Northwest VT Babe Ruth Baseball

In last night's action 6/11/26.......

On a hot and humid summer evening Swanton 16u Babe Ruth hosted Essex. Swanton would send Gabe Grimes to the hill to start things off. Grimes would give up a leadoff single. Essex then drew a walk and then plated a run on a fielder's choice. That would be all though as Grimes would strike out the next two to end the top half of the first.

Swanton would come out looking to swing, only coming away with two groundouts and a strikeout in a quick bottom half .

After a 1-3 out to grimes to open the second, Essex would add another run by capitalizing on a single with stolen base and a few walks , before Grimes would get them to pop up to the catcher and ground out weakly to short.

Swanton once again went quickly in the second, popping out to short and then back to back strikeouts.

In the third, Essex once again found a way to tack on another single run by drawing walks, stealing bases and moving runners with ground balls. Grimes would end things though by inducing a weak pop up behind first base. Essex would take a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the third.

Swanton looked like they would come to life in the third when Sawyer Comfort had a long at bat and fought his way to an eventual single through the hole into right. Liam Labelle would follow that up with an absolute missile into right center that the CF cut off holding him to a single and sending comfort to third. Labelle would take second on the unsuccessful throw to third though. With 2 men in scoring position and no out, Swanton would send the next three hitters up to strike out, with 2 of them looking, and coming away with nothing to show.

Going into the 4th down 3-0 JF Comfort would tow the rubber for Swanton relieving Grimes. Comfort would strike out the side and Swanton seemed to gain some momentum and poised to make up for the lost opportunity the inning before.

In the bottom half of the 4th Swanton catcher Finn Chagnon drew a walk. As he was stealing second, leadoff hitter Sawyer Splonskowski put down a beautifully placed sacrifice bunt and Chagnon was off around second and chugging for third. Essex took the out at first and then threw across the diamond but Chagnon was in safely having gone from 1st to 3rd. A single by Gabe Grimes would give Swanton their first run, but back to back strikeouts to end things deflated Swanton once again. The score would be 3-1 Essex after 4 innings of play.

Essex would add two more runs to pad their lead in the top of the 5th , taking advantage of a Hit by pitch, stealing and advancing on wild pitches. A single would knock in the first run, a walk would put another in scoring position. With the lead runner advancing on another wild pitch, Essex capitalized on a fielder's choice to score the second run of the inning. Comfort would settle a bit, starting by covering home promptly after a wild pitch and getting the runner hung up in a rundown, which Swanton would successfully execute for the out. Finn Chagnon would make a perfect throw to Comfort to the third base side of home to get the play started for out #2. Comfort would finally get the last out freezing the batter for strike 3.

Bottom half of the 5th would see Swanton go quickly 1,2,3 two of those by strikeout at the hands of a pitching change.

Essex pulled away completely in the 6th , by taking advantage of sloppy play by Swanton and free passes. To their credit they did steal every base they could to capitalize. They didn't have a hit in the inning but moved runners well.

Swanton would attempt a rally in the bottom half of 6 when Liam Labelle once again barreled up the ball and launched it deep over the left fielder's head in left center. Labelle would end up on second with a leadoff double. After a strikeout, Bentley Brown would draw a walk and end up stealing second. After another walk to Kayden Marinoff, Brown would get caught trying to advance on a ball that got loose from the catcher. A Hit by pitch to Finn Chagnon though would give Swanton another man in scoring position and two on again. After another great at bat by Sawyer Splonskowski, he would eventually ground out to end things for Swanton.

Sawyer Comfort would come in for Swanton to relieve his older brother In the 7th. He would give up a leadoff single , before issuing 2 strikeouts ( one looking) and a walk. He would get the final out of top half grounding the batter out to second.

One final opportunity for Swanton in the bottom of the 7th would see Gabe Grimes poke his second hit of the game up the middle , JF Comfort walk, and then a single to left by Josh Garrant, scoring Grimes. JF Comfort would get thrown out at 3rd advancing. Essex pitcher would get the next two batters to ground out and pop up to the pitcher to end the game. Despite our hitting Essex, the mistakes, walks, and Essex base running was simply too much to overcome. Essex heads back down I-89 with a 10-3 victory. Swanton falls to 0-2 and will travel to Milton Monday 6/15 for a 6 pm start.

