1979 Boys Senior League Standings

1979 Brookline Little League Association

Boys Senior League Final Season Standings
The Castle	17	4
Brookline Lions	16	5
Stebbrook Pharmacy	11	9
American Legion	8	12
Manor House Realty	6	14
DeBor Funeral Home	3	17

* Playoff Summary *

2nd Half Playoff - Castle Tavern beat Brookline Lions in tiebreaker.

Castle Tavern Won Both Halves To Claim Championship!

1979 Senior League Champions - The Castle

Front Row: Chris Brendel, Scott Impell, Mark Painter, Shawn Kelly, Jim "Buckner" Manning, Walt "Rusty" Miller.
Standing: Robert Hurley, Luke Vietmeier, Tim Lannon, Sam Palermo, Chuck Rafalowski, Robert Poremski, Bill Feineigle. Standing in rear: Manager George Kinzel.

Click on image for a larger picture.

* Photo reprinted from the Brookline Journal *

Castle Defends Senior League Title

Once again, The Castle, by defeating the Brookline Lions 12-9, become the "Undisputed Senior League Champions."

The Castle won both the first and second halves, a repeat of last years feat, which makes them the first Senior League team in Brookline history to win 4 consecutive halves in back-to-back championships.

The Castle's batting stars were Shawn Kelly with two hits, Chris Brendel with two singles, Mark Painter with two singles, and Mike Joseph with a double and a homerun. Defensively, The Castle was sparked by right-fielder Tim Lannon, who turned a timely double play by catching a fly and catching a Lion runner off first base.

For manager Ted Gielas' Lions, Jim Rohall had two hits and Bob O'Malley collected two. Gielas offered a fine note of praise to The Castle players and coaches by stating that their fine gamesmanship made losing almost bearable. (That's quite a compliment from Tenacious Ted!)

Congratulations to manager George Kinzel, coach Bob Land and the entire Castle team on their fine accomplishment.

* Reprinted from the Brookline Journal - August 16, 1979 *

Senior League All-Stars


Here are a couple photos from the 1979 Senior League All-Star game at McGibbeny Field in Brookline. The photos capture not only the team members (listed below), but also many of the characters that made the Brookline Little League experience a special one for many of us late-term baby boomers. The photos above and below show the team heading towards the dugout for the beginning of the contest after, no doubt, an inspirational pre-game speech by coaches George Kinzel and Bob Schwemmer.

Manager George Kinzel leads his team to the dugout as Coach Bob Schwemmer gets the helmets ready. In the lower right corner is Bob Sherry, another long-time manager in the Brookline program. Together, Bob Schwemmer, George Kinzel and Bob Sherry each put in 15 or more years with the league and touched the lives of many of us Brookline kids.

The team gathers near the backstop. To the right of the picture, in green shirt, is Walt Evans, another Little League legend, and to his left is retired-President Sam Bryen, affectionately known as the "Father of Little League Baseball" in Brookline. Mr. Bryen and Mr. Evans were two of the founding fathers of the Brookline program, with careers dating back to the 1950s. Standing near the team with no shirt is "Iron" Mike Healy, and to his left, getting the scorebook straight, is none-other than Gentleman Jack Henry, another long-time coach. Holding the video camera is young Eddy Hurley, and that's Shawn Kelly in the blue football jersey. Propped atop the backstop fencing is the old loud speaker, the same one that had broadcasted the Little League games to the fans of Brookline baseball for more than 30 years.

This last photo is similar to the one above with two notable additions. To the right is League President Angelo Masullo, Sr speaking to the men in the blue ballcaps, and Ed Motznik, who in 1981 would begin an eight year run as the Grand Poobah of the Brookline Little League. During Mr. Motznik's tenure, in 1981, the boys and girls Little Leagues moved into their newly constructed baseball complex, Sam Bryen Fields. * Photos provided by Doug Brendel *
The members of the 1979 Brookline Senior League All-Star team were: Manager - George Kinzel Coach - Bob Schwemmer
Mark Painter James Manning Chris Brendel Steve Tripodi Mike Joseph	Walt "Rusty" Miller Robert Matrascia Mike Healy James Raimondi	Larry Meyer Donnie Graham Robert O'Malley James "Jake" Zucco Donald Mooney

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