By Nick Lemley

On Sunday, July 24th I was lucky enough to get out to Martha’s Vineyard for the 2022 New England Collegiate Baseball League All Star Game. My journey from Connecticut to MV was a bit long but it was worth it to see the NECBL showcase their best players for fans and MLB scouts in attendance. The game was held at the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks venue called “The Shark Tank,” which is situated behind Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School on the Vineyard Baseball Park. The teams were split up into the North Division and South Division, the North wore white jerseys with purple accents and the South wore purple jerseys with white accents.

The Shark Tank was an ideal place for the NECBL to hold its All Star Game. The main seating is a grand stand right behind home plate and there are 3 bleachers on the 1st and 3rd base line. In the outfield there is a fairly thin stretch of grass that goes from the foul pole to center field with picnic tables and adirondack chairs as well as a beer garden in center field. My father and I were lucky enough to get two adirondack chairs out in right field and had a great view of the game. Scattered throughout the venue there were places to get food like the snack shack, a local food truck and ice cream supplied by Mad Martha’s. There was also a ton of merchandise which included all the normal MV Sharks gear as well as All Star hats for each team.

The environment at The Shark Tank was electric. The venue was filled with kids of all ages running around and enjoying the game and festivities. The bullpens were located on the 1st and 3rd baselines in the outfield and the only separation from the crowd was a chain link fence which kids would sit on top of and talk to all the pitchers. There were also some older kids listening and paying attention to the pitching coaches and watching how the pitchers warmed up and threw. On the other side of the walkway behind the outfield seating area there’s more field space which was filled with kids playing catch, hitting balls and just having a good time.

I spotted several Rhode Island players in the NECBL All Star game. Randy Reyes (Pitcher), Christian Mercedes (Outfield), Addison Kopack (Catcher), Nick Conte (Pitcher) and Jake Studley (Outfield). Christian Mercedes started in right field and had a good night going 1-2 on offense with a single to right field in the 3rd inning. Nick Conte came in to start the top of the 4th inning. Randy Reyes came in to start the bottom of the 4th. Addison Kopack and Jake Studley played up until the 7th inning, when they were subbed out of the game. The 2022 All Star Game ended in a blowout with the South Division winning 13-2, scoring 8 runs in the 4th inning after being up 5-1.

I had an amazing time this weekend getting to go to one of my favorite places and on top of that getting to see some great baseball. The Martha’s Vineyard Sharks staff did a fantastic job hosting the event.  If you get the chance to visit Martha’s Vineyard, and you are a baseball fan, The Shark Tank is an awesome place to see a game.

All-Star, Friendship, Charity Tournaments Baseball Parks, Fields, and Complexes New England Collegiate Baseball League News Nick Lemley Sports Youth Baseball News all star game baseball baseball field community local necbl rhode island sports summer collegiate baseball league youth sports