Swanton pitchers:

Gabe Grimes - 3 IP, 2H, 3 runs/3 ER, 2K, 5 BB
JF Comfort - 3IP, 1H, 6 runs/3 ER, 5K, 4 BB
Sawyer Comfort - 1 IP, 1 run/ 1 ER, 2 K, 1 BB

Offensive stars:

Liam Labelle 2-2 (dbl, single) 1 Run
Gabe Grimes 2-3 ( 2 singles), RBI, Run , 2 sb
Josh Garrant 1-3, RBI
Sawyer Comfort 1-3

In last night's action - Tuesday 6/9/26.........

Swanton 16u Babe Ruth traveled to SD Ireland Field in Burlington to take on Burlington 16u Babe Ruth for a 6 pm start.

On offense Swanton went down quietly in the first and second innings. Meanwhile Burlington began the game with back to back doubles and a walk off Swanton Starter Josh Garrant. Garrant then settled in nicely striking out the next two batters and inducing a weak pop up to the shortstop. After a leadoff walk in the second inning, Garrant again struck out the next two and then got the third out on a lazy fly ball to center.

The third inning saw Swanton make some noise. After a strong at bat Rowan Myers was hit by pitch and Sawyer comfort followed with a single. Wyatt Schiffiletti then provides the hit of the game, an absolutely hammered ball to right center that probably leaves the yard if there was a fence. Myers and Comfort score easily to cut Burlington's lead to 3-2. After 2 long at bats, Kayden Marinoff and Sawyer Splonskowski both draw a walk and Swanton had the bases loaded. The inning ended on a 6-3 play to end the threat.

In the bottom of the third Burlington would add another run. Things began with the batter reaching on an infield error. Swantons starter Josh Garrant then collected another strikeout for our number 1. Another double by Burlingtons leadoff hitter plated the runner and put another in scoring position. Garrant then induced a weak pop up to second base, and then another weak combacker to himself and onto first base for the final outs of the inning.

The fourth through 6th innings saw Swanton go down quickly and quietly with 7 of 9 pits by strikeout. Meanwhile Swanton brought in pitcher Michael Palumbo. In the 4th inning Palumbo Mowed down the Burlington Offense , striking out the side with two of them looking. Palumbo returned for the fifth and quickly induced a routine grounder to short and a shallow fly to center. After a hard fought at bat drew a walk and then stole a base, an error allowed another run to score for Burlington to put them up 5-2. Palumbo though would bear down and get the last out looking at strike 3.

In the 6th, Palumbo once again had things working and as a result got a ground ball out to 2b and another to 1b. He would then hit a batter and then surrender another walk and a single scoring another run for Burlington. He would get the final out on another fly ball to center to keep things in reach.

Palumbo would step up to bat in the 7th and line a hard single to right to try and get a rally going for Swanton . Swanton would fail to score again though with the next two batters striking out and the third out coming on a ground ball back to the pitcher.

Burlington walks away with a 6-2 win . Swanton pitchers handled the Burlington lineup extremely well with the exception of the #1 and #2 batters.

Pitchers for Swanton:

SP Josh Garrant - 3 IP, 5 k, 2 BB, 3 H, HBP, 3 runs allowed/ 2 earned

RP Michael Palumbo - 3 IP, 4 k ( 3 looking), 2 BB, 1 H, HBP, 3 R/ 2 Earned

Offensive Star- Wyatt Schiffiletti 1-2, reached on error, 2 RBI

Swanton Hosts Essex on Thursday 6/11 at Missisquoi Valley Union HS for a 5:30 pm start

It's awesome when a kid you coached and played for your team in his first year of Babe Ruth and beyond comes back and offers to take on coaching duties as an adult! Swanton Babe Ruth would like to welcome back Gabe Nyland-Funk as assistant Coach for the 2026 summer season 🙂⚾

Beyond being a Little League all star player, Gabe played Babe Ruth for Swanton, played 4 years of Varsity Baseball for Fairfax High School, moved on to travel Ball for the Vermont Strikers, played American Legion post 01, and finally played two seasons in college. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the game of baseball that he is already passing on to this year's team. His can do attitude and on field presence is a display of sportsmanship, competitiveness, High baseball IQ and integrity! We are lucky to have him in Swanton to help lead our young men 🙏⚾😊

A Swanton Babe Ruth Alum, and one of the first players to join my Very first Babe Ruth team. James currently plays at Clarkson University and is playing in the GMBL this summer while he works as well. Great player, great kid!

