Lyon Mountain, NY – After the 2020 Empire Baseball League season was completely eliminated due to the complications and restraints of the novel coronavirus, Opening Weekend for the 2021 summer season was highly anticipated by residents of Tupper Lake, NY and its neighboring counterparts.
Four teams sprung into action on June 12th & 13th to begin the season. The first matchup was hosted by the defending 2019 champion Plattsburgh Thunderbirds and the visiting Saranac Lake Surge.
In the first game Saturday, the home team Thunderbirds struggled to gain much ground early offensively as the pitching and defense of the Surge limited opportunities. On the other end, the Surge bats came out hot, providing them with a comfortable cushion of runs.
The early lead by the Surge would soon shrink as Plattsburgh began to find effective ways to get on base and score runs. Center Fielder Hanley Acevedo provided his Thunderbird team with the spark they needed after lighting up the field hitting 3-4 with two doubles, a single, seven bases and, ultimately, four runs.
The Thunderbirds would, however, come up short and fall to the Surge 13-11 after an explosive showing of Saranac Lake offense late in the game.
Looking to come out hot to redeem their game one loss, the Thunderbirds starting pitcher brought the fire, throwing a complete game shutout to go along with two hits allowed to pick up their first win of the season. The Plattsburgh bats came out firing early and would ultimately score ten runs to even the four game set.
Even though the Plattsburgh Thunderbirds would start the season 0-1 and would later pick up their first win, the team is confident in themselves and their ability to hit the ball both with power and effective contact. In a post game interview Saturday with Thunderbirds player of the game
Hanley Acevedo, he said that he “personally felt comfortable at the plate” and that the team, as a whole, is a “great hitting team”. He would later explain to reporter Jake Manyin that the team needs to “shake off the rust and keep showing out”. That would prove to be evident as the Thunderbirds found their way to win Sunday and even the set.
Game three of the four game series is set to occur tomorrow at Lyon Mountain Park at 1 p.m. if expected thunderstorms and rainfall don’t force postponement.
Article by Jack Burgess
Empire League Press
