Win the championship in 5-3 victory

CHAMPIONSHIP CARDINALS: Front Row: (left to right) Matt Repici, Alec Truesdale, Brayden Pesce, William Beach, Jack Sarazan, John Strong, Nolan Clark and Cameron Orlandella. Back Row: (left to right) John Orlandella, Ben Dugan, Wesley Rosell, Nate Geer, Brady Yee, Chris Repici and Robert Yee.

Published September 25, 2020

MELROSE—The 2020 Melrose Little League playoffs took place last week and it was an exciting day. 

In a year when even playing baseball was at one time in doubt, the league was able to have a great season and an exciting playoff tournament in both the Majors and Minor League Divisions. All of the games were played with rules modified to maximize the safety of players and families during the COVID 19 pandemic. The action on the baseball diamond throughout the season provided a great opportunity for families to spend time outside and for players to play the game they love, returning some normalcy to the summer months.

And the Cardinals won the Majors Championship on Friday, September 4 at Lewis Monk Field. 

The regular-season champion Cardinals played great baseball, winning three games during Championship Week, to take home the 2020 MLL Major League Championship. The Cardinals took the more difficult path to the title by losing a game earlier in the playoffs to the Athletics, placing the top-seed into the losers bracket of the tournament. The loss to the Athletics in the playoffs proved to be the only loss of the season for the Cardinals, who relied on their strong pitching and reliable defense to win their remaining games and go home with the Championship.

To reach the championship round, the Cardinals defeated the Red Sox, 4-2, in an elimination game that ended on a walk-off two-run home run by the Cardinal’s Brady Yee. The game entered the sixth inning with the Cardinals up 1-0 thanks to exceptional pitching by the Cards Nate Geer and the Red Sox Jack Casey. The first championship round game against the Athletics was never in doubt. The Cardinals scored early and often and relied on solid pitching, courtesy of Wes Rosell and Brayden Pesce, and their usual solid defense to win by a comfortable 10-3 margin. The final championship game was a classic. Great pitching by the Cardinals #1 starter Chris Repici and the Athletics’ Nick Picariello. Both teams had some big hits, but the key plays were outfield defensive gems by the Cardinal’s William Beach and Nolan Clark, robbing Athletics batters of extra-base hits with runners on base.

Every team had a few memorable moments and players who really performed well during the playoffs. Playoff home runs were hit by Jack Ludlow (White Sox), Brady Yee (Cardinals), Cadel McKeown (Athletics) and Sam Federico (Dodgers). Dominant pitching performances were turned in by Nate Geer and Chris Repici (Cardinals), Anthony Kiatos and Jack Casey (Red Sox), Michael Martin and Nick Picariello (Athletics), C.J. Cook and Brian Capodilupo (White Sox), Ian McKeown and Josh Bird (Dodgers) and John Recinito, Jack Feeney, Ronan Sanzone, Cam Doyle and Liam O’Brien had timely hits and standout pitching for the Marlins.