NEWS

 

The Shirley Povich Field press box features a display case highlighting 25 years of Bethesda Big Train history and memorabilia. Photo by Tim Wilcox

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Story and Photos by Tim Wilcox

The Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League’s two oldest teams, the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts and Bethesda Big Train, possess countless items to remind us of their rich histories.

Both teams formed more than 20 years ago, before the CRSCBL came into existence. Richard O’Connor, founder and general manager of the Thunderbolts, and Bruce Adams, founder and president of the Big Train, have helped preserve pieces of memorabilia and traditions around their stadiums.

Silver Spring-Takoma is now in its 23rd season, and as you walk into their home at Montgomery Blair Stadium, you are reminded of their players that once donned red, white and blue. The entrance features a growing collection of flags representing the diverse colleges of Thunderbolts players from over the years.

Bethesda, now in its 24th season, also showcases its deep history throughout Shirley Povich Field. Beyond the left-center field wall, you can see the No. 11 worn by former Big Train player and current Kansas City Royal, Hunter Renfroe. The sign, located amongst the treetops, marks the distance of many of Renfroe’s towering home runs while with the Big Train in 2011 and 2012.

Within each ballpark’s press box, there is an assortment of photos, bats, baseballs and more to mark some of the team’s greatest achievements and memories.

Here’s an in-depth look at some of the Thunderbolts’ and Big Train’s most fascinating pieces of memorabilia.

On the staircase leading up to the Thunderbolts’ press box, a wall of team photos from nearly every season since 2000. The photos are signed by the players and coaches from those teams as the wall serves as a tracker for past T-Bolts in their years after playing.

As you make your way to the Thunderbolts press box, you pass a bat rack of Louisville Slugger lumber. The bats are signed by former T-Bolt players, including Brett Cecil, a former MLB All-Star who pitched for 10 years with the  Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals.

In the Big Train’s press box, they carry a similar tradition, getting their entire team to sign baseball’s each summer. The baseball’s are mounted in home-plate shaped cases, giving the collection a pristine touch.

Both Silver Spring-Takoma and Bethesda have collected and stored programs from over the summer seasons. The Thunderbolts present their programs in a display case near the entrance to the press box. Within the case are some of their oldest programs printed during the early 2000’s. The Big Train have a wall devoted to their magazine-size programs helping them remember each of their 25 seasons. Some of Bethesda’s past program covers include baseball card style designs, a photo of league namesake Cal Ripken Sr. and a sketch of Shirley Povich Field.

From 2005-2010, the Montgomery County Ripken Sr. League teams, which included Rockville, Bethesda, and Silver Spring-Takoma, competed to win the Montgomery Cup trophy. The team that had the best record against other Montgomery County teams would win the trophy each season. The Thunderbolts won the Montgomery Cup trophy twice in five years.

Now, competition for the Montgomery Cup is still tracked on the Big Train’s website but there is no longer a trophy awarded annually. The Cropdusters joined the CRSCBL in 2022 and are now a part of the competition following Rockville’s departure in fall of 2018.

Along the brick wall of Montgomery Blair Stadium, about 50 college flags hang to greet fans as they enter, representing schools of current and past Thunderbolts. The flags include schools from all parts of the country across all levels of college athletics. Each summer, the collection continues to grow because players are proud to add their flags to Silver Spring-Takoma’s growing collection and make their mark on one of O’Connor’s favorite traditions.

“That means we’ve done something right,” O’Connor said. “[The flags] keep coming every year.

The Big Train also have their way of remaining close with past players, coaches and staff. As of 2023, 203 former Bethesda players made it to the professional level. Of the group, 143 appeared on baseball cards, which led to Adams' and Big Train historian Bill Hickman’s idea to start a collection of baseball cards signed by former Big Train players.

To build the collection, Adams trades a Big Train souvenir program to each alumni in professional leagues and requests signed cards. From the process, Adams has signed cards from 87 different players, and between Adams and Hickman, they have 138 of 143 players represented by at least one card.

For players without a baseball card, Adams gets a photo of them autographed, and has all 203 professional Big Train players in the collection.

Bethesda’s display case includes many photos, lineup cards, trophies, bobbleheads and plaques. These items help the Big Train remember past successes along with the many people that created fun experiences. 

One of the photos features Renfroe, who returned for a visit to Povich Field in 2019. Prior to a game, Renfroe met with Bethesda players to teach them lessons that carried him to pro ball, and the players all watched with intrigued looks. Renfroe signed the photo, which quickly became one of Adams’ favorites.

The Big Train have had many bobblehead promotions throughout their history, and after the giveaway, they tend to make their way to the display case. Some of Bethesda’s past bobbleheads included their mascots Homer and Bunt, former MLB pitcher Walter Johnson, and ESPN baseball analyst (and Bethesda native) Tim Kurkjian. In 2023, the Big Train held a “Bobblehead Trading Night” to give fans the opportunity to trade and add to their collections.

While most of the memorabilia at the two stadiums are from the past, the Big Train have an item for future collectors. On July 7, Bethesda will be giving away an Owen Lieber Bat Boy bobblehead to the first 500 fans. In celebration of their 25th season, the bobblehead giveaway is a tribute to the young people the Big Train was created to inspire. Lieber, 12, is now in his fifth season as Bethesda's bat boy.