Coming off an 8-12 season, West Babylon comes into 2019 hoping to be competitive in an extremely tough conference.
The largest obstacle they face heading into the season is inexperience. In total, they return one senior. While their age may show early on, their young core of players will have the privilege of playing a significant amount of varsity baseball, benefiting them for the future.
West Babylon’s extremely tough schedule consists of Hills West, Eastport-South Manor, Kings Park, East Islip and Happauge.
Offensively, West Babylon has some bright spots, but some holes to fill. Their lineup will be led by junior (IF/RHP) Jack Rankin. As a sophomore, he finished with a .322 average. Behind Rankin in the lineup is Tristan Santiago and sophomore Cole Maucere. Maucere has prior varsity experience, as he started in 2018 as a freshman.
The strength of this inexperienced West Babylon team is their pitching staff. Facing tough competition will be a difficult task for their young arms to overcome, but it will be a great experience. Their only senior, Tyler Gamba, will be at the top of the rotation. In 2018, he finished with a 3.17 ERA. Due to his previous varsity experience, he will be the leader of this pitching staff.
Behind Gamba in the rotation is junior Nick Baldassare. As a transfer, he hopes to come in and make an impact immediately. Jack Rankin and Tristan Santiago will also eat innings on the mound, as they both possess the two-way threat.
Handling their pitching staff behind the plate will be junior Jagger Feldman. As a sophomore, he batted .278. He seeks to improve offensively and defensively this season.
Although West Babylon is extremely young, the goal of being competitive and reaching the playoffs remains the same for Head Coach Ryan Lynch. In recent years, we have seen young underdog teams make a run in Suffolk County, so don’t count them out before the season starts.
This year may hold some uncertainty for West Babylon, but the future is bright. Even if this is considered a “rebuilding year” for them, their young players will improve significantly and gain vital experience along the way. The first pitch of their 2019 campaign is set for April 1st.
