"Field of Screams" Tournament & Home Run Derby
Beginning in 2020, Omar Ortiz, manager of the Boston Havoc, organized the first annual "Field of Screams" weekend baseball tournament and Home Run Derby contest in hopes of this becoming an annual event. A special thanks to all of the players and teams who have made this event possible.
2021 Event Recap
Sat, Nov. 6 - Sun, Nov. 7 — The second annual "Field of Screams" weekend tournament and Home Run Derby Contest was held at Lawrence High School in Lawrence, MA. Four teams participated in the tournament, including the MSBL Boston Havoc, MSBL Boston Dodgers, MSBL RI, and the GSBL NH Cardinals.
Ten players participated in the Home Run Derby Contest, which took place on Sunday morning. In round 1, each player had two minutes to hit as many dingers as possible, using an aluminum or wood bat. On a brisk 40-degree day in Lawrence, none of the competitors managed to knock one out of the park in round 1, despite the 325-foot porch in left and right.
All ten sluggers moved on to round 2, where the player with the most home runs in one minute would be declared the winner. With five seconds to go in his second-round attempt, Henry Nunez of the MSBL Boston Dodgers hit the sole home run of the derby and was crowned the 2021 Home Run Derby champion.
Day 2 of the tournament continued shortly after the Home Run Derby Contest, beginning with a victory for the No. 2-seeded Boston Havoc over the No. 3-seeded MSBL RI, in the first of two semifinal matchups. The Havoc moved on to the Finals to face the winner of the second semifinal contest between the No. 4-seeded Boston Dodgers and the No. 1-seeded GSBL Cardinals.
Despite the Dodgers losing to the Cardinals 22-1 just one day earlier, the Dodgers were able pull off a 4-3 upset win in extra innings over the top-seeded Cardinals, setting up a Finals matchup between the No. 2-seeded Boston Havoc and No. 4-seeded Boston Dodgers.
In the Finals, the Dodgers took an early 3-0 lead in the 1st and held onto that lead until the 5th, when the Havoc offense came alive and exploded for six runs en route to a 9-5 win, and the 2021 "Field of Screams" championship.
2020 Event Recap
Sat, Oct. 24 - Sun, Oct. 25 — The inaugural "Field of Screams" tournament and Home Run Derby Contest was held at Veterans Memorial Park and Pelham Street Field in Methuen, MA. Four teams participated in the event, including the MABL Boston Sox, MSBL North Shore Havoc, MSBL Boston Dodgers, and GSBL Iron Pigs.
The Home Run Derby took place on Sunday morning and included seven different players from across the BMBL — Jono Gallagher (MSBL Boston Dodgers), Siul Mejia (MSBL North Shore Havoc), Brahiam Ortega (MABL Boston Sox), Omar Ortiz (MABL Sox/MSBL North Shore Havoc), Seth Perkins (MABL Boston Sox), Nick Powers (MABL Boston Sox), and Kyle Zeberlein (MABL Boston Sox).
The sluggers had the option of hitting either soft toss or live pitching, with either an aluminum or wooden bat. Nick Powers would go on to win the event and be crowned the 2020 Home Run Derby Champion, defeating Siul Mejia 4-3 in the final round. Check out a video replay of the Home Run Derby below.
The Tournament Finals was played later that night under the lights in a frigid game between the Boston Sox and North Shore Havoc. The Sox took an early lead in the first inning and never looked back, winning the first-ever "Field of Screams" Championship by a score of 13-3.
