Stan Brown of Danvers has been the District 15 Little League Commissioner since 1963, so he's familiar with the whole World Series scene in Williamsport, Pa.
He was always happy to see young baseball players in the national spotlight, but every time he'd watch a game in Williamsport, his mind would drift closer to home.
"All you do is dream," said Brown. "But now we don't have to dream anymore."
Brown, 81, who has seen District 15 double in size from 11 teams to 22 during his tenure, finally got his wish last weekend when Peabody West nailed down a World Series berth by beating Lincoln, R.I., 11-7, in the New England Regional Tournament in Bristol, Conn.
"I was so worked up for the team when we were in Bristol that I had to watch the replay (on ESPN) the next day," said Brown. "Even though I was there when they won it, I had to see it again."
To say that Brown, who'll be in Williamsport for Sunday's game against Park View of Chula Vista, Calif., is proud of Peabody West would be a grand understatement. He's literally been waiting for this moment for 46 years.
At the same time, he's also proud of the other 21 teams in his district. Less than 24 hours after Peabody West earned the right to go to Williamsport, Brown sent out an e-mail to the other District 15 teams, thanking them for playing a role in Peabody West's success.
"They played a part in it, you know," Brown said of the other District 15 teams. "They played hard against Peabody West in the (District 15) tourney and it prepared Peabody for the later rounds. It's not like they showed up for those games and said, okay, you're going to be our representative. They made Peabody West work for everything. I think these other teams helped them along."
It was a huge deal to Brown and all North Shore Little Leaguers when Peabody West became the first-ever District 15 team to make the cut for Williamsport. As Brown pointed out, there are about 260 teams in Massachusetts and probably 600 or more in New England. In Brown's mind, however, Peabody West should be the second team in District 15 history playing in the World Series.
Back in 1965, Danvers National played Windsor Locks, Conn., for the regional championship in Staten Island, N.Y. , and Danvers was victimized by an erroneous call on a triple play that really wasn't a triple play. It cost Danvers a trip to Williamsport and though Brown has moved on, he still recalls the firestorm and its aftermath.
"They (the umpires) called the same kid out twice (on an appeal play). It was a mistake that never should've happened," said Brown. "The (issue) made it all the way out to Williamsport (for review) and they knew something was wrong. So they invited Danvers to come out and watch the World Series as guests. I was so damn proud of the Danvers coaches when they turned down the offer. Windsor Locks ended up winning the World Series.
"Hey, it was a mistake and you can't live off that, but now we've got a team in Williamsport and let's see what happens."
Brown likes the makeup of the Peabody West team and its all-around ability. Peabody West had a remarkable .458 team batting average in six games at the New England Regional. It's going to be hard to keep up that kind of pace in Williamsport, but this is a very dangerous offensive team.
"They hit like hell," said Brown, "and they have two better than average pitchers (referring to Matt Hosman and Austin Batchelor). They also have the little rat (Matt Correale, who is known as The Rat) for relief pitching. That kid just amazes me because nothing bothers him. I also like the catcher (Traverse Briana). For a small kid, the homers just snap off his bat. I like the whole team. They're very sound."
He calls the Peabody West manager, Dave Batchelor, "the calmest son of a gun I've ever seen," and Brown is happy with the way the team has conducted itself on and off the field.
"They don't go rubbing the other teams' noses in it after they win," said Brown. "It doesn't matter if they win by one run or 10. They're gracious and that's what you want to see."
Brown plans to stick around as commissioner for a couple of more years and feels a tremendous sense of satisfaction with Peabody West's accomplishment at this stage of his career. He pointed out how difficult it is to make it to the World Series, which is why he says, "I don't care if Peabody doesn't win another game. Getting to Williamsport is what we aim for and these kids have already done so much. You can't ask for more."
Yet when he expressed that sentiment to Batchelor, the Peabody West manager replied, "Oh, no, Stan. We've gone this far, so now we've got to win (in Williamsport)."
Parents and fans will love it if that happens, but no one would appreciate it more than Brown.
