Big Train Name 2025 Team Award Winners

2025 Bethesda Big Train by Mark Thalman

ROCKVILLE, Md. - For the third consecutive season, the Bethesda Big Train are the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League Champions. The team swept the Alexandria Aces on Monday to claim the three-peat. With the season in the rearview mirror, Manager Sal Colangelo and the rest of the coaching staff announced the 2025 team award winners. Here is who took home the hardware. 

MVP: Emilio Gonzalez, first baseman (Nova Southeastern University)

Gonzalez taking home the team’s most prestigious award shouldn’t come as a surprise. The slugger won the first ever Cal Ripken Sr. League triple crown. He hit .418 with five home runs and 41 RBIs. No one else in the entire league batted over .380 or drove in 30 or more runs. The first baseman capped off his season with a bang. In one of the last games of the season, he went 5/5 with two homers and six RBIs. The next night, the final non-suspended game of the regular season, Gonzalez secured the triple crown with another long ball and six more RBIs. He will be a prime candidate to win the league MVP award when that decision is finalized. 

Emilio Gonzalez by Mark Thalman

Most Outstanding Hitter: Brennon Wright, middle infielder (University of South Alabama)

Wright reached base in every game this season. The middle infielder was second on the team with a .371 batting average. He also led the squad with a .509 on-base percentage among qualifiers. He was one of just three Big Train qualifiers to record an on-base-plus-slugging (OPS) of over .900. In the championship-clinching win against the Aces, the infielder tallied three hits and three RBIs. Including the postseason, Wright had seven games where he had three hits or more. The championship meant a lot to the Big Train’s infielder, as he was very emotional when he celebrated with his teammates. 

Cy Young: Kide Adetuyi, left-handed starting pitcher (Florida Atlantic University)

Adetuyi pitched to an eye-popping 0.31 ERA this season. In the regular season, he did not allow a single run since his first appearance of the season in early June. Although his strikeout numbers were overshadowed by his teammate, Drew Bellis, he ranked third in the league in punchouts with 32. In early July, against the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts, the southpaw tossed six shutout innings and only allowed two hits. The Big Train needed every ounce of Adetuyi’s dominance in their tight 2-1 win. The Big Train’s ace best start was against the Metro South County Braves when he went five shutout frames and racked up nine strikeouts. He only surrendered one hit in the contest. 

Kide Adetuyi by Mark Thalman

Pitcher of the Year: Drew Bellis, left-handed starting pitcher (University of Central Florida)

Bellis had a Cy Young-worthy season of his own. The lefty broke the single-season Cal Ripken Sr. League record of strikeouts with 61. He recorded a .205 batting average against. When the Big Train fell to 0-2 on the season, Bellis was the one to get them on the tracks. He tossed three shutout innings against the Thunderbolts to help the Big Train secure their first win of the year. Despite not pitching more than five innings in any one of his starts, Bellis had three games of 10 or more strikeouts. 

Max martzolf Relief Pitcher of the Year: Owen Stewart, right-handed pitcher (George Mason University)

The Big Train’s relief ace carved up opponents all season long. He ended the season with a sparkling 1.44 ERA and did not give up an earned run until July 15. He only surrendered a run in two games throughout the regular season. Stewart closed out the championship with a couple of dominant innings against the Aces. In a tight slugfest against the Braves at the end of June, Stewart pitched four shutout innings on just a day of rest. He only gave up one hit and one walk while he punched out seven in his heroic outing. The performance propelled the Big Train to a 15-13 extra-inning win. 

Owen Stewart by Mark Thalman

Comeback Player of the Year: James Gladden, right-handed reliever (University of Maryland)

The Big Train played one half inning against the Southern Maryland Senators in the preseason before the skies opened up. Gladden pitched in that frame and gave up five runs and appeared to have control issues. Fast forward to the end of the season, and the Maryland native was tasked with closing out an elimination game in the first round of the playoffs against the very same ballclub. He retired the Senators with ease. In the regular season, Gladden only gave up two earned runs. He finished first on the team with a dominant .027 batting average against. He also had a 1.45 ERA. The righty recorded the save and picked up two strikeouts in the 15-13 chaotic victory against the Braves.