East Region: The Longest Day (August 1, 2013)

We're finally 12 hours away from the start of the Little League Eastern Region tournament. At 11 a.m. on Friday, Capitol City (DC)'s starting pitcher will throw the first pitch at Leon J. Breen Field. I cannot wait. The Thursday before the tournament begins is the worst day of all-time. Sure the players are excited when they arrive in Bristol, CT because of all the wonder, but for the adults... it just drags. We're here to play baseball, right?

My initial thoughts on the teams? I think it's going to be a very good week. Everyone looks very athletic. There's the usual 6-foot monsters like Lincoln (RI)'s Steve Andrews and Lionville (PA) has a triumvirate of stars who all look the part (How in the world could someone ever intentionally walk anyone in front of someone that looks like Connor Kalten!!).

The afternoon is filled with a barbecue for players, coaches, families, and staff. There was a very nice dedication for a new monument in front of the press box for all the hometown heroes out there and Little League CEO and President, Stephen Keener, was even on hand.  When the parents all go home and the players head back to the dorms, it becomes pin trading central. Players are hunting down the pins for each of the other teams and they move around in packs. I pulled a handful of pins out of my pocket and like seagulls, they swarmed.

I had a chance to meet a few coaches that I've corresponded with and some parents who read the blog and listen to the radio show. I chatted with the only female player in the tournament, Capitol City (DC)'s Sofia Ohanian and her coach Brice Plebani about what else? Taylor Swift, One Direction, and Austin Mahone. Apparently, baseball isn't important yet on The Longest Day.

Finally, at 11 p.m, I found my way to my hotel room sopping wet from the rain that won't stop. After The Longest Day, there better not be a field maintenance delay tomorrow. Knowing the staff at the East Region, they'll have it all under control.

Each day here on the blog during the tournament, I'll have a full and in-depth recap on the games. I'll tell you how they went down, how they could've went down, and my general thoughts about the outcomes. We'll have home run meters and strikeout meters, predictions and rankings, and we'll highlight the best plays of the day.

Predictions for Day 1

Newark (DE) 5, Capitol City (DC) 3

Lincoln (RI) 10, Saco (ME) 2

Berlin (MD) 6, East Greenwich (NJ) 4

Westport (CT) 5, South Burlington (VT) 1

For the past two weeks, we've also had Little League Insider Radio. We will continue that this week as I'll be LIVE from Bristol.


To listen to the debut episode of Little League Insider Radio: CLICK HERE
To listen to Episode 2 of Little League Insider Radio: CLICK HERE

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