Hot hitters carrying hopes of Conn., and Calif., teams

By ADAM RIGLIAN
The Patriot Ledger

QUINCY
   The 2008 Babe Ruth World Series is already half gone, but performances are about to ramp up as championship day nears.
 Two players who simply cannot be playing any better so far are Norwalk, Conn.’s Kevin Daniele and Palo Alto, Calif.’s B.J. Boyd. The pair are the only two players to hit home runs  in the tournament and are the front-runners for the Most Outstanding Player award.

 Daniele has driven in game-winning runs twice and added a game-tying run, putting Norwalk into the single-elimination rounds. Boyd has been the hottest of Palo Alto’s smoking bats. His power was best exhibited in the tape-measure shot he hit on a first-pitch fastball over the scoreboard at Adams Field, which is at least 380 feet from home.

Aug. 21, 2008: Youngstown, Ohio, first baseman Mark Leone does a split to get a throw in time to get Palo Alto, Calif., catcher Jordan Piha out in the top of the third inning during their quarterfinal game of the Babe Ruth 14-Year-Old World Series played at Adams Field. Lisa Bul photo/The Patriot Ledger

Despite official material referring to them as Skagit Valley, the Pacific Northwest champions from Washington wear a stylized “MW” on their uniforms.

 The team hails from Mount Vernon, a town of roughly 26,000 people in the western part of the state. Mount Vernon is the hometown of Philadelphia Phillies’ hurler Kyle Kendrick, “The Passion of the Christ” star Jim Caviezel, and Ross the Intern of Tonight Show with Jay Leno fame.

 The Syracuse, N.Y., squad has suffered the same fate. Their team does not represent the city of Syracuse, but is an all-star team comprised of players from Syracuse and surrounding towns, referred to as the Valley All-Stars. That explains the “V” on the team’s hats, which has confused locals throughout the tournament.

 
Honorees at Adams
 
There are four retired numbers adorning the right field fence at Adams Field. They commemorate Quincy youth baseball players that have since passed on.

 No. 7 was worn by Patrick White, a beloved Quincy Little Leaguer who died of complications from rhabdomyosarcoma, a type of tissue cancer, at the age of 15 in 2005. The Patrick White Jimmy Fund Tournament was played recently.

 Dennis Thomson wore No. 8  in his playing days. Thomson was a standout student at North Quincy High School. He was the Red Raiders starting quarterback, class vice president, and baseball team captain before graduating in 2002. Upon graduation, he joined the Air Force. Tragically, he was killed in 2004 at the age of 20 by a drunk driver while on duty in Mississippi.

 Quincy High School Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Joe Conti is represented by the No. 22. A 1985 QHS graduate, he played baseball in high school, college, and for the Bourne Braves of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Conti died  in an accident at Twin Rivers Technologies plant in 1999.

 North Quincy High School’s John O’Connell wore No. 33  on the basketball court because he wanted to emulate Larry Bird. His number is now retired after a successful athletic career with the Red Raiders. O’Connell, known as “Okie,” was killed by a punch while trying to break up a fight at Westfield State College in 2005. The Okie Fund was established after his death to create scholarships for students at NQHS.

 

Sing a simple song
 
One fixture of this year’s World Series is Moe Morad. While most people at the stadium probably do not know him by name, they certainly recognize the voice that has beautifully rendered “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “God Bless America” throughout the tournament.

 Morad, a Dorchester native now living in Quincy, began his singing career in the choir at Holy Cross Cathedral, before spending 21 years at St. Mark’s in Dorchester.

 One of fourteen children, Morad served in the Korean War and sings in Quincy on Veterans Day. He also sings for Morrisette Post 294 Legion baseball and does memorial Masses.

 Performing upwards of six to eight times a day, there is plenty of pressure on Morad’s throat, but there haven’t been any snags yet.

 “No, I’ve been pretty lucky so far. But, if you start on the wrong key ... I put it out of my mind,” Morad said. “Thank God I haven’t forgotten the words yet.”
 
A message from  the chairman
 
Sinatra couldn’t make it to the series, but the Babe Ruth League chairman of the board did come to Adams Field to take in a few ballgames.

 James Wagoner, chairman for the past three years, had nothing but positive things to say about this year’s tournament.

 “It’s been a very good experience, we’ve processed a million kids down to just a few,” Wagoner said. “It’s fantastic. The volunteers are great, the housing is great. The city does a good job of promoting this tournament.”

Adam Riglian may be reached at ariglian@ledger.com.