Sachem North made a surprise playoff run in a difficult League 2 this season thanks to a strong pitching staff led by Chris Lollo, Kevin Kochen and Jack Gonzalez. Lollo is at Washington College, Kochen is at Queens College and Gonzalez announced yesterday that he has committed to St. Thomas Aquinas. They are coming off an appearance in the Div-II College World Series, where they won the first two games before falling just short of the ultimate goal.
Gonzalez is a crafty left-handed pitcher that works in the 78-79 MPH range, but has tremendous command of his pitches. He had a very good summer with Motus Academy, where he was named to the All-Tournament team of the WWBA in Georgia.
He will be leading the Arrows’ rotation in 2018 as they look to build on this year’s 11-win season. He spoke with Vinny Messana and here’s what he had to say.
Talk a little about the college recruiting process and how the St. Thomas Aquinas commit came to be?
The college recruiting process was definitely a very stressful, yet exciting time in my life! The coaches at St. Thomas Aquinas first saw me play at a local tournament and my Coach, Matt Marsh, told me they were interested in me. Soon after watching me pitch a couple more times I was invited for a visit on campus and absolutely fell in love with the school. After speaking to the coaching staff about the school and receiving an offer it was a pretty easy decision for me!
What do you plan on doing in the off season to improve?
This off season I plan on going to Infiniti Performance as much as I can and try to get my velocity up. Russ, Ray, Derek and all the guys there have played a major role in my development as a player and as a person, and it is truly like a big family over there. I cannot wait to see what this off season brings!
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Who have some influential people in your baseball career been?
Some influential people in my baseball career have been my parents and my sister, Brielle for sure. They always push me to be the best I can be while reminding me to be myself along the way. Also, my sister’s fiance, Tyler Honahan, who plays in the New York Yankees organization has been huge for my career. He is always there to talk to me and give me advice or help me with anything. He’s like the older brother I never had growing up.
2017 was a solid year for Sachem North. What are your biggest takeaways from the season? What did you learn from watching a crafty lefty like Chris Lollo?
It was a very good year for Sachem North, however, we did not get the end result we wanted. That year was definitely one to remember for sure, with an awesome group of guys and seniors. Playing alongside a lefty like Chris was a huge opportunity for me to learn a lot from a guy who had played three years of varsity baseball and has thrown a no-hitter in the playoffs. Going into the 2018 season, I believe that we have a very senior-heavy class of experienced guys who are hungry and ready to compete for a ring.
What does Sachem North need to do to improve on last season?
I think going in to next year we just need to continue to keep our heads down and keep working hard. Next year we wont be the flashiest team out there, but I 100% believe that if we play fundamentally sound and continue to play fearless and hard that we can shock a lot of people and not only make noise in League 2 this year but on all of Long Island. I also believe if guys like Ryan Sullivan and Kyle Olson have big years like they did last year, and we get solid contributions off the mound that we will be a very hard team to take down!
Who are some MLB players you look up to now or when you were a kid?
One major league pitcher I look up to is Dallas Keuchel. I love his craftiness and the way he throws all his pitches with a purpose and with conviction. It shows that a guy who throws high 80s low 90s, but has great secondary pitches and command can still dominate major league hitters.
Did you play other sports growing up or was baseball always your passion?
Baseball has always been my number one sport, and my passion. For as long as I could remember when I was younger all I wanted to do was play baseball, and now I am so blessed and grateful for the opportunity that the coaching staff at St. Thomas Aquinas has given me!
Vinny is the President of Axcess Baseball. He is a 2013 graduate of Adelphi University and he is currently the Long Island area scout for the San Diego Padres
