
Slugger Award have been chosen by votes of Major League managers
and coaches, prohibited from selecting players on their own
teams. Dodgers teammates Ethier and Matt Kemp are both
first-time winners in the NL. Ethier joins Oakland hurler Andrew
Bailey (AL Rookie of the Year) as the second NECBL alum to
obtain a major award from Major League Baseball.
