The 2021 Prospect Select Baseball (PS Baseball) Boston Open started tournament play this Thursday, July 8th in baseball parks all over Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Locally here in Rhode Island, 16U and 18U divisions headed to some of our area’s premier high school and college baseball fields. Just here in Rhode Island, there were games played at Johnson and Wales, Salve Regina, Bryant, and the University of Rhode Island on Thursday. With my work schedule in the afternoon hours, I had some time Thursday morning to travel down to the University of Rhode Island’s Beck Field to watch the 10:30 game featuring two Rhode Island baseball clubs – The Ocean State Bandits vs The Ocean State Outlaws.

I arrived just about game time and took a seat in the bleachers behind home plate. It was mostly cloudy, some sun was peeking through the clouds now and then, but for the most part it was a cloudy morning. There were cameras and monitors and other devices set up around the back stop area, so I was careful not to step on or kick any electrical plugs. A decent crowd had gathered to watch this opening round game of the Boston Open. The Bandits Baseball Club’s Giuseppe Lisi of Lincoln High School was on the mound as I sat down to watch the game action. The Bandit’s roster is made up of players from 10 different high schools, mostly in Rhode Island with one player from Seekonk High School in MA. These players are all Class of 2021 (recent graduates) and Class of 2022 (seniors to be).

The Outlaw’s Domenic Brazeau of LaSalle Academy took the hill for the bottom of the 1st inning. The Ocean State Outlaws 17U Showcase team, like the Bandits, had a mix of players from various Rhode Island and Massachusetts High Schools. These players were Class of 2022 (Seniors to be) and Class of 2023 (Juniors to be).

As I was moving towards the third base dugout, I felt a few raindrops so I got over to my usual camera spot and took a few quick photos of the game action. Coach David Roy of the Ocean State Bandits was positioned as the 3rd Base Coach. Coach Roy has been a great contributor to Rhode Island baseball news not only about the Ocean State Bandits Baseball Club but also the Rhode Island Baseball Institute which he manages in Warwick. It was good to see David, although because of time restraints, I wasn’t able to catch up with him.

I stayed for a few innings Thursday morning and then caught the rest of the game via the Tourney Machine app on my phone. With the weather not looking promising for Friday’s games, I was happy to get out to URI to watch some baseball. And I was especially thrilled to watch two Rhode Island baseball clubs squaring off against each other. Some of these baseball players who were just high school classmates and teammates a few weeks ago were now in opposite dugouts on Thursday morning. That’s part of what makes travel and showcase teams so interesting to write about – you play for your local high school team all spring, then potentially against your high school teammates in the summer.

The 2021 PS Baseball Boston Open schedule of games, teams playing, and tournament field locations can all be found by clicking this link – PS Baseball Boston Open. Here is a list of Rhode Island based baseball clubs participating in this year’s Boston Open:

• Bandits Baseball Club
• Ocean State Outlaws
• Ocean State Makos
• New England Scorpions
• RI Devils

Good luck to all the players, coaches, families, and organizations this weekend as you navigate through the rain and stormy conditions headed our way on Friday into Saturday.

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