Mystic Schooners

Pittsfield Dukes
File:PittsfieldDukes.GIF
Team Information
League	NECBL
Division	Southern Division
Location	Pittsfield, MA
Ballpark	Wahconah Park
Franchise History
Founded	1994
Former Names	Eastern Tides Thread City Tides Berkshire Dukes
Former Cities	Willimantic, CT Hinsdale, MA
Former Ballparks	ECSU Stadium Dan Duquette Sports Academy
League Championships (1)	1994
Post-Season Division Championships (0)	None
Regular Season Division Championships (0)	None
2007 Record	13-28
2007 Home Attendance	28,955
Front Office
General Manager	Kent Qualls
Director of Baseball Operations	Thomas Miner
Field Manager	Mike Marron
Broadcaster	Mike Radomski
Mascot	Duke
Website	pittsfielddukes.com
Ownership
President & Owner	Dan Duquette

The Pittsfield Dukes are a summer collegiate baseball team, and one of the two oldest franchises in the New England Collegiate Baseball League.

Originally known as the Eastern Tides, and later the Thread City Tides, playing in Willimantic, Connecticut, the franchise was purchased by former Boston Red Sox General Manager Dan Duquette in 2004. Duquette's club was first known as the Berkshire Dukes, playing their home games at the Dan Duquette Sports Academy in Hinsdale, Massachusetts. Duquette moved the team to nearby Pittsfield, Massachusetts in 2005 after reaching a lease agreement with the city that brought the Dukes to historic Wahconah Park.

The team had struggled to compete in the NECBL since moving to Berkshire County, and did not enjoy a winning season or a playoff berth until 2008. The team's level of play has rebounded greatly since the disastrous summer of 2005, where the Dukes finished at a league-worst 11-31, the fourth fewest wins in NECBL history. The Dukes fanbse has continued to grow despite the team's struggles on the field, with a reported home attendance of 28,955 in 2007, the fourth-highest in the league.

Franchise History

NECBL Charter Franchise and Championship

As one of only two remaining charter franchise's in the NECBL, the other being the North Shore Navigators, the Dukes began play as the Eastern Tides in 1994 in Willimantic, Connecticut, playing home games at Eastern Connecticut State University. The NCAA Division III ballpark would remain the home of the Tides throughout their history in Connecticut. The New England Collegiate Baseball League was founded in 1993 as a five team Connecticut league, where the Tides were the easternmost team, hence the name. Eastern was the only charter franchise to not take the name of its host community, Willimantic, which itself is a census designated place in the town of Windham.

The first season for the Tides would result in the franchise's first and only league championship. 1994 was the first (and last) season in league history that used a point system to determine the league playoff contenders, modeled after the system used by the Cape Cod Baseball League. Eastern finished the first round in third place at 10 - 10, 5 games back of the first place Bristol Nighthawks. However, the second half of the season saw Eastern rebound to a 14-5 record (not including one tied ballgame that was never finished), good enough for first place, a game and a half ahead of the Middletown Giants. Overall, the Tides ended the regular season with a record of 27-17-1.

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Eastern Tides Original Logo.

Eastern went on to defeat Bristol in the only best-of-five championship series in NECBL history. After falling in Game 1 3-2 at Bristol's Muzzy Field, Eastern rebounded to win the next two games at home, 3-2 and 3-1. The Tides traveled back to Bristol for Game 4, dropping the contest 4-3, before returning home to Eastern Connecticut State University's baseball field for a decisive Game 5, where the team crushed Bristol 11-2.[1] University of New Haven Catcher Bill Buscetto was the Championship Series MVP, batting .409 with 4 RBI. The win would crown the Eastern Tides as the first champions in NECBL history.

Struggles at Home

In 1995, The Tides again had a successful season, finishing in third place, at 19-21. Eastern fell in the first-ever league semi-finals, however, to the Waterbury Barons, two games to none. Tides player John Ellis, son of former Major League Baseball player John Charles Ellis was named to the NECBL All-League team, while fellow team member and Player of the Week Steven Hine went on to found the Steven Hine School of Baseball[2]. Both members of the Tides later played minor league baseball careers.

The 1996 season began a long stretch of troubles for the Tides, as they finished in fifth place at 13-26, not qualifying for the postseason. In 1997, Eastern finished in sixth and last place, at 17-23. At 15-27, the Tides again finished in sixth, though not in last place in the league, in 1998.

The team's struggles fielding a competitive club continued in 1999, however, as the team once again finished in last - this time in eighth place in the NECBL. At 9-30, the Tides' 1999 season would stand as an embarrassing worst record in the league's history, 17 games back of first place. The Tides would finish seventh in 2000, with just 14 wins and 25 losses. As the franchise continued to falter on the field, so did the team's attendance. Before long, it became apparent that the team would not be able to support itself financially if things continued to progress as they were.

Final Years in Willimantic

The 2001 saw renewed success for the Tides, and their first playoff appearance since 1995. After an 8-2 performance during the last 10 games of the regular season, the Tides finished at 14-16, good enough for second place in the NECBL's newly created American Division, just one game back of the Newport Gulls. Despite having the league's seventh ranked offense and facing the number one offense in Newport, Eastern fought the Gulls to 3 games in the American Division Finals, losing the first 8 to 7 at Newport but winning Game 2 at ECSU in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 9th, 4-3, but in front of only 187 fans, many of whom traveled from Newport,Rhode Island. Eastern dropped Game 3 at Cardines Field after losing an early lead, 12-2 the final. The Gulls went on to defeat the Keene Swampbats in the finals for their franchise's first NECBL Championship.

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Rebirth as the Thread City Tides in 2002.

In 2002, the Eastern Tides ownership changed the name to the Thread City Tides, both in an attempt to attract more fans and to honor the local thread industry that once produced the red stitching for baseballs.[3] The Tides suffered a losing season once again, however, finishing in last place in the reorganized Southern Divsion at 10-32, 15 games behind first place Newport. Furthermore, home attendance was only one-third what it was on the road, averaging only 201 fans per game and totaling just 4226 for the season.

Average attendance dropped to just 183 fans for the 2003 season, where the Thread City Tides would complete their final year in Connecticut at 16-25 and again eliminated from playoff competition.

The Dukes Era

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Named for new owner Dan Duquette, the Pittsfield Dukes operated in their inaugrual season as the Berkshire Dukes.

In the spring of 2008, the Dukes lease of Wahconah Park was jeopardized when the city demanded thousands of dollars in back maintenance fees owed by the franchise. The situation was corrected, and the Dukes lease of the park will continue through the 2008 season.

Postseason Appearances

Year	Division Semi-Finals*		Division Finals*		NECBL Championship Series
1994					Bristol Nighthawks	W (3-2)
1995			Waterbury Barons	L (0-2)
2001			Newport Gulls	L (1-2)
2008	North Adams Steeplecats	(0-0)

• The NECBL did not separate into divisions until 2001. In 1994, a points system was used. From 1995 - 2000, the top four teams played each other in a league semi-final. In 2001, only 2 teams from each division qualified for the playoffs.