Leominster, city of champions!

Welcome!

Yes, in the early 1970's, Leominster indeed was a city of champions. From 1971 through 1973, the city's Babe Ruth League all-stars battled to 3 consecutive Massachusetts state championship titles, an unprecedented feat that has since been repeated only once, again by Leominster.

Why Leominster? Why then?

From Chapter One of A Place in Time -

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.

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.