by Brennan Erlandsen
(Editor’s Note: This article was originally posted on March 31, 2018)
Josiah Gray on his outing and @LeMoyneBaseball 6-4 victory over Adelphi pic.twitter.com/chW8a5sMr4
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) March 30, 2018
The 22nd-ranked Le Moyne Dolphins outlasted the Adelphi Panthers, 6-4, on Friday at William J. Bonomo Memorial Field in an entertaining match that featured two starting pitchers that are potential MLB Draft picks with at least 20 MLB scouts in attendance.
“It’s always a good win when you come from behind against a team like that,” said Le Moyne head coach Scott Cassidy.
A couple of pitching prospects started this game with Panthers junior Ed Baram and Le Moyne junior Josiah Gray. The two were roommates last summer while playing for the Hamptons League. Baram touched 91 mph while Gray sat in the low-90s and touched 95 with his fastball. Gray improves to 6-0 on the year after tossing seven innings, giving up four runs (three earned), walking three and striking out five batter. Baram picked up the loss allowing five earned runs over seven-plus innings. Baram also recorded 10 stirkeouts in the outing.
“We got the W. Overall, I’m happy with the outing,” said Josiah Gray, considered the top Div-II prospect for the upcoming 2018 MLB Draft.
“[Gray]’s been competing so well all year,” said Cassidy. “He’s got a hard fastball. He’s got a pretty good slider to complement that and he’s got a developing change-up…He’s a tough guy to get to.”
Le Moyne got the scoring started in a solo home run by redshirt-junior Andrew Taft to right-center.
Adelphi didn’t have much going offensively, until they would answer back in the third inning thanks to a long two-run shot by junior Thomas Colombo to right center driving in junior Brett Malm.
During the middle innings, both pitchers would display what makes them such highly coveted arms, generating weeks hacks and swings-and-misses.
Neither team would score until the seventh inning when Adelphi took their first lead. Malm reached base on a error which allowed Steve Withers, who walked earlier in the inning, to score from second. Colombo drove in Malm with a RBI single in the next at-bat.
Le Moyne didn’t quit and would eventually get to Baram. With the bases loaded in the top of the eighth, Le Moyne’s Ben Walsh would clear the bases on a three-run triple to tie the game 4-4. Camillo Spinoso would deliver the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly to make it 5-4.
Le Moyne would add an insurance run in the ninth on a RBI single by Nick Place to score Brian O’Mara to finish the scoring at 6-4.
Le Moyne senior Alex Kubera earned his second save throwing two innings of shutout ball in relief. Taft and Walsh recorded three hits each in the game.
Adelphi’s Colombo earned his second three-hit game of his career going 3-for-5 with three RBI. Malm went 3-4 with two runs as well.
Adelphi falls to 8-9-1(1-3 NE-10) while Le Moyne improves to 17-6 (3-0 NE-10).
The series concludes Saturday in a double header starting at noon.
