Tim Feliz batted .359 last year with a .609 SLG. He will be a huge piece of their lineup pic.twitter.com/L6GBkgTtlZ
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 27, 2021
Following a 4-7 start to the 2021 season, Adelphi basically needed a miracle to reach postseason play. They needed to get red-hot and get help from their conference foes. That is exactly what happened, as Bill Ianniciello took over at the helm for Dom Scala on April 14 and the Panthers turned their season around – highlighted by a 7-game winning streak to capture the Northeast-10 Southwest Division Regular Season title.
In the NE-10 playoffs, they defeated AIC in the semifinal, 8-2, before advancing to face Le Moyne in the southwest division final. They defeated them, 6-4, in Game 1 before losing Game 2 to force a decisive Game 3. They cruised to a 13-2 win behind a dominant Nic Luc on short rest.
They advanced to the NE-10 Championship against Southern New Hampshire, but unfortunately their luck ran out. They lost 10-0 and 9-3. Still, it was a successful run for the Panthers who appeared dead after their 4-7 start and wound up advancing to the NE-10 Championship for the first time since 2014.
Fortunately for the Panthers, their most impactful players are back and Ianniciello has an extremely deep squad that will require at least some decisions on how to best deploy his players as several players have positional versatility.
Without a doubt, the team will be hoping for a repeat of 2021 performances from a few players. Leading the charge are their two All-Region position players; 3B Matt Alifano and RF Tim Feliz. Alifano was actually named Rookie Hitter of the Year as well as All-American honorable mention. He slashed .394/.497/.677 in his first full season. He is a special player and that was on display even on Scout Day today. He plays a flawless third base with a rocket arm but his best work is at the plate. He batted leadoff much of last season as a redshirt freshman but provided the punch of seasoned cleanup hitter. He has power to all fields combined with the patience of an old-school leadoff hitter. Until the last game of the season, he was riding a 14-game hitting streak. Not much not to like. He is drafted eligible this season since he will be 21 years old.
Feliz was excellent last season as well. He was also named All-Region, he had a coming out party as well. He batted .359 with 5 HR and 27 RBI. He led the team in at bats with 128, and was second in OPS with 1.056. His .609 SLG was second behind Alifano. He also is critical to their team defense in right field, his strong arm was on display during team workouts, it’s certainly a weapon in limiting extra bases for opponents.
Redshirt senior Jack Ryan flourished last year, taking his offensive game to new heights. He batted .345 with a .994 OPS over 110 at bats playing in 33 games. He was tied for second on the team in RBI (27) and OBP (.467). His presence is crucial for the pitching staff as well, as he receives high praise for his leadership, receiving, blocking and handling the running game. They have several catchers on the roster – including Alec Maag who just transferred from Suffolk and was a key piece to Center Moriches’ undefeated season in 2019 along with Alifano.
Mike Draskin will likely play first base. He won the Suffolk County Silver Slugger Award in 2019 while at Hills West pic.twitter.com/6asWaC32nN
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 27, 2021
While those were the standout offensive performers last year, they have plenty of other important pieces – such as Kyle Olson who was limited to 70 at bats due to a couple of injuries but still batted .343 with 15 runs scored. He played 1B last season but could see time in the outfield as well thanks to his athleticism. Another player is Mike Draskin, who captured the 2019 Silver Slugger Award for Suffolk County and turned it on towards the end of the season – notching 7 hits in postseason play. Second baseman Anthony Cipri batted .305 and plays some impressive defense up the middle. Cooper Johnson is an outstanding defensive outfielder and batted a healthy .298 with 25 RBI over 33 games. His grand slam against Le Moyne was the difference in their April 17 match up.
As previously stated, they have a large roster. It’s difficult to know who will step up into bigger roles so it’s possible some players that begin the season in part-time roles wind up being in the lineup down the stretch. In my opinion, there’s two Commack players that could wind up being impact players and that’s IF Joe Pellegrino and OF Johnny Catuosco. Pellegrino’s senior season was wiped out due to covid but was outstanding in the 2020 TOB Wood Bat Tournament and showed his ridiculous bat speed in BP. Catuosco hit .500 during the season and showed off his bat control in BP.
Pitching has always been the strength of Adelphi. This year’s team will return some familiar faces and hard-throwers. Anchoring the staff will likely be RHP Nic Luc who really stepped up last season and was nails in the postseason. He led the team with 53.2 IP, 65 Ks and five wins. They will rely on him once again.
Two other senior RHP that have strong track records are Josh Rovner and Max Steele. Rovner is working back from injury but should be full strength by the spring. He’s an X-Factor for the team if he returns to his 2020 form where he started the season with 18.2 shutout innings, allowing just 11 hits before covid ended the season. Another kid who impressed was RHP Tommy O’Sullivan. He was sitting 89-90 MPH and I could see that playing well in short spurts late in the game. Michael Storms did not pitch today but he took a huge leap last year and struck out 31 over 21.1 IP and could either be a high-leverage reliever or starter.
Can’t look much better as a freshman than John Rizzo. The East Islip grad sits 86-90 T91 and spots his fastball and slider routinely pic.twitter.com/rNMEm0z4W6
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 27, 2021
They had a number of incoming players – two freshmen that really impressed today were John Rizzo and Jordan Falco. Rizzo led East Islip to the LIC this past season and was flat-out dominant. He was the winning pitcher in the LIC and has since taken his velocity to another level. He works quick – like really, really quick – he doesn’t walk anyone, he spots his slider with pinpoint command and his velo is now 86-90 with a top velocity of 91. At the very least, he will be a high-leverage reliever but could get some starts. Falco won two Class B State Championships with Center Moriches and has plenty of big-game experience between those playoff runs and also playing against top-tier teams in the summer. The 6’6 RHP has had a bump in velocity, now sitting 86-87, touching 90. Those two arms, plus some of the other freshmen such as John Carver, Jacob Pedersen, Kendall Kendrick, Phil D’Aguanno, Zach Rovner and Jon Fallacaro make this an impressive class.
