As we’ve reached the end of the 2023 season for the Worcester Bravehearts it’s time to hand out some awards. Named for the moniker this blogger used on several sports message boards, the “210 Awards” officially began in 2009 when the Worcester Sharks were in town. Starting in the 2015 season the award posting was begun for the Bravehearts.
We’ll first take a look at some of the official awards and accomplishments of the Bravehearts during the regular season, with shortstop Tyler Bastunas winning the Futures Collegiate Baseball League’s “Player of the Month” and pitcher Max LeBlanc winning the FCBL’s “Pitcher of the Month” for May/June. Kobe Stenson (7/3) and Daniel Bucciero (7/17) each won “Player of the Week” once, while pitcher Dylan Vigue (7/3) won “Pitcher of the Week” once.
Winners of the FCBL’s “Player of the Night” were Kobe Stenson (6/2, 6/22, 6/27), Tyler Bastunas (6/4, 7/27), Daniel Bucciero (7/14), AJ Guindon (6/10), Dylan Vigue (6/20), and Mark Willi (5/24). Vigue was the first pitcher in Bravehearts’ history to win “Player of the Night”, an award usually reserved for position players.
FCBL “Pitcher of the Night” winners were Clay Robbins (5/27, 6/9, 6/16, 6/30, 8/11), Max LeBlanc (6/6, 6/13, 6/27), Andrew Alameda (5/31, 6,29), Griffin O’Connor (7/19, 7/28), Tyler Nielsen (7/5), JT Raab (7/22), and Dylan Vigue (7/1).
Occasionally during the season, the Bravehearts would announce a sponsored “Player of the Game”, with Daniel Bucciero, AJ Guindon, Max LeBlanc, Clay Robbins, and Matty Warren all winning once.
Several Bravehearts were named to the FCBL’s All-Star game, with Tyler Bastunas, Andrew Chronister, AJ Guindon, Tyler Nielsen, Clay Robbins, Kobe Stenson, Dylan Vigue, and Marc Willi playing for the “Lake” squad in Vermont. Daniel Bucciero and Vincent Eramo were named to the team but did not participate. Vigue also took part in the Home Run Derby.
In one final FCBL note, Michael Florides was named as Worcester’s winner of the Adam Keenan Sportsmanship & Scholarship Award.
The FCBL often announces an “All-FCBL Team”, but as of posting time that had not taken place yet.
As always, the following “210 Awards” are just one man’s opinion. If you think I got one wrong, feel free to leave a comment below or on our Facebook page. Also, I generally like to limit the number of categories a player can win to spread the mentions around a bit. Take that into account when deciding if my picks are wrong.
Best Freshman
Worcester used more than a handful of incoming freshmen on the mound this season, and Dylan Vigue was easily the best of them. A dig into the FCBL record book will be needed, but there’s a good chance Vigue is the first player in league history to win a Home Run Derby without having an official plate appearance during the season.
Best Sophomore
It was a tight race in this one, and Daniel Bucciero is the winner. He led the team in doubles and extra-base hits, and his .305 batting average was second on the team among players with more than 150 at-bats.
Best Junior
There may not have been a better late-inning arm in the league than Axel Johnson‘s. His four saves led the team, and his two holds could have been more were it not for some bad breaks happening to others. He only allowed runs in three of his 16 appearances with the Bravehearts.
Best Senior
Worcester manager Alex Dion likes to use all three of his catchers fairly evenly, and that may have held down some of Andrew Chronister‘s stats but he still managed to hit well over .300 in his 28 games and made the team top-10 in many offensive categories.
Best Pitcher
Randy Guzman led Worcester in wins and had only one bad outing all summer.
Best Hitter
Tyler Bastunas set the Bravehearts’ single-season record for hits, so that makes this one an easy choice.
Best Power Hitter
Daniel Bucciero is the winner on a team that didn’t hit many home runs. Bucciero lead the team in doubles and was tied for second in triples, and that’s enough to win Best Power Hitter this season.
Best Single-Game Performance
Dylan Vigue pitched three hitless innings while striking out four in Nashua on June 20th, and then won the game by hitting five home runs in the Home Run Derby.
Pitcher of the Year
Griffin O’Connor, for being named 210Sports “Pitcher of the Week” twice. (In a 3-way tie-breaker vote)
Batter of the Year
Tyler Bastunas, for being named 210Sports “Batter of the Week” twice. (In a 3-way tie-breaker vote)
Most Valuable Player
Tyler Bastunas set a franchise single-season record for hits, singles, and stolen bases, led the team in runs, walks, and triples, and tied for the team lead in RBI. Sure sounds like an MVP season to me.
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