By Jimmy Brzozowy
NEW BRITAIN – There was a different buzz (no pun intended) in the ballpark for Game 2 of the New Britain Bees’ doubleheader against the Vermont Lake Monsters. Fireworks night, Little League All-stars, and a beautiful Saturday afternoon all lined up to paint the picture of authentic summer baseball.
The Bees needed a boost. After totaling 11 runs in an Opening Day victory over the Lowell Spinners in front of their home crowd, they had dropped 4 of the next 5 in New Britain Stadium, scoring just 10 runs total and being shutout twice, including in Game 1 Saturday. In the night cap, the Bees came back from five runs down to score seven unanswered runs in a 7-5 win.
Unfortunately, the early innings squashed the Bees again. They fell behind after Jake Lopez sharply lined a single to score James Schaffer in the first. Three walks, a hit by pitch and three hits pushed across a crooked number in the 2nd to extend the Lake Monsters lead to 5-0 quickly.
In the 2nd inning, Dylan Swarts (Union College/Chester, NJ) laced a double into the right center gap, counting for the first extra base hit for the Bees since George Slauson (UConn/Plymouth, MA) homered Tuesday against the Westfield Starfires. Swarts’ double also snapped a 54 inning double-less streak for New Britain.
In an inning looking destined for failure after the Bees grounded into their third double play in as many innings (hasn’t happened in the MLB regular season since April 1, 2025), a Tim Hennig (Binghamton/Wantagh, NY) four-pitch walk and Slauson double off the wall pushed home the first New Britain run in 19 innings. Kacin Robinson (Stonehill/East Hartford, CT) followed the RBI double with a single to left field and a Myles Gythfeldt (Colby/Ridgefield, CT) walk loaded the bases with two away. With the bases loaded, Brady Paul (Winthrop/Midlothian, VA) ripped a 93 MPH line drive right back to the pitcher, Alvin Gomez, who slowed it enough to make the play and end the inning.
Following a brief intermission from the “World Famous Monkey Boy” the vibes in the stadium were back at a pregame high. Yes, it’s worth the trip to Instagram to watch this monkey’s business.
Vermont loaded the bases with Hunter Strohm and Jack Fitzgerald singles and a Lopez walk before a single out was recorded in the 4th. However, Fayz Baig (CCSU/Marlborough, CT) forced a popout and then struck out consecutive Lake Monsters to hold them off the scoreboard and keep the deficit to four. Momentum completely shifted towards the Bees.
Trailing by four in the 5th inning, New Britain exploded for four runs and sent 10 batters to the dish. Slauson, Robinson, Gythfeldt and Brady Chernovetz (Southern CT State/Wallingford, CT) all circled the bases and knotted the game at five. While they only had one hit, seven Bees reached safely.
After a quick, shutdown inning of defense for New Britain, they were back up to bat with the bats hot. Robinson launched a double off the base of the wall to get the rally started again, followed by an RBI single from Gythfeldt. Later, a Chernovetz single scored Swarts to double the lead, 7-5. It was the first time the Bees scored more than five runs at home since the opener, 17 days ago.
Following two quick singles in the 7th, Vermont attempted to play small ball with a bunt, but it popped high enough for a lunging Hennig to make a diving catch and hold the runners at first and second with one away. With all of New Britain eager for a win and some fireworks, a routine fly ball and strikeout broke the Bees’ four game home losing streak.
For the first time since May 28th, “The Bees Win” echoed through New Britain Stadium, accompanied by the screams of young fans and fist bumps of players, relieved that they finally pulled off a home victory.
It’s safe to say the guest appearance from the “World Famous Monkey Boy” may just be the kickstart New Britain needs, as they prepare for six more games in seven days at home. Next up, the rubber match with Vermont on Sunday afternoon at 1:35 p.m.