Established in June, the battle for the Mayor’s Cup has resulted in the Danbury Westerners and the Bristol Blues duking it out across eight of each team’s 44 games. Concluding with a “home-and-home” doubleheader at Muzzy Field, the two clubs garnered identical results in the midst of their playoff pushes. Each team’s All-Star ace brought their A-game on the mound as the Westerners split a pivotal twin bill with the Blues.
Danbury accumulated a four-game win streak and saw it snapped, standing at 21-19 with the Mayor’s Cup in their possession after the doubleheader split. Bristol remains above .500 at 18-17-4 and in third place in the West Division while losing the season series 3-5.
Matt Ruiz rallied from an 0-2 count for a walk against Emmett Tolis in game one, taking second on a passed ball. Facing a full count himself with one away, Harrison Feinberg drew first blood for the Westerners on an RBI single as the Georgia State second baseman hustled home. When the umpires ruled that Cal Parrillo went around in the second, Dan Hussey’s doubleheader day abruptly ended with an ejection from the dugout.
Following that delay, All-Star Braden Quinn struck out the Rhode Island College first baseman and induced Joey Rios’ groundout on five pitches. Ruiz reached on a single down the middle in the third, immediately swiping second as the throw sailed offline. Intentionally walking Feinberg worked against Tolis with two down as All-Star Luke Boynton blooped an RBI single in front of All-Star Gavin Noriega two pitches later. All-Star Jordan Peyton’s walk broke Quinn’s perfect-game push in the fourth without a hit being recorded as Noriega grounded into a fielder’s choice and Dixon Black’s flyout landed shy of the wall.
MT Morrissey relieved Tolis in the bottom half, instantly facing some trouble on Daniel Labrador’s deep double and Drew Wyers’ single. The Bryant righty moved one step closer toward a scoreless frame on a strikeout, not getting the double play he wanted when Jakobi Davis’ RBI single went over Parrillo’s head. With two down and one on after Morrissey’s run-surrendering wild pitch, Ruiz earned an RBI when his single hit the ground and ricocheted off Peyton’s face.
Tyler Fote recorded the Blues’ first hit in the sixth, putting Quinn in a bind with runners on the corners on Ian Battipaglia’s single. With two in scoring position, the UConn lefty escaped the dilemma unscathed with a strikeout and a groundout. Stealing second in the bottom half, Wyers moved 90 feet closer as Corey Savedoff’s 0-2 pitch went past Evan Ulrich’s glove. When the University of Charleston catcher lost sight of the ball, however, the Manhattan third baseman safely dashed home ahead of Parrillo’s throw.
Carson Ballard relieved Quinn in the seventh, stranding two Bristol runners aboard on two straight strikeouts as Danbury earned the Mayor’s Cup trophy with a 6-0 shutout.
Going 2-3 with two runs scored in the first game, Ruiz picked up right where he left off with a bunt that stayed fair of the third base foul line in game two. Although the Georgia State shortstop went down on a fielder’s choice, that play and Feinberg’s single put All-Star Jagger Duquette in some trouble that he escaped behind a pop fly. The Blues created their own two-runner scenario in the bottom half against All-Star George Viebrock III, getting on the board for the first time in the doubleheader on Skye Selinsky’s RBI single. Both runners, who entered scoring position on a wild pitch, extended Bristol’s lead when Joey Rios jacked a two-run opposite-field single.
The Blues went down in consecutive frames against Viebrock III, flying out four straight times while sandwiching Duquette’s 1-2-3 inning. Recording one of Bristol’s three hits in the first game, Peyton whacked an 0-1 count dead center that brought in Darius Troche, who barely beat the throw at the plate for a 4-0 advantage.
All-Star Bobby Zmarzlak’s infield single nearly started something for Danbury in the sixth, instead resulting in a first-pitch double play and Noriega’s snag in foul territory. Andrew Castelluccio relieved Viebrock III in the bottom half, walking two batters as the Blues began one last rally for insurance runs. Pete Durocher fought off multiple pitches against the St. John’s righty with two down and two in scoring position following a double steal, obtaining several close calls on whacks down the foul line.
On the eighth pitch of his at-bat, the Manhattan left fielder’s hard work paid off with a two-run double that stayed fair down the left field line. Pete Phillips entered in the seventh, swiftly ending the nightcap with an 11-pitch 1-2-3 frame as Bristol secured their own 6-0 shutout.
Quinn collected his second summer victory with nine punchouts in six shutout innings, while Tolis took the loss with two runs allowed in three innings in game one. Duquette grabbed his third win of the season and second straight against the Westerners with six scoreless frames on 71 pitches, while Viebrock III suffered his first loss with a season-high four runs surrendered in game two.
Danbury takes a momentary break from twin bill action on July 27 when they host the Valley Blue Sox (21-17-2) at Rogers Park. Two of the league’s hottest teams heading into the Roadhouse, the Westerners and Blue Sox are separated by a game in the West Division with major playoff implications on the line. Michael Szturma gets the nod on his sixth Thursday this summer with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m.
The rest of the Danbury Westerners’ 2023 schedule can be found on their website.