Our @DigmiNation Player of the Game is 8th grader Kyle Salvati who recorded the save in Mount Sinai’s 9-4 victory over Shoreham-Wading River pic.twitter.com/090WdVUNMO
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 7, 2018
It takes a pretty confident young pitcher to step on Shoreham-Wading River‘s home field and record a three inning save.
Besides the fact that the current team entered the season at 14-1 and have reached double-digit runs TEN times in 15 games, they also have a bit of mystique at the field. They are the reigning Suffolk County Class A champions and it has a certain presence about it with names like Sal Mignano, Keith Osik, Bryan Sabatella and Eric Strovink immortalized with plaques on the away team dugout. And the field is literally located in the woods which only adds to that mystique.
Mount Sinai RHP Kyle Salvati is in eighth grade and pitched like it was just another day in the park, firing three shutout innings of relief in the Mustang’s 9-4 victory over the Wildcats.
After starter Ryan Santoro got through four innings with a 6-4 lead, Salvati came in and recorded the nine out save. After the game, he kept it very simple.
“I felt pretty good, I had my stuff today and that’s really it,” he said. He made sure to thank his catcher George Rainer for assisting in his assimilation to playing at the varsity level.
Although it was a feel good story, the biggest story in the game was the ability of the Mount Sinai offense to square up Quinnipiac-commit Gabe Romano. The 6’4″ RHP showcased a pretty devastating combo of an 86-88 MPH fastball that touched 90 MPH and a 69-70 MPH curveball that changed directions mid-flight.
It was really a tale of two games; the first two innings and the next five innings.
Romano stranded two runners in the top of the first. He hit the leadoff batter and allowed a single to Adelphi-commit Ryan Picarello.
In the bottom of the first, the Wildcats scored two runs against Santoro on an RBI single by Tyler Widercrantz and a bases loaded walk to Alex Bettenhauser. It appeared at that moment that the high-octane Wildcats offense was on it’s way to another double-digit performance.
That’s when the momentum completely shifted.
Consecutive walks to begin the inning set the stage for NJIT-commit Jared Donnelly to launch a three-run shot to right-center field. The next two batters were retired, but a HBP sent up Ethan Angress who also went deep to give the Mustangs a 5-3 lead.
In the home half of the third, Mason Kelly led off the frame with a solo shot to cut the deficit to 5-4, but that was the closest the Wildcats would get in this one.
The Mustangs extended the lead to 6-4 on an RBI hit by Preseason All-Long Island catcher George Rainer. They also added three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning off T.J. Wachter to open up a 9-4 lead and that’s how it would end.
Both teams have clinched a spot in the postseason in Suffolk County Class A which begins next week, they could face off in the postseason, but will have two more games to play against each other first beginning on Wednesday at Mount Sinai HS.
