Exciting news for baseball fans was announced yesterday in New Bedford. One hundred fifty years after the first known baseball clubs began appearing in New Bedford, the city will be getting a team of its own. The New England Collegiate Baseball League will be fielding a franchise in the 2009 season. The NECBL is a summer collegiate baseball league similar to the Cape Cod Baseball League. You may even see a future major leaguer at a NECBL game as their players are often selected in the MLB draft.
Photo: PETER PEREIRA Standard Times
The New Bedford Bay Sox will take the field on June 4, playing out a 48 game schedule. Home games will be played at Paul Walsh Athletic Field. Prior to moving to New Bedford the Bay Sox played as the Torrington Twisters in Connecticut. The Twisters finished last season with a 14-27 record.
I could be mistaken but I believe that this is the first organized league to field a team in the city since 1941 when the semi-pro New England League fielded an entry in New Bedford.
Now the way this works is that people have to buy tickets and go see the games. I lived in Newark, Ohio several years ago and we got a franchise from the professional Frontier League. To make a long story short they left after two seasons. Some people were surprised. Had they gone to a game? Many I knew had not. Seeing low level minor league ball and collegiate level baseball is fun and entertaining. I don’t see that happening in New Bedford. This isn’t Ohio and there is more baseball history behind the Bay Sox here.
There is a certain level of competitive excitement you see that you don’t typically see on the major league level. These are kids that have something to prove and they appreciate a good crowd cheering them on.
But before we start buying tickets we need Bay Sox hats.
Support the New Bedford Bay Sox folks. This is part of baseball history.
For more on this exciting news read the Standard Times: http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081218/NEWS/812180343.
South Coast Vintage Base Ball 
Hello my Friends,
Firstly, thank you for the warm welcome by the city of New Bedford & the wonderful article and letting everyone know this team REALLY belongs to them. We wish everyone to join us in enjoying the dream of having your own team to cheer for. Go NEW BEDFORD BAY SOX!
Just wanted to mention also that the team’s name is the BAY SOX not the Blue Sox, however we are competing agains’t he Blue Sox in the opening game on June 4th, 2009!! this will be a true grudge match as the Blue Sox are owned by Robin Wadsworth’s brother and sister – Barry and Karen. Come on out and cheer for the BAY SOX.
Come on out New Bedford & let’s Play Ball!!!
David Tedham
My mistake. I would have felt like a fool at the first game cheering on the Blue Sox. You may have saved my life! I did get it right in the title though. Looking forward to summer!
Hope you guys have fun this new team, because the owners screwed Torrington over big time, and it really is a great family outing, and hope the host families take their job seriously because i was a host family in Torrington and it was the best time of my life.