Published: 4/24/2022 2:42:17 PM
Modified: 4/24/2022 2:40:51 PM
A little rain couldn’t put a damper on Opening Day.
Greenfield Minor League Baseball and Newt Guilbault Community Youth League in Turners Falls got their seasons underway on Sunday, while the Greenfield Girls Softball League kicked off its 2022 campaign on Saturday. Youth baseball and softball players were thrilled to put their gloves back on and return to game action.
“We’re really excited,” Bryce Zraunig, who plays in GMLB, said. “I’m excited to be playing baseball again.”
The GGSL opened its season with a parade that kicked off at Valley Medical before making its way down to Murphy Park. The opening ceremony then took place at Murphy Park before the first slate of games got underway. For information from those games, check out today’s bulletin board in the sports section.
GMLB got going with a parade that began at Greenfield Middle School and finished at the Lunt Field complex on Sunday morning. From there the opening ceremony took place, with teams introduced along with a playing of the national anthem before the season officially got underway.
“We haven’t had the ceremony in a while,” GMLB’s Nick Prasol said. “It’s fun being back playing baseball. I’m hoping we can win the championship. Last year didn’t feel like a real baseball season with the masks and everything so it’s nice being back here now.”
While the parade was something many players looked forward to after missing out on the experience last year due to COVID-19, other players were just excited to be playing games again.
“I’m excited to be back playing,” Bodie Burke said. “It’s long. I’d rather just do the anthem and start but we have to do it. I’m excited to be playing baseball.”
As in the past, this weekend’s games got the competitive juices flowing as players attempted to get an opening day win against their friends wearing different colored jerseys.
“The parade – we didn’t have the fire truck, but it was fun,” Chase Zraunig said. “All my friends are on the other team today so I hope we beat them.”
The Newt Guilbault opening day began in similar fashion, with a parade kicking off at Turners Falls High School and finishing up at the Newt Guilbault complex that houses Gamelin and Campbell Fields at Sheffield School.
“It felt welcoming coming back here to play baseball,” Jaiden Lapointe said. “I’m just excited to play the game and get some hits.”
Newt Guilbault was unable to have its full opening day with a parade last year due to COVID-19, so a return to normalcy was something the players say they enjoyed.
“It felt like a normal opening day,” Camden Cogswell said. “I’m looking forward to getting hits and winning games.”
“It’s exciting to be back out here,” Tyler Newton added. “It’s going to be a good season for all of us. It feels good getting back on these fields.”
For Jordan Sullivan-Paulino, his Turners Falls Athletic Club squad has been playing together for years and is hoping to make a run at the 2022 league title.
“It’s nice to feel it when you’re 12 years old and be able to walk in here with all your teammates,” Sullivan-Paulino said. “Our team has been playing together for a while so we have a lot of chemistry.”
Jordan’s twin brother, Elijah Sullivan-Paulino, agreed that their squad has what it takes to win the championship, while his individual goal is putting one over the fence.
“I want to hit one out of the park,” Elijah Sullivan-Paulino said. “We want to win the championship, too. We haven’t done that yet.”