LYNN — The 2022 New England Regional Champions were celebrated by fans, parents, city officials, and more Tuesday in front of City Hall before they head off to Virginia for the Babe Ruth World Series.
The Lynn 15s team and coaching staff were present and showered with good wishes as it continues its remarkable summer season in Virginia. A Lynn Babe Ruth flag was also erected at City Hall during the event.
“We are so excited at the success that you are having on the field, the inspiration that you have given to our entire city — everybody in the city that likes baseball, that cares about sports, that also is rooting for our youth to shine — you are inspiring them,” said Mayor Jared Nicholson, addressing the team and spectators.
“We are really proud of you, and we are just so excited for you to take the nation by storm when you head down to Fredericksburg.”
City Council President Jay Walsh echoed Nicholson’s sentiment, saying, “I want you to know on behalf of the City Council how proud we are. We know you are going to do us proud down there, and we are really looking forward to watching you — and know that we are behind you the whole way as you are playing down there on that field. Good luck.”
An aspect mentioned numerous times was all the hard work that went into getting to this point. Lynn Babe Ruth’s President Jeff Earp described the unwavering support from the entire community to make the team’s trip to Virginia possible.
“We leave tonight; we do not know what lies ahead of us — we are going to keep doing what we have done. It could not have been as smooth as it has been without the help of the City of Lynn, the mayor, and the parents put together to drive fundraising,” said Earp.
“We had full cooperation of the community, and it is just very rewarding in this day and age to see a community come together for a bunch of kids that they do not know — it is great stuff.”
Manager Leon Elwell, who will be making another World Series appearance, also thanked everyone for supporting this incredible run.
“I just want to say thank you to the mayor and the City Council and all the other important people here for having us out here today. I want to say thank you to all the parents, and all the grandparents, and the cousins, and the aunts. Everybody that has been out to support us since the very beginning — we could not get here without all of your support,” said Elwell.
“Most of all, I want to thank my coaches, and I want to thank the 15 young men in front of you. We talk all the time about, you know, if you look on the front of their jersey, it says Lynn, and as you all can see on the back, it does not say anything, and that is what we try to do; we try to represent the City of Lynn. Each and every time, we go out there with pride, and we are going to continue to do that when we go down to Virginia.”
Team Captain Jaiden Driscoll also gave remarks, thanking parents and supporters for fundraising efforts and the city for holding the event. He also assured everyone that the champs are ready to roll down in Virginia.
“Special thank you to our coaches for sacrificing their summers and jobs to be engaged in the team; again, without them, we would not be here right now. The boys that stand in front of me are ready to compete in the 2022 Babe Ruth World Series,” said Driscoll.
Lynn will begin its run to a World Series championship with its opening pool play matchup slated for Aug. 13 against EAU Claire Wisconsin.
