Welcome to Vermont, Pittsfield, Wahconah and Taconic High Schools, and schools from all around New England!

By Eric Berry

I’m a bit of a sarcastic person, but you knew that anyway right? I also like to tell it like it is, which isn’t going to make some people happy. Well today, I will list some things that bother me when it comes to all things sports, sports management, or otherwise. Here we go:

Can someone please tell me how it is that the VPA still has three schools in the Division 1 standings from other states in the baseball and softball rankings? What gives? Is it that hard to figure out how to eliminate those schools from the VERMONT rankings? This has been going on for years. Years!

In Division 2 there are teams from Granville Central High School, Fall Mountain out of New Hampshire, and Northeast Clinton also from NY(like Granville). It doesn’t stop there. In Division 3 there’s Hinsdale High(NH), Mt. Everett and St. Joseph’s(MA), Warrensburg and Ticonderoga(NY) that litter the Vermont rankings. Vermont Academy also makes this page even though it is a post graduate school. I hope none of our high schools have to play them. Mt. Greylock is listed on the softball side of things in these rankings. Are they in the eventual Division Two softball tournament? Probably not.

In Division 4 there’s Hartford, NY(nope, not Hartford, VT), and Albany Academy. Albany Academy is an independent college prep day school for boys in Albany, New York. I hope our Division 4 kids don’t have to play them. Concord Graded is listed on the softball side.

What gives? Isn’t there a way to not have these schools show up in the Vermont rankings? There’s got to be right? Is anyone else perturbed by this? Maybe it’s just my obsessive compulsive disorder that make this so bothersome for me. I have no axe to grind with the VPA, that ship has sailed, but let’s get this fixed for God’s sake. If there’s a way I can help, I’ll help.

I know one of the issues may be in the way the game is reported-in that the system may recognize a team regardless of where they are from, especially if they are the home team. Still seems like there’s a way around this though, right?

If you go back to look at the basketball rankings you’ll see only the teams that are allowed to play in the VT tournament listed. They get rid of all of the “other” teams. I ask why can’t this be done throughout the regular season too?

On to the Red Sox:

The Sox offense is toiling. But, I think they’ll get better if Dustin Pedroia ever returns. It will be interesting to see who the odd man out is. Maybe Devers just gets a few days off here and there at third base. I don’t like the idea of JD Martinez in left field at all. He’s going to get hurt(see Blake Swihart injury 2017).

I feel like the bullpen will get things figured out-sans Carson Smith. Thornburg will help. I just wish that someone would score some runs for Chris Sale when he pitches!

To the C’s:

Everyone should be ecstatic the C’s are up 2-0. However, everyone should also pump the breaks. If it evens at 2-2 after 4 games and heads back to Boston we all know Game 5 will pretty much decide everything. Or will it? With Lebron James in a series, it ain’t over until you have 4 wins. One game at a time folks.