Catching Lightning in a Bottle

The Leominster Babe Ruth All-Stars from 1971, 1972 and 1973 won an unprecedented three consecutive Massachusetts State Championships. The 1971 team was eliminated in the New England Regional Championship game by the eventual 1971 Babe Ruth World Series champions from Puerto Nuevo, Puerto Rico. The 1972 Leominster team won the state title as the host team, which is unthinkable. Host teams are not meant to win state tournaments. They are traditionally granted an entry in exchange for hosting the tournament, and they gain a seat in the tournament without the need to play the typical 4-5 games just to qualify. And the 1973 team, on which I was privileged to play, came back from a stunning opening game loss to the host team from Longmeadow, to claw back with five wins in three days, and to beat undefeated Burncoat of Worcester twice on the same day to win the championship.

One could argue that the Leominster community caught lightning in a bottle those three thrilling summers. However, as one of the 45 players in aggregate who participated, I can speak for my teammates and those who played before me that it was not luck that earned those championships. You can’t be that good at something over a sustained time period and simply chalk it up to luck.

Luck did not clear the bases with a double in the gap. Good fortune did not strike out the side with runners on second and third and a one-run lead. We players still needed to make the plays when opportunity and preparation created a game situation that required flawless execution. And my experience was that the 45 members of those three All-Star teams from 1971, 1972, and 1973 were the most talented, best coached, and most prepared teams on the fields of those Massachusetts state championship tournaments. And I believe there was a direct correlation between the success of those championship teams and the community environments on which we players developed our skills.

To me, our success was a perfect storm of opportunity, preparation, and execution. The community of Leominster provided us with the opportunity. On countless playgrounds, sandlots, parking lots, school athletic fields and neighborhoods, hundreds of us Leominster kids developed an interest in, developed the skills for, and sustained a passion for the game of baseball. Volunteers groomed the fields, sold the concessions, raised the money and coached the teams. Parents, relatives, neighbors and complete strangers showed to watch us play. Newspapers sent reporters to cover our games. Local community radio stations covered our games with live broadcasts.

The coaches prepared us by organizing leagues, running tryouts, and leading practices on weeknights and weekends. They drew up the game plans and ran the drills. They scouted the players. Those that did not coach were perhaps umpires instead.

All that said, it was still up to us players to execute. I remain in awe of the 1971 and 1972 teams that I followed during the two years prior to my 1973 squad. During those summers I combed the daily papers for game summaries and box scores. I listened to the games live on local radio. I could recite the lineups. And I did not miss an inning of the tournament games. I managed to hitch a ride with a family friend or convince my grandparents to make the trip to Lynn, to Nashua, and to Newport. Funny thing, I was among hundreds of others who did the same. Everybody talked baseball those magnificent summers.

So yes, Leominster did create lightning in a bottle. The community; however, delivered the goods. Leominster was a magnificent place to grow up as a kid. And the late 1960’s and early 1970’s were a magical time to do so. A place in time indeed.