💥 WEEK 3️⃣ PLAYER OF THE WEEK 💥

lead the GMBL in hits in Week 3, going 4/6 with a double at the plate. His offense lead th help lead to 12-0 and 3-2 victories over the Expos.

[📸: ]

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If your business would like to support Vermont baseball by sponsoring the GMBL’s Pitchers and Player of the Week awards, you can email [email protected] for more info.

Today while showing our appreciation for a wonderful sponsor, CMD construction management direct, we pause to remember past volunteer Travis Leno. Travis came on board and jumped in willing to do anything. Although a military man and extremely well organized he was brand new and a self professed " non baseball guy" he agreed to take on the position of coach so that the boys could have a season. Along with that he fully sponsored our two teams at the time through a business he had with a partner. After Travis untimely and unexpected death, his now adult son Ryan , who played for Swanton previously, reached out wanting to follow in his father's footsteps learning to coach and help a team, as well as continuing to provide sponsorship to our program. He spoke with His Dad's partner Rory and got him to agree to sponsor us once again. Thank you to CMD construction management direct for your unwavering support, and to Ryan for facilitating !!! Travis would be pleased I'm sure and we are truly grateful 🙂⚾

Please patronize CMD and all of our great supporters.....they help keep cost down and make things happen!

Northwest VT Babe Ruth Baseball would like the thank our Awesome Sponsor , Gordon Winters and Memorial ACE Hardware in Swanton, VT for their donation of all the Lime we need to line our fields for the summer and fall 2026 seasons. It is generosity like this that makes it all go for our players and families and helps keep cost down. We TRULY appreciate your support!!!⚾

Please patronize Ace and tell them you saw this post!!

The team is formed and ready to play some baseball!🙂⚾

Below is the 2026 game schedule for Swanton Babe Ruth 13-16 yr old team. After opening the link, use the tabs up top to filter the schedule to Swanton only and all venues.........

https://app.cactusware.com/embed/87014b35-83db-451b-8c23-4dcbe7b6f116

Should be a fun season!⚾⚾⚾

The page you were looking for doesn’t exist (404 Not found) The page you were looking for doesn’t exist. You may have mistyped the address or the page may have moved. If you’re the application owner check the logs for more information.

Last call for summer ball signups is Friday 5/15. We can not go any longer than this if we want to leave Room to order uniforms and set up teams. I visited the middle school teams at MVU last week and sent them all home with paperwork. Email Mike Bessette with any questions at:

[email protected]

OR message this page

Thank you.⚾

Hello! It's that time again, don't wait until the last minute to sign up! SEE BELOW ⚾⚾⚾

It’s that time again, to begin registering your child for summer Babe Ruth Baseball…..please find registration paperwork at the bottom of this page ( medical release and registration form). I will also visit each school team during their school seasons to give a talk and pass out forms if necessary so be on the lookout for those. The babe ruth program has helped IMMENSELY in feeding the high school program and elevating them to a position of prominence once again and ultimately resulting in state champion status. Lets keep that going!

Below is registration information on the 2026 13-16 year old Babe Ruth Season.

We plan to have a 12 game schedule starting on June 5th and running to July 17th (APPROXIMATELY). This will result in a game schedule of 12-18 games, weather permitting. Younger teams compromised of 12-14 yr old players will play Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday. Older teams compromised of players 14-16 will play Monday, Wednesday and Friday of each week. Number of signups may dictate that we have a combined 13-16 team. Practice will take place and is at the discretion of the coach for those teams. I usually like to see at least one practice per week during the game schedule but this can be tough with weather and makeups.

The Northwest VT ( Swanton) Babe Ruth teams will participate in the Chittenden County League with home games at Missisquoi Valley Union high school Middle school field.

It is our intent to limit team rosters to 13 players per team to maximize playing time. Rosters will be developed on a first come first serve basis, BUT we will attempt to balance things should we get a large number in one age group.

A player will not be considered registered until payment and completed registration forms are received.

