Baseball Review // Silver City Banditos 2/10 , Collinsville Riverrats 13/14 April 16th, 2023 @ Bowdien Field, Collinsville CT (CNMSBL)

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Once again, it is my favorite time of year as baseball season in Connecticut is officially underway with games every Sunday with the Silver City Banditos.  Opening Day saw them in Collinsville against the Riverrats at Bowdien Field, which I have only ever been to once before.  This is a really fun place to see baseball though because you have to go through tress, across this path in order to get to the field which feels hidden in the woods but also is visible from the road.

During the first game of this doubleheader, the Banditos struck first in the bottom of the first inning.  After Jeffrey Morales singled to get on base, Matthew Moran hit a homerun to put the Banditos up 2-0.   This would end up being the only time the Banditos scored during the first game, however, as the Riverrats would come back in big fashion.

The third inning began the runs for the Riverrats as a sac fly brought in the first run followed by a shot to right field which drove in two more runs.   Up 3-2, the Riverrats used a similar strategy getting runners on bases and with sacrifices driving them home (this time to center) to put up two more runs.   The Banditos got runners on, but couldn't quite seem to find their way home. 

In the sixth inning, the Riverrats put up enough runs to solidify the game as a win for them.  A deep shot to left field where it's difficult to field the ball (and a lot of foul shots were going out there on this day) followed by another one to that same spot brought in two runs with two different at bats.  A sac fly to center drove in another run and then a run scored with the bases loaded on a walk.   

A wild pitch brought in another run, then again and then a shot down the first base line scored two more.  Another walk brought in the ninth and final run of the inning, giving the Riverrats a definitive win and coming off of more walks in a row than should've been given up.  It would be interesting to see of these nine runs in this inning how many of them were actually earned.  

The second game started not too much unlike the first.  The Riverrats were held without scoring in the first, but then the Banditos started off with two runs coming in after a huge triple, which put them up 2-0 going into the second again.   The Riverrats responded with two runs in the second, but the Banditos had a five run inning in the second to put them up 7-2.   

While the first game felt like it was close and then just fell apart in the sixth inning- to where the Banditos couldn't catch the Riverrats- this game had more of a back and forth feel to it, with the lead changing and neither team really in control until the very end.   The Riverrats scored three in the third, putting the score at 7-5 with the Banditos still up.  

After the Riverrats put up four runs in the fourth inning, the Banditos responded with two more in the fourth.   The Banditos would only score one more run in the sixth inning while the Riverrats would score in every inning up until the very end.   At one point, the bases were loaded and Jeremy Benique singled in a run for the Banditos, which was followed by a HBP which tied the game.  

The lone run that the Banditos put up in the bottom of the sixth was an inside the park homerun by Matthew Moran, his second homerun of the day.  The way the outfield is shaped at this field though makes me question why the ball wasn't just out of play and this could be a homerun without hustling around the bases, but it still counts.  

Though the Banditos lost both of these games, they put up enough of an effort to show that in the future they can be a force to be reckoned with as they can keep the runs down for their opponents they obviously have the offense to pull ahead and win.   But again, this was only the first two games of the season so it feels like things can still be worked out.  

From these games the Banditos can only hope to learn and improve.   There are eleven more doubleheaders coming before the playoffs so there is plenty of time to find that winning formula.  Plus, the new uniforms of the Banditos also look really good, so if nothing else they have to be best dressed.