2018 Manager Awards

After members of the 2018 Bethesda Big Train departed from Shirley Povich Field as the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League co-champions, there were still awards to be handed out. Manager Sal Colangelo chose five players for this season’s awards: most valuable player, most-outstanding hitter, most-outstanding starting pitcher, most outstanding relief pitcher and most outstanding utility player. 

Summer 2018 Recap

The scene in the pavilion of Shirley Povich Field on July 30 was similar to that of June 1. Players returned the jerseys they picked up to start the season, hugged, reminded each other to stay in touch, took pictures and parted ways as strangers-turned friends.

LCS Final Game Two Recap

As A.J. Lee (Maryland) stepped into the batter’s box with two outs in the top of the ninth, the Big Train fan section went wild. The shortstop proceeded to drive a double down the third-base line into the left-field corner. The crowd only got louder.

Recap vs Redbirds.

One of the most exciting games of the season unfolded at Shirley Povich Field on Saturday, as Big Train survived a back and forth, offensive game to beat the Baltimore Redbirds, 9-8, in game one of the Cal Ripken League championship series.

LCS Final Preview

After nearly two months of baseball between the Cal Ripken League’s ten teams and two rounds of playoffs, the season will come down to the same finale as each of the last nine years: Big Train will face the Baltimore Redbirds to decide the league title.

Semis Win Recap

Big Train and the T-Bolts battled it out through nine innings today in the second game of the semifinal series, with Big Train emerging with a 14-8 win. After winning the first game of the series after a rain delay, this win puts Big Train in the finals of the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League playoffs. Big Train will be playing against the Baltimore Redbirds in the first game of the finals tomorrow, July 27, at Bethesda’s home ballpark.

Recap: CRCBL Semis game 1

After a rain delay halted the first game of the CRCBL semifinals for the Big Train on Wednesday, Bethesda came back out strong to finish the last inning and a half, winning 4-1 and taking the 1-0 lead in the three-game series.

Preview: CRCBL Semi

The Bethesda Big Train are set for their first playoff matchup of 2018, taking on the Silver Spring-Takoma Park Thunderbolts in the Ripken League semifinals.

Big Train players pose after the team photo.

After finishing the regular season with a 34-6 record, Bethesda Big Train is focused on winning their third Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League championship in as many years. But, the atmosphere of the club isn’t one of a team solely focused on the wins.

Recap at Braves.

The Bethesda Big Train (34-6) completed a historic regular season in the Cal Ripken League on Friday night when it edged the FCA Braves (18-21), 6-4, in Annandale, Virginia.

Preview at Braves.

After clinching the top overall seed in the Cal Ripken League playoffs with a 7-1 win at the Gaithersburg Giants on Thursday, Big Train (33-6) will head to Annandale on Friday for a matchup with the FCA Braves (18-19) that is still full of playoff implications.

BT wins 7-1

Big Train rallied in the sixth inning in their game against the Gaithersburg Giants to come back and win 7-1. Both teams remained scoreless until the bottom of the fourth inning when the Giants took the lead with their first and only run of the game, but Big Train answered back in the sixth and ninth innings to score 7 unanswered runs.

Preview 6/19

Big Train improves their record to 32 wins and 6 losses, putting them one game away from tying their record for number of wins in a season. They travel to Gaithersburg, Maryland today to take on the Giants, and they look for a fifth win over the Giants.

Recap 7/18

Clutch pitching and smart at-bats helped give the Big Train (32-6) the edge over the D.C. Grays (17-19) in Bethesda’s 5-4 win on Wednesday at Shirley Povich Field.

Preview 7/18

The Big Train (31-6) host the D.C. Grays (17-18) at Shirley Povich Field for their last home game of the regular season.

BT fall in extras

Big Train and the Riverdogs battled it out in their game today, going through 10 full innings in Loudoun. The Riverdogs came out with the win in the bottom of the tenth inning, winning 4-3 over Bethesda. With this game, Big Train’s record changes to 31 wins and 6 losses, and the Riverdogs record improves to 9 wins and 25 losses.

6/15 Afternoon Battle

Big Train will be traveling to Rock Ridge High School tomorrow to take on the Loudoun Riverdogs. With their game from today, Bethesda remains ranked at first in the Cal Ripken Southern conference.

Recap 7/14 5-3 Win

While defensive errors plagued the Bethesda Big Train (31-5), the offense proved stronger in their 5-3 win over the Gaithersburg Giants (20-16) on July 14.

Preview 7/14

After two blowout wins in a row, the Bethesda Big Train (30-5) look to continue their post-All-Star Game success against the Gaithersburg Giants (20-15).

BT win 14-3

Big Train controlled the game to defeat the T-Bolts 14-3. This game keeps Big Train ranked in first for the Cal Ripken Southern division with a record of 30 wins and 5 losses, continuing their win streak to four wins.