New England Collegiate Baseball League
The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) is a 12-team collegiate summer baseball league founded in 1993 and sanctioned by the NCAA and Major League Baseball. Each NECBL team plays an eight-week, 42-game schedule during June and July, with a playoff in early August. Like the Cape Cod Baseball League and other amateur leagues, the NECBL is a showcase for top college-level players, giving professional baseball scouts a chance to see prospective pros playing against each other. It is considered one of the top summer leagues in the country.[1]
Founded in 1993, the NECBL began its direction under George Foster, former Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets All-Star and Major League Baseball home run leader, and Emmy Award-winning television producer/director Joseph Consentino. Play started in 1994 and today the NECBL has become a strong twelve-team league that plays in all six New England states. It recruits players attending U.S. colleges from New England, the other 44 states, and foreign countries, provided that they come from NCAA-sanctioned colleges or universities, are in good academic standing, have completed at least one year of athletic eligibility, and have at least one year of eligibility remaining.[2]
Current Franchises
(see individual team websites below)
| New England Collegiate Baseball League |
| Division |
Team |
Founded |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
| East |
Laconia Muskrats |
2000 |
Laconia, New Hampshire |
Robbie Mills Field |
1,200 |
| New Bedford Bay Sox |
1997 |
New Bedford, Massachusetts |
Paul Walsh Field |
|
| Newport Gulls |
1999 |
Newport, Rhode Island |
Cardines Field |
3,250 |
| North Shore Navigators* |
1994 |
Lynn, Massachusetts |
Fraser Field |
3,804 |
| Sanford Mainers |
2002 |
Sanford, Maine |
Goodall Park |
950 |
| Division |
Team |
Founded |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
| West |
Danbury Westerners |
1995 |
Danbury, Connecticut |
Rogers Park |
|
| Holyoke Blue Sox |
2001 |
Holyoke, Massachusetts |
Mackenzie Stadium |
4,100 |
| Keene Swamp Bats |
1997 |
Keene, New Hampshire |
Alumni Field |
4,800 |
| Mystic Schooners* |
1994 |
Groton, Connecticut |
Fitch Senior High School |
|
| North Adams SteepleCats |
2002 |
North Adams, Massachusetts |
Joe Wolfe Field |
1,800 |
| Vermont Mountaineers |
2003 |
Montpelier, Vermont |
Montpelier Recreation Field |
1,200 |
- An asterisk (*) denotes a charter franchise of the league
Former Teams
Relocated or Renamed Teams
| Team |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
Years |
History |
| Waterbury White Sox |
Waterbury, CT |
Municipal Stadium |
6,000 |
1994
|
Became the Waterbury Barons |
|
| Eastern Tides |
Willimantic, CT |
Eastern Baseball Stadium |
1,500 |
1994-2001 |
Became the Thread City Tides |
| Thread City Tides |
Willimantic, CT |
Eastern Baseball Stadium |
1,500 |
2002-2003 |
Became the Berkshire Dukes |
| Berkshire Dukes |
Hinsdale, MA |
Dan Duquette Sports Academy[3] |
|
2004
|
Became the Pittsfield Dukes |
| Pittsfield Dukes |
Pittsfield, MA |
Wahconah Park |
4,500 |
2005-2008 |
Became the Pittsfield American Defenders |
| Pittsfield American Defenders |
Pittsfield, MA |
Wahconah Park |
4,500 |
2009
|
Became the Bristol Collegiate Baseball Club |
| Bristol Collegiate Baseball Club |
Bristol, CT |
Muzzy Field |
4,900 |
2010
|
Became the Mystic Schooners |
|
| Middletown Giants |
Middletown, CT |
Palmer Field |
|
1994-2003 |
Became the Holyoke Giants |
| Holyoke Giants |
Holyoke, MA |
Mackenzie Stadium |
4,100 |
2004-2007 |
Became the North Shore Navigators |
|
| Rhode Island Reds |
West Warwick, RI |
McCarthy Field |
2,500 |
1996-2000 |
Became the Riverpoint Royals |
|
| Torrington Twisters |
Torrington, CT |
Fuessenich Park |
1,500 |
1997-2008 |
Became the New Bedford Bay Sox |
|
| Rhode Island Gulls |
Cranston, RI |
Cranston Stadium |
4,500 |
1998-2000 |
Became the Newport Gulls. |
