Play hard. Play strong. Play with passion. And always play to win.
Beneath their bleach-white uniforms, Uxbridge’s U-13 Babe Ruth baseball team carried those words by Jake Gallerani as they took the field for the inaugural Martha’s Vineyard Mid-Summer Classic championship at MVRHS on Sunday.
They never let their friend down.
Uxbridge beat Plymouth 7-1 to win the inaugural tournament behind the emotional story of head coach Joe Gallerani’s son, who died of cancer just two years prior.
“[Jake] played as much as he could even after everything,” said Jill Pilla-Gallerani, Jake’s mother. “He was the inspiration of this team. He played with the majority of these kids.”
Naming themselves “Jakestrong.” Uxbridge treated every pitch like the World Series.
Martha’s Vineyard Babe Ruth commissioner Ernie Chaves planned the inaugural tournament three weeks ago after Plymouth’s Babe Ruth team cancelled their own.
“At this age group, it’s hard to find a lot of tournaments,” explained Mr. Chaves. “I’ve been wanting to do one for a few years and it just so happened that this year things fell in place.”
With over 20 years of Little League experience, Mr. Chaves assembled a team of volunteers from the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks and his older Babe Ruth teams to help organize the tournament on such short notice.
U-13 Babe Ruth teams from Uxbridge, Martha’s Vineyard, Fairhaven and Plymouth competed in the two-day tournament. Each team played three games on Saturday starting at 10 a.m. Playoffs began on Sunday morning with each team seeded according to their records.
“All these families made a commitment to come out this weekend,” said Mr. Chaves, applauding the off-Island families who helped make the tournament possible.
Martha’s Vineyard lost all four of their tournament games, losing each game by 10 or more runs. Plymouth entered the championship game with a perfect record. But their prolific offense fell flat against Uxbridge’s Jakestrong magic.
The home-run derby and accuracy-throw contests lightened the mood in between Saturday’s first two games. Each team selected two different sets of players to compete in the assigned skill challenges. Hunter Meader and Hoffi Hearn represented the Martha’s Vineyard team in the home run derby. Plymouth’s Joel Espinola won the derby with the highest point total, recording five adjusted home runs.
Brendan DaSilva of Fairhaven hit the only regulation standard home run. His home-run cleared the left field fence and landed in a canopy of branches.
Fairhaven’s Griffin Henriques won the accuracy throw contest, defeating Martha’s Vineyard representatives Leo Neville and Jackie Pizzano.
The tournament ended with a short presentation. Plymouth and Uxbridge players lined up, shook hands and waited patiently on the foul line. One-by-one the PA announcer called their names. They walked to their coaches, receiving their trophy with a high-five or two along the way.
After each player received their trophy, a single trophy remained. With a round of applause from the crowd, the PA system announced a player not on the diamond that day. Rather, he watched from above.
Jake Gallerani.
With a storybook finish concluding the Island’s first Babe Ruth baseball tournament, Martha’s Vineyard Little League looks forward to next July’s Mid-Summer classic.
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