WORCESTER—Playing baseball at a high-level is a difficult task. Now imagine playing baseball at an elite level in Florida with teammates and coaches that don’t speak your language.
That’s the situation for Worcester’s Joey Bazydlo this summer as a member of the Palm Beach Marlins in the six-team, wood bat, Trampo League, a summer collegiate baseball league in southern Florida. The league features teams throughout the areas of Miami, Palm Beach and Broward County.
In addition to other college players, he competes with and against international players from places like Columbia, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. The majority of these players are non-English speakers. Bazydlo, 20, also has a coach on the Marlins who doesn’t speak English. Communication can sometimes be difficult when the coach needs to describe and teach more involved baseball concepts. Luckily, there’s usually a player around that can translate, at least to some degree.
“One of our coaches doesn’t know any English,” said Bazydlo. “There are some plays where he needs to instruct me on how to do something and it’s difficult for him to fully explain it. But it’s all still baseball.”
A 2023 graduate of Saint Paul in Worcester and current sophomore at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Bazydlo hasn’t let the language barrier stifle his intense passion or competitive spirit on the diamond.
The shortstop was named the Trampo League’s “Bateador de la Semana” (Batter of the Week) on June 22 after collecting seven hits in 10 at bats (.700 batting average) with three doubles, a triple and five RBIs.
“It’s a really solid league,” said Bazydlo. “There are good players all around here.”
Bazydlo is a temporary resident in a Miami apartment he is borrowing from a former teammate for the summer. Most of his days are filled with plenty of driving from Miami to Palm Beach and other cities the Marlins visit. There are times when he spends two or three hours driving round trip to and from games while battling the notorious southern Florida traffic congestion.
But Bazydlo has become used to the Florida lifestyle since enrolling at Eckerd College two years ago. As a freshman member of the baseball team in 2024 he was “redshirted,” meaning he could practice and travel with the team but could not participate in any games. Despite sitting out as a freshman, he’ll still have a total of four seasons of eligibility to compete at Eckerd.
This past spring as a sophomore, he finished fifth on the team in batting (.262) with 32 hits in 38 games. A versatile infielder, Bazydlo started 34 games between second base, shortstop and even an occasional appearance at third base. Eckerd head coach Josh Beauregard refers to him as a “chameleon” type of player that can be used in different capacities depending on the situation.
“Once he got in there he just solidified himself as somebody that we needed to keep in the lineup that’s a spark plug type of guy that plays hard and has a desire to win,” said Beauregard, a native of Swanzey, NH. “He was our jackknife that was doing whatever was asked, which was much appreciated.”
Seasoned Worcester sports fans are likely familiar with Beauregard, who played for the independent Worcester Tornadoes from 2005 through 2007. He was a member of the inaugural Tornadoes team that captured the Can-Am League championship at Hanover Insurance Park at Fitton Field in 2005. Beauregard played in Worcester with Ed Riley, who eventually went on to become Bazydlo’s high school coach at Saint Paul.
At Eckerd, Bazydlo has established himself as a good teammate who is ultra-competitive and does what it takes to win. His experience this summer in the diverse Trampo League will only add to those qualities in addition to sharpening his overall skillset both offensively and defensively.
“We’re happy that he’s down there and we’re looking forward to see him when he comes back,” said Beauregard.
While Florida has become like a second home for Bazydlo over the past two years with teammates and friends living close by, the idea of playing summer baseball in the northeast has always been something he’s set his sights on.
“I’ve always wanted to play back home,” acknowledged Bazydlo. “Playing for the (Worcester) Bravehearts has always been one of my dreams, one of my big goals.”
Mike Vigneux is a freelance writer in Worcester with more than 20 years of experience in the fields of municipal government, communications, and public relations. An avid fan of all sports, Mike enjoys telling the stories of local athletes and their teams. He holds two degrees from Clark University, a bachelor of arts in Communication and a master of science in Professional Communication. He can be reached at Mikevigs@gmail.com
