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The North County Kraken and Housatonic River Monsters compete in last summer's 20-year-old championship series of the Berkshire Adult Baseball League.

Berkshire Adult Baseball League Welcomes Players for 13th Season

By Leland BarnesiBerkshires.com Sports
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. –  As it enters its 13th season, the Berkshire Adult Baseball League has a new commissioner.
 
Jared Martin takes over the reins this spring from BABL founder Lou Orazio.
 
The league, which has games mostly on Sunday mornings with some weeknights throughout the season, runs from early May through mid-August in two divisions, the 20-and-over Division and the 33-and-over Division.
 
“The 20+ year old division is full of mostly competitive players, while the 33+ year old division is a more fun environment and less on the competitive side of things,” Martin said.
 
As of late March, the league has 13 teams lined up for the 2024 season.
 
20-and-over: Berkshire Bandits, Berkshire Devils, G.B.Millers, Greylock Mountaineers, Housatonic River Monsters, North County Kraken and Pittsfield Knights.
 
33-and-over: Berkshire Thunder, Dalton Moneymakers, Greenridge Gremlins, Pittsfield Pirates, Pontoosuc Lake Monsters and Tunnel City Freight.
 
But the league has room for more players.
 
“We are looking for anyone of any skill level, from Minor League players to former high school players, to anyone who wants to play baseball competitively,” Orazio said.
 
Orazio is currently looking for scorekeepers for their games, the only requirement to keep score is having experience with baseball scorebooks. Anyone interested should contact Martin for more details.
 
“The times for the games are 10 a.m. on every Sunday morning, and occasionally on Wednesday evening,” Orazio said.
 
The games are all officiated by the certified umps from the Berkshire County Baseball Umpires Association.
 
If you would like to be a part of this league feel free to contact Lou Orazio at orazl@aol.com or through the league’s website.
 
The league currently has 215 players.
 
“People wanting to play in the league should know that (BABL) is a non-profit organization, therefore meaning we do not pay you to play, you have to pay to play,” Martin said.
 
Orazio said he has a lot of hope and trust in Martin running BABL for the future and cannot wait to see how much BABL will develop in the coming years.
 
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Adams Man Convicted in Murder of Stephanie Olivieri

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An Adams man was found guilty in the 2019 murder of 32-year-old Stephanie Olivieri, a Pittsfield native and mother of two.
 
A jury found Tyler Sumner, 30, guilty on Friday of murder in the first degree and possession of ammunition without a Firearm Identification Card.
 
The trial was held in Berkshire Superior Court. Judge Francis Flannery will schedule sentencing.
 
"Today justice was served in the tragic death of an innocent bystander, Stephanie Olivieri; however, this guilty verdict will do nothing to bring her back," said Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue. "Tyler Sumner murdered Ms. Olivieri while she sat in a car filled with gifts and decorations for her child's birthday. She was preparing to celebrate a wonderful event when her life was ruthlessly cut short."
 
Olivieri, who had been living in Yonkers, N.Y., was found sitting in her running car on Columbus Avenue when police responded to reports of masked men near South John Street and heard gunshots on the way.
 
The officers found Olivieri gasping for breath and blood running down the right side of her head. She was treated by emergency medical services and then transported to Berkshire Medical Center, where she was later pronounced dead. The Chief Medical Examiner found the cause of her death to be a homicide caused by wounds sustained from a bullet to her head.
 
Multiple individuals testified that they believed Sumner was targeting an individual living in the area of the shooting and that Olivieri was not the intended target.
 
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