FAIRFIELD – About an hour after climbing down from a firetruck, carving a tunnel through the crowd that filled Fairfield’s Sherman Green, then taking photos with whoever and signing whatever, Tommy D’Amura admitted he was exhausted.
The joy ride that was Fairfield National’s run to the U.S. championship game at the Little League World Series met an appropriate celebration on Monday evening. The team paraded down Post Road, and realized its celebrity as it received a key to the city and heard from several local officials and state legislators, including Governor Ned Lamont, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Jim Hines. Even before the microphone was put down and the music came on, dozens of kids started swarming the gazebo stage looking for autographs.
“It’s just insane how many supporters we have and just all of the people that love this team and came out to support,” said D’Amura, who pitched and played first base. “I just felt like a professional player, like Aaron Judge… I can imagine him being tired after signing all these autographs.”
The Fairfield team gained a level of fame as it won five games on national television and had fun while doing so, ultimately falling to Summerlin South, from Las Vegas, on Saturday, and beating Aruba in Sunday’s third-place game. They came back home Sunday night and rested as much as they could before the celebration on Monday.
School starts Tuesday.
Fairfield Superintendent of Schools Mike Testani promised the team a week free from homework.
“I’m definitely gonna tell my teachers that one,” said catcher Jimmy Taxiltaridis.
Fairfield’s run was the longest for any team from Connecticut in the LLWS since 2013, when Westport advanced to the U.S. final and lost. Trumbull was the last team from CT to win the whole thing in 1989.
State Sen. Tony Hwang used to represent Trumbull and remembers the anniversary of the 1989 team.
Trumbull’s ’89 Little League champs watching, marveling as Fairfield kids follow in their footsteps
“Thirty, 40 years later, these young men who’ve turned into parents are still the best of friends,” Hwang said. “And what these kids demonstrated was that, at the highest level, they still played for each other. For me as a state legislator and seeing the rancor that we have, perhaps maybe it’s sometimes a reminder that these kids can teach us something about being part of something, united in an effort. And they conducted themselves with incredible joy and just fearlessness of playing.”
Palazzolo said the team signed its first few autographs and took selfies at the Metro Region Tournament in Bristol, but when they made it to Williamsport, “They literally became little rock stars.”
Fairfield National Little League’s SJ Taxiltaridis signs autographs after the team was celebrated with a parade to Sherman Green Monday evening. (Joe Arruda/Hartford Courant)
Sharing the experience with his son, Brian, who pitched and played second and third base, Palazzolo won’t forget being shuttled at 7 a.m. from Bristol the day after punching their ticket and taking in the scene in Williamsport.
“When you get off, you’re treated like royalty,” the manager said. “They take your bags, they bring you to the dorms and then they give you time to walk around. So there’s nobody in the stadium except a couple grounds crew guys working on the infield and you see Lamade Stadium for the first time and you’re like, ‘Wow, this place is really special and in a couple days, we get to show the world we belong out there.’”
Fairfield won its first game against Texas, 1-0, then beat Hawaii, often a Little League power, 5-1. The team had its way with South Dakota on the base paths and continued its stellar defensive effort to win, 6-1, before beating the team from Las Vegas, 7-3, which ultimately set up a rematch in the U.S. championship.
The double elimination aspect of the tournament went away for championship weekend, so Fairfield’s run came to an end after losing to Vegas the second time around. But the team stayed in Williamsport to win the consolation game and finished with the best record in the tournament (5-1) aside from the champions from Tung-Yuan Little League, who went 5-0 representing Chinese Taipei.
“I call us a team that had a really special summer that had tremendous baseball players, that played the game we all loved as kids and showed that hard work and determination pays off,” Palazzolo said.
After making history, Fairfield’s run at Little League World Series ends with yet another win