|
| Mill City All-Americans |
Lowell, MA |
Stoklosa Alumni Field |
4,000 |
2000-2006 |
Renamed the Lowell All-Americans |
| Lowell All-Americans |
Lowell, MA |
Stoklosa Alumni Field |
4,000 |
2007-2010 |
Became the Old Orchard Beach Raging Tide |
|
| Manchester Silkworms |
Manchester, CT |
Northwest Park |
|
2000-2009 |
Became the Laconia Muskrats |
|
| Concord Quarry Dogs |
Concord, NH |
Warren H. Doane Diamond |
1,200 |
2001-2007 |
Became the Holyoke Blue Sox |
Defunct Teams
| Team |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
Years |
| Fairfield Stallions |
Fairfield, CT |
Alumni Baseball Diamond |
1,000 |
1994 |
| Bristol Nighthawks |
Bristol, CT |
Muzzy Field |
4,900 |
1994-1995 |
| Waterbury Barons |
Waterbury, CT |
Municipal Stadium |
6,000 |
1994-1996 |
| Central Mass Collegians |
Leominster, MA |
Doyle Field |
6,200 |
1995-1999 |
| Riverpoint Royals |
West Warwick, RI |
McCarthy Field |
2,500 |
1996-2004 |
| Old Orchard Beach Raging Tide |
Old Orchard Beach, Maine |
The Ball Park |
6,000 |
2000-2010 |
Season Structure
For the current season, the league is divided into two six-team divisions, the East Division and the West Division. During the regular season, teams play in-division opponents a total of six times, three games at home and three away. Teams play out-of-division opponents twice, one game at home and one away. These games make up the 42 game regular season schedule. The top four teams from each division qualify for the playoffs. In the division semifinal round the first seeds play the fourth seeds and the second seeds play the third seeds, respectively, in best-of-three series. The winners of the division semifinals advance to the division finals, where they play a best-of-three series against their fellow division finalist. The division champions advance to the NECBL championship series, where they face each other in a best-of-three series to decide the NECBL champion.
Past Champions
In the NECBL's eighteen year history, the all-time winningest teams are the Newport Gulls and the North Shore Navigators, with four NECBL titles each. Four franchises have won two titles, the Keene Swamp Bats, the Sanford Mainers, the Vermont Mountaineers, and the defunct Central Mass Collegians. The Mystic Schooners have captured one title, when the team was known as the Eastern Tides in the league's inaugural 1994 season.[4]
Notable alumni
The following former NECBL players have gone on to play in Major League Baseball.[5] Former NECBL players have reached the major league rosters of 28 of 30 MLB teams.
Media
All NECBL games are broadcast online through the NECBL Broadcast Network, with Teamline providing both audio, for all games, and video, for select games.[6]
On May 14, 2010, the league signed an agreement with Pointstreak. Pointstreak provides "real-time scoring, official statistics, and administration services" to the NECBL. A highlight of Pointstreak's services is Game Live, a real-time statistics feature providing play-by-play for every NECBL game.[7]
See also
External links
Team Websites
Notes
- ^ Rogers, Kendall (July 20, 2007). "Kendall's Mailbag: Ducks in a row". Rivals.com College Baseball. Archived from the original on 06-08-2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5zIHCNjGX. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
- ^ http://www.necbl.com/about.htm NECBL League Info Page, URL accessed December 20, 2008
- ^ Berkshire Dukes Box Score, c. 2004 URL accessed June 5, 2009
- ^ NECBL Record Book at necbl.com, URL accessed July 22, 2009
- ^ http://www.necbl.com/alumni.htm NECBL alumni archive, URL accessed August 2, 2009
- ^ NECBL Broadcast Network at necbl.com, URL accessed June 4, 2010. Archived 06-04-10
- ^ NECBL Signs Agreement with Pointstreak at necbl.com, URL accessed June 4, 2010. Archived 06-04-10
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New England Collegiate Baseball League
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