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Dick Vicenzi carried the picture of his Cranbury Little League team from 30 years ago like a proud parent. And he was. That squad included his son, Stephen. The most recognizable player on the team, however, was Mo Vaughn. The former major league slugger and Cranbury's most famous alumnus returned to Tim Devine field Saturday to help the league celebrate its 50th anniversary.
"We were like the Gashouse Gang,'' Vicenzi said, noting his team finished in second place in Vaughn's first year before coming back the next season to win the league championship. "Mo got walked a lot in that second year. He only had 25 at-bats, and hit 16 home runs. You can see why they walked him."
Vaughn enjoyed the festive atmosphere from start to finish Saturday. He arrived about 45 minutes before the start of the 10 a.m. ceremony. He took pictures with fans, signed autographs non-stop and relished the story telling. "This brings back so many great memories,'' Vaughn said. "Seeing all the coaches was great. You hear a lot of stories."
Vicenzi managed Vaughn's team and his coaches, Frank Favano and Don Avery, also attended Saturday's festivities. Vicenzi remembers selecting Vaughn in the draft. "I saw him hit one in the trees, and said that's my first pick,'' he remembered. Vaughn received a plaque that league president Dave Scarpone recently found. After blowing dust off it, Scarpone said the plaque saluted Vaughn "as the most likely to succeed." Vaughn played 12 years in the Major Leagues and hit 328 career home runs. He was the 1995 American League MVP.
The league also recognized former president Robert Longmuir and Dick Webb and Larry Anastasia, who were key league contributors. Webb and Anastasia will have plaques in their honor displayed at Anastasia-Corbo field.
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