Babe Ruth All-Stars Stage Dramatic Sixth-Inning Comeback-July 24, 1979

Edge Arlington 11-10

On July 24, 1979, a wild, high-scoring thriller was played at Trum Field in Somerville, where the Norwood Babe Ruth All-Star baseball team staged a dramatic late-inning comeback to defeat Arlington 11-10 and remain undefeated in the double-elimination tournament. Trailing 10-8 entering the sixth inning, Norwood orchestrated a clutch offensive rally. Mike Conti led off with a single, advancing to third when an outfield throw skipped past the third baseman, and scampered home when the ball rolled toward the stands. Kevin Faherty then raced to third and scored on Jim Wenstrom’s fielder’s choice. The decisive run crossed the plate when Kevin Webster—who reached safely on a fielder’s choice—scored on an RBI single by Joe Pusateri, sealing what coach Len Harris playfully likened to a daylight robbery.

“We’re going to take this game, put it in the bags, and get out of here as fast as possible,” quipped Len Harris as the team loaded up for the getaway, acknowledging that defensive miscues had nearly cost them the game. “We were atrocious in the field. Our defense deserved to lose, but the kids had guts on offense. We’re satisfied with it.” Defensive lapses plagued both sides early, notably in the third inning when Arlington erupted for six runs—aided by a costly infield error, two doubles, and a home run—to claim a 9-5 lead. However, Norwood immediately clawed back, manufacturing two runs in the third behind walks to Kevin Faherty and Mark Devine followed by an RBI double from Ken Webster, before adding another run in the fourth on three consecutive singles and a ground out.

Co-coach Bill Nutting anticipated the chaotic momentum from the opening frame, noting, “I could tell at the outset that this would be a rock ‘n roll game… When they got three runs in the first inning and we came back with two in our half.” After a frantic start that saw Arlington send eight batters to the plate in the first and Norwood answer with a flurry of hits, relief pitcher Mike Conti—who took over for starter Mark Devine in the third inning—finally settled the contest down by retiring Arlington in order across the final three frames. “This was not a finesse game,” Bill Nutting remarked. “The steal wasn’t a factor, neither was the bunt. You run the steal to get a one-run advantage. But everyone hit. We had no trouble scoring runs.” Surviving the slugfest, Norwood advanced to face Saugus in the next round of the tournament.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger