Late rally propels IBEW Local 38
Thanks to a late rally, IBEW Local 38 took home its fifth straight division “A” title in the 43rd Cleveland Building Trades Softball Tournament with a 17-16 victory over Laborers Local 310.
In the “B” division, Elevator Constructors Local 17 made a valiant run, but came up short against Steelworkers Local 979 A by a 16-6 score in the Championship game.
The two-day, double-elimination tournament at James Day Park began on Aug. 30 and ended the following night. Despite a rain delay on Thursday night, teams showed amazing talent and
exciting play.
“I’m very proud of all three Local 38 teams and impressed with the amount of talent from all the trades,” said IBEW Local 38 Business Manager Dan Gallagher.
For those who stayed at Nike Park until almost midnight on day two, the “A” division championship game was worth losing a little sleep at the start of the holiday weekend.
Coming out of the loser’s bracket, Local 310 showed they were not afraid of the four-time defending champions.
The Laborers hitters found gaps in the outfield, which helped them jump out to a 13-5 lead after
three innings.
Just when it looked like Local 310 was going to run-rule the Electrical Workers and set up a winner-take-all title game, Local 38 bounced back. They outscored the Laborers 12-2 over the final four frames, including a five-spot in the fourth and a four-run sixth inning to tie the game at 16.
As the home team by virtue of going undefeated through the bracket, Local 38 pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning to set off a raucous celebration for the Local’s fifth straight championship.
“Winning this tournament five consecutive times with the incredible amount of competition is very impressive,” said Gallagher. “I don’t know if we’re on the same line of dominance as say the Belichick/Brady era, but it is impressive,” he joked.
While Local 38 rallied late, the Steelworkers jumped all over a tired Elevator Constructors squad by scoring 12 runs in the first two innings.
Coming up through the losers’ bracket, Local 17 played great defense and got timely hitting.
Elevator Constructors Local 17 Business Manager John Driscoll, Jr., praised his team’s tournament performance, considering the team only plays once a year.
“I thank all our guys for coming out and playing,” he said. “We put together a nice team and second place ain’t bad for guys who don’t play together as regulars. I’m proud of them.”
While Local 17 has previously won a tournament title, this is the best finish during Driscoll’s tenure as Business Manager.
“This was a great finish for us,” said Driscoll. “I want to thank our coaches Todd Kemp and Rich Kemp. They did a great job and put together a great team.”
By making the “B” division championship game, both teams will move up to the “A” bracket next year. With those two teams moving up, Iron Workers
Local 17 and Sheet Metal Workers Local 33 will be relegated to the “B” bracket next year since they finished at the bottom of the “A” bracket this year.
This year’s tournament also marked Jamie Wadsworth’s final year as tournament director. After a long run of more than a decade, Wadsworth is stepping down.
“Thanks to Jamie Wadsworth from (Pipefitters) Local 120 for putting such a great tournament together for so many years,” Gallagher said.
Local 120 member Rick Gorski will assume tournament director duties next year.
For Wadsworth, it was a good final tournament.
“I truly appreciate all the Locals’ (and) teams’ cooperation along the way for a yearly successful event,” said Wadsworth. “I also thank my wife Lisa, all the Pipefitter volunteers who donated their time, the City of Parma and Mayor DeGeeter for helping us with whatever we needed.
“Thanks for making it a pleasurable last year for me.”