Players from ANY town within Franklin County can play for Swanton based teams, although we encourage you to play within your high school teams town, unless there are other circumstances at play.

Attached are the registration form and “Consent to Treat” form. The registration cost is $125 per player. Each player will receive a uniform shirt and hat. The registration fee covers the cost of chartering our teams, the league insurance, umpire fees, Baseballs and uniforms.

We also typically hold a bottle drive , typically after the July 4th weekend, but this can be anytime. IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that we do fundraising this year as coaches and families have not for several years now resulting in no surplus . Details to follow.

Please note 12-year-olds (who will turn 13 between May 1 and August 31) BUT are not eligible to play Little League ( aged out) can play Babe Ruth.

Registration opens today Mon. March 30th and runs until Fri. May 8th.

Once registration has closed I will hold a joint practice/ parents meeting to outline the season and how everything works. We will also discuss all-star play and if that is anything we are interested in as a town for the season. Recently there have been additional games added to the regular season schedule to allow for more play, but we do have availability for all star play with co-operation from interested parties.

We welcome sponsorships from individuals who have businesses and from your connections and employers. It helps keep us from raising registration to simply make ends meet. Baseballs are $75 per dozen and we buy 5-6 dozen per year. Umpire fees are $75 per game. Uniforms run $40 per player and it is $425 to simply register the team. That puts a team at the max for registration collection even before uniforms so we fall short. Sponsorships are as follows but please note we will accept ANY amount.
Team sponsor $500
Sleeve sponsor $250
Game sponsor (shoutout on page) $75 per game desired

Lastly, please direct ANY and all questions to:

Mike Bessette -coordinator
802-752-6093
[email protected]

Updates and additional information can be found on our page as well as in season game highlights,player highlights and mentions,and sponsor shoutouts: (LIKE AND FOLLOW
Northwest VT Babe Ruth Baseball

**** We are in need of coaches for one or both of our teams. Please inquire with Mike Bessette for details and assistance in getting started. To survive, we NEED your support!!....... a team effort of people with varying abilities and skillsets to manage and coach is a PERFECT situation. Many times the best skills coaches are NOT the best managers of running a team and its logistics. It really takes someone to be on top of multiple things. I am and will be available for guidance and help once the season begins. I will set you up completely prior to the season.

REGISTRATION:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11NX9Mnvph46Srhb39NVo6-mUAP8Fx6Tz/view?usp=drivesdk

Fall Babe Ruth Registration Player Name:______________________ Player DOB:__________ Parent phone:_______________ Player phone if applicable______________ Address:_________________________ Town, State, Zip_____________________ Parent/ Guardian:___________________ Email ________________________ Emergency...

Hello Swanton Babe Ruth families......

There is an opportunity to play fall Babe Ruth beginning late August and going into mid October.

This league is OPEN to outgoing little league players that just finished playing this Summer. There is one game per week and games take place Sunday afternoon only. If we have two teams there might be a schedule where younger play Saturday morning and older play Sunday afternoon.

One practice per week recommended and it's always come of you can style. We understand kids are playing fall school sports and other activities. Fall ball is honestly the most fun IMO and typically is when kids " step up" to the next level.

This summer in Swanton we had a mixed team. While we can absolutely do a mixed team for fall, the kids are best served when we can have two teams where kids are " stepping up" to their next level of play. Outgoing little league players benefit greatly from this fall league and are more than ready for spring ball by playing in the fall. Slightly older players can band together for a senior Babe Ruth team ( 15-18) and prepare for HS ball. It's is very beneficial.

Time is short for signing up, so please get ahold of me NO LATER than August 13th.

Let me know if you're interested. We would need a coach for each team or there will not be a team. Being that it's for the kids, Any dedicated individual can be a coach. I'm sure parents with baseball knowledge will fill in around you and help. I will help interested individuals to get started and to support you throughout the fall to make things run smoothly. If you Coach, your player does not have to pay to play. Cost is $75 to cover umpire fees and baseballs. Players can wear Swanton blue colored shirts or their summer uniform. New players wishing to obtain the official uniform ( although not necessary for fall ball) can do so by paying an additional fee and we'll put in an order.

Contact Mike Bessette with any additional questions
802-752-6093
[email protected]