NEW BRITAIN--It's a true homecoming for a key player on the New Britain Bees.
The new Atlantic League minor league baseball team--which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball--is the Hardware City's replacement for the New Britain Rock Cats, which left the city last year to become the Hartford Yard Goats.
Now the Bees are getting busy, and Tuesday marked the first team practice. There are about seven or eight players with Major League experience, and it's shaping up to be a great season.
FOX 61's Rich Coppola was on hand to chat with Manager Stan Cliburn, the former manager of the Rock Cats, which he ran with his twin brother as pitching coach.
"It's a homecoming for me. It brings back a lot of great memories," Cliburn said.
Cliburn left New Britain after 2005, when he moved to the Rochester Red Wings. Now he's back, and excited about the progress.
"Mayor Stewart came in here, and the city stepped up and made this great," Cliburn said of the stadium's improvements.