https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzgwiNN5tq8&t=72s
We’ve given you the top players, now it’s time for the top teams. Last season, Commack broke a 20-year drought and captured the Suffolk County Class AA county championship.Considering their litany of arms, it was no surprise and I was correct in my preseason prediction of that. They graduated their top three starting pitchers, but they still are loaded. They will have plenty of competition this year as teams will be coming for their crown.
Below is the top five Class AA teams in Suffolk County based on my opinions and observations. I look forward to your criticism and tweets. Enjoy–
- Ward Melville (2017 Record: 20-5)
League I is going to be extremely competitive yet again this year. With the emergence of Sachem East and Brentwood into legitimate contenders, the up-and-coming Longwood and William Floyd, plus the perennial playoff Pat-Med Raiders, there is no pushover in the league. Still, Ward Melville is the favorite and they were on the verge of playing for the county championship last year but were defeated with their ace, Ben Brown, on the hill against West Islip. Despite the graduation of Brown, they will return an elite pitching staff in 2018 led by Paul Gibson candidate and UCONN-commit Max Nielsen, LIU Brooklyn-commit Chris Buehler, the slide-slinging, bowling-ball throwing Ethan Farino, hard-throwing Matt DiGennaro and their flame-throwing closer Drake Eggleston. They also have 9th grader Brian Silverio waiting in the wings, and he looks like a younger version of Chris Cepeda! It’s hard to imagine them having many slugfests with that pitching staff. They will be a tough out. They graduated Joey Rosselli and Mike Sepe, who were key contributors on offense last year, but return a Top-30 player in Logan Doran. Just like in the NFL, it will be another big year for the Patriots.
2. Commack (2017 Record: 22-3)
Commack does it!! They are the 2017 Suffolk Class AA Champions !
Commack 8, West Islip 6
WP: Jake Krzemienski pic.twitter.com/00g1i7pt9V— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 31, 2017
Yes, they graduated their three horses from last year in Brian Morrisey (Stony Brook), Peter Theodorellis (Farleigh-Dickinson) and Johnny Pohlman (College of St. Rose), they have plenty on the mound. Not many teams have the luxury of stashing away two Div-I left-handed pitchers in case of emergency like they did with James Cardinale (Hofstra) and Jake Krzemienski (several offers). They will anchor the rotation, and they also happen to have the best power-hitter on Long Island in TCU-commit Tim McHugh, who can also touch 90 MPH off the mound. Jake’s brother, Travis, will be a key contributor in the lineup. Steven Carullo will most likely start behind the plate, replacing the steady Anthony Lambroia, who did a great job corralling that staff. They will once again compete for the county championship.
3. Smithtown East (2017 Record: 14-9)
One of these years, they will take that final step and win it all. They’ve been knocking on the door for a few years and always seem to run into the hottest team in the semifinals (Connetquot in 2015, West Islip in 2016). With their stable of hard-throwing juniors (Doug Goodwin, Michael Storms, Will Kennedy, Nick Harvey), they will be the favorite in League 3. After speaking with Coach Klee, I am convinced their offense is much improved over previous years. They will have the challenge of replacing Michael Ruggiero, but they have lots of promising position players. He is very high on LIU Post-commit and 2B Matt Laurelli as well as catcher Justin Harvey and outfielder Ryan Pennisi. Kennedy is a two-way player who will man first base when he’s not pitching. This promises to be another 14+ win season for the Bulls.
4. Connetquot (2017 Record: 9-12)
They might be one year away, considering many of their best players are in 10th and 11th grade, but they have the makings of a powerhouse. With a pitching staff that features the hard-throwing Alex Ungar, Joey Savino, Matt Brown-Eiring and Joey Zimmerman, opposing lineups will have their hands full. They looked very green last year, but the players began to mature in the summer. I saw many of them play at tournaments and showcases and it became clear that this core is their next county championship winning team. When they won in 2015, they had high-end players at most positions (Travis Bruinsma, Dave Brehm, Brandon Morse, Marc Wangenstein) and that was what put them over the top. This team has that look. They also have some high-end position players such as Trevor Adamo, Jared and Derek Yalon and Nick Ungar.
5. Newfield (2017 Record: 8-11)
We know about the drought–they haven’t made the playoffs in more than a decade. They’ve came maddeningly close the past two years, missing by one game in 2016 and two games last year. That will end this season. Their pitching staff is rock solid; led by two of the top players in the county in Kyle Johnson and Bobby Vath. That alone is enough to get them into the playoffs, in my opinion, as each pitcher should account for 5-7 wins on their own. Here’s the thing; they have plenty more depth behind that. Kyle’s younger brother, Dylan, is a ninth grader that is already making his case to crack the rotation. He works in the low-to-mid 80s with a ridiculous slider. He’s going to have an impact this year. Closer Ryan Wappaus, who is committed to St. Peter’s, could be a starter in almost any other rotation but they will use him in the event their starters don’t throw a complete game. Additionally, they have Chandler Giovinco and Michael Manzolillo. Their offense will need to step up and that’s the only thing preventing them from being higher on this list. If they can average even 3.5 runs per game I think they will be a 15-win team.
6. West Islip (2017 Record: 19-8)
You just can’t pick against this team. They won the Long Island championship in 2014 and 2016. Following 2016, they lost their two best starting pitchers, their catcher and third baseman and then lost their best returning player to a torn ACL one week into the season and still won 19 games. That defies logic. They have players in the pipeline ready to contribute at all times. Despite graduating Tom Gatto, Kyle O’Neill and Joe Valentino in the rotation and Greg Tsouprakos in the lineup, I still think they have a chance to edge Newfield in League 4 due to their mental toughness and ability to win close games. It’s evident when they play extra inning games how they never make mental errors. They will be hoping that Jake Guercio returns to his 2016 form, who has the longest Suffolk County regular season hitting streak at 32 games. They will be counting on Michael LaDonna and Anthony Cinquemani to step up and anchor the rotation.
