Canton Junior League baseball team captures Mass. state crown

Canton’s 14A squad is now just a few wins away from a trip to the Junior League World Series.

In the ultimate pressure cooker of the state playoffs where dreams are made and dashed on the scorching baseball fields in Oxford, Massachusetts, the Canton Bulldogs overcame their toughest test yet to capture the 2022 Junior League Baseball state championship.

Playing against some of the best 13/14-year-old travel teams in the state, Canton was not only able to survive but thrive as the boys went 6-0 in pool play before demolishing Holden 15-1 in the single-elimination semifinal.

Sunday’s championship finale pitted the Bulldogs against a formidable North Reading squad and the game was an instant classic. With temperatures in the high 90s, both teams played incredible baseball as they battled back and forth, giving everything they had to the contest.

Canton held a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh and final inning, but North Reading came back to tie the game with a rare, two-run homerun. With their season on the line, the Canton players showed exceptional mental fortitude and resilience as they thwarted a major rally to stave off defeat with great defense and gritty pitching. The game then moved into extra innings, and in the top of the eighth the Bulldogs put together a two-out rally with multiple players grinding out hits and walks to manufacture a single run to pull ahead 5-4.

Once again North Reading threatened with runners on base in the bottom of the eighth, but Canton’s solid defense and pitching came through again to secure the victory.

All summer long the boys have put aside their individual hopes to commit to the greater good of the team. Every single player has contributed to the team’s success, which makes this team very special. The recipe for success has included a potent offense, rock-solid defense, sensational pitching, and the strongest ingredient of all: friendship.

These boys of summer include Graidy Carr, Liam Connolly, Gavin Davis, Ryan DeLello, Andrew Gillis, Shane Kelleher, Justin Lesser, Patrick Long, JT Norton, Chris Pirrera, Joey Ryan, Teddy Shuman, Reilly Swearingen, and Gavin Thompson. The team is coached by Tom “Patton” Norton, Joel “Good Cop” Lesser, and Ted “Bad Cop” Pirrera.

The Bulldogs now move on to the East Regionals in Freehold, New Jersey, where they will compete for a spot in this year’s Junior League World Series in Taylor, Michigan. Canton will be making its sixth trip to Freehold as it eyes its first regional title since 2008. The action gets underway on Thursday, August 4, with the Massachusetts champs opening against Mt. Monadnock beginning at 7 p.m. All games will be broadcast on the streaming platform ESPN+.

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