NECBL unveils schedule
- Updated: January 23, 2025
NORTH ADAMS, Ma. — The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) is excited to share that the first pitch of the 2025 NECBL season is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. on June 3, as the North Shore Navigators will host the Upper Valley Nighthawks at Fraser Field. The NECBL will showcase four more contests in opening day action on June 3, as commissioner Sean McGrath has announced the full slate ahead of the NECBL’s 31st season.
On June 3, 10 teams will take to the field to kickoff the 2025 campaign as all attention will start at Fraser Field for a tilt between the Navigators and the Upper Valley Nighthawks. Later in the hour, the Danbury Westerners will square off with the Keene Swamp Bats at Rogers Park and the Mystic Schooners will travel to Wakefield, R.I. to take on the Ocean State Waves at Old Mountain Field at 6:30 pm.
In the nightcap slot, the 2023 and 2024 Fay Vincent Sr. Cup Champion Newport Gulls will travel to the Valley Blue Sox at Mackenzie Stadium, as the Vermont Mountaineers will take the ferry over to Martha’s Vineyard to tango with the hosting Sharks at the Shark Tank at 6:35 p.m.
On day two of the 2025 season, the Bristol Blues and Sanford Mainers will open their seasons with trips to Danbury and Ocean State respectively. The North Adams SteepleCats will then mark their start on June 5th as the SteepleCats will host Ocean State.
The season format will remain the same with thirteen teams playing a 44 game schedule over the course of eight weeks. The NECBL will return to a two division alignment in 2025. The North Division will consist of the Keene Swamp Bats (NH), North Adams SteepleCats (MA), North Shore Navigators (MA), Sanford Mainers (ME), Upper Valley Nighthawks (VT), and Vermont Mountaineers (VT).
The South Division will consist of the Bristol Blues (CT), Danbury Westerners (CT), Martha’s Vineyard Sharks (MA), Mystic Schooners (CT), Newport Gulls (RI), Ocean State Waves (RI); and the Valley Blue Sox (MA).
The annual All-Star Game will be hosted by the Upper Valley Nighthawks at the Maxfield Sports Complex in White River Junction, Vt, on July 20 scheduled for a 5:05 p.m. first pitch. The All-Star Game features the NECBL’s top talent, with players from all NECBL organizations showcasing their skills in front of scouts from every Major League Baseball (MLB) organization.
The final eight days of the season will feature six games every night in the push for the postseason. Coming out of the All-Star Game, teams will face a slate that features more divisional opponents as they jockey for standings and places in the 2025 NECBL Playoffs.
The 2024 featured a postseason that recorded four sweeps by the top-seeded Mountaineers, No. 2 Gulls, No. 3 Blues and No. 4 Mainers in the quarterfinal round. Sanford pulled off the upset over North Division Regular Season Champion Vermont in the semifinal round as Newport stuck to its course besting the Blues. The Mainers recorded their first championship appearance last season since 2016 as the Gulls returned for their second-consecutive championship title. Sanford, led by 2024 NECBL Manager of the Year Nic Lops, took home game one in Newport before having game two suspended due to weather conditions at Goodall Park before returning to Cardines Field for the remainder of the game. The Gulls pulled off the comeback victory to even the series at one apiece to force a game three which was played later that day at Cardines Field. Game three featured five lead changes among both clubs and extra innings as the Gulls outlasted the Mainers in 10 innings for the 8-7 victory, recording a league-leading eighth Fay Vincent Sr. Cup Championship.
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The New England Collegiate Baseball League is a wooden bat college summer league that fields teams in all six New England states. Partially funded by Major League Baseball, the New England League started play in 1994 and has sent over 230 alumni to the Major Leagues with nearly 30 alumni taken in the first round of the MLB Draft. For continuing coverage of the NECBL, visit NECBL.com and follow the league on Twitter, Instagram and on Facebook.
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