STEVENS POINT, Wis. — Arriving at the American Legion World Series in Stevens Point, Wis., the Norwood Post 70 baseball team finds itself facing a major hurdle: a depleted pitching staff. The loss of ace pitcher Bob Baxter, who pulled a muscle in his throwing arm during the Northeast Regional tournament, leaves Norwood with a critical deficit as it pursues a national championship.
Pitching Limitations and Depth Challenges
While Norwood still boasts two outstanding hurlers in Jim McCready and Scott Generazo, tournament pitching regulations severely restrict usage, limiting hurlers to 12 innings in a three-day period. Because McCready and Generazo exhausted their maximum 12-inning limits during the regional-clinching victory over Portland, Me., Coach Pete Wall must lean on creative rotation strategies.
During the regional tournament, regular third baseman Jim Doherty—who had not pitched in over a month—stepped up to throw six crucial innings in a 7-6 win over Vermont. Coach Wall indicated that Doherty will likely be called upon to pitch again if Norwood advances into Game 3 of the double-elimination national playoff.
Offensive Powerhouse to Offset Pitching Deficit
To compensate for its pitching limitations, Norwood will rely on a formidable, power-laden batting lineup capable of keeping the team competitive against any opponent in the national field:
- Dan O’Rourke and Ted Decareau: Provide switch-hitting power, each hitting two home runs during the regionals. Decareau notably launched a massive home run against Vermont that cleared the fence and landed on the roof of an adjacent hockey arena—earning comparisons from locals to legendary blasts hit by Manchester native Steve Balboni of the Kansas City Royals.
- Jim Delbou: First baseman who remains a constant deep-ball threat, having famously belted grand slams in both the state and regional finals.
“It’s tough winning a tournament like this without three pitchers; you really need four,” Coach Wall admitted, acknowledging that Baxter’s absence diminishes his squad’s margin for error. However, he remained fiercely optimistic: “This field is tailor-made for us. I really like it. We’ll have to score some runs. I feel confident that we can.”
Opening Matchup Against Quincy, Ill.
Norwood opens tournament play against Great Plains Regional champion Quincy, Ill. (Post 37), a formidable opponent that rolled through major summer tournaments—including wins in the Telegraph tournament in North Platte, Neb., the Gopher Classic in Minneapolis, Minn., and the regional tournament in Fargo, N.D.—to finish with an impressive 60-16 record under Coach Mike Hellenthal. Quincy is led by Great Plains MVP first baseman Mike Kirkpatrick and boasts a balanced roster, having overcome the professional draft loss of players like Eric Bush (drafted by the New York Mets, who opted to play quarterback at Michigan) and Monte Krogman (playing minor-league ball after being drafted in the 10th round).
If Norwood defeats Quincy, it will advance to face the winner of the Vancouver-Cincinnati game; a loss will send Post 70 into the loser’s bracket.
Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger
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