By Thomas Cregan
Mineola coach Helms Bohringer is looking for another strong year out of his group of young players in 2022.
Mineola finished the 2021 season with a league record of 7-9 making the playoffs in a tough conference. They were defeated in the first round by Wantagh, but coach Bohringer is optimistic his team will be back in the hunt for the playoffs this year. He is determined that through the experience the team has gained playing with each other that they will come back stronger and more poised to make a deep playoff run this year.
Mineola saw two key players graduate from their 2021 roster. Catcher/ third baseman Nick Ramos who is going on to play at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, CT Along with catcher Blake Bastos who will be moving on to Elms College in Springfield, MA. The loss of two major contributors has not deterred coach Bohringer’s faith in his group of returning players to remain a competitive team and push for the playoffs again in 2022.
Bohringer has a strong group of returning players that he will be reliant on to make an impact in the 2022 season. Including senior third baseman Conor Martin (Mount Saint Vincent). Martin posted a .308 batting average in the previous season and added 14 stolen bases making him not only a threat at the plate but also on the base paths. Senior shortstop Tristan Abreu who just recently committed to SUNY Purchase. Along with their number one pitcher Senior TJ Cox (Farmingdale State College), who Bohringer will be relying on to give their team productive innings throughout the season.
TJ Cox (Mineola 2022) showing off a strong arm pic.twitter.com/5FgZ5aHokh
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 3, 2020
Bohringer also mentioned sophomore pitcher/middle infielder Jack Ryan who in the previous season had a .310 batting average and only struck out 4 times throughout. Bohringer is hoping junior outfielder/pitcher Peter Haralambidis will help sure up their pitching staff and contribute with his bat in the coming season.
The Mineola Mustangs will also see two newcomers on their roster this year in junior catcher Mike Duda and outfielder James Strobel.
When asked about his team’s biggest strength coach Bohringer said “Definitely team chemistry, most of these guys have been playing together since they were in 6th grade. There is great camaraderie among the guys in this group and they all enjoy playing with one another.”
When discussing the league in which Mineola competes in Coach Bohringer referred to it as a “killer conference.” Mentioning Plainedge, Wantagh, Clarke, and North Shore all as highly competitive teams that will give them challenges throughout the season. Coach Bohringer stated “I’ve been coaching here since 1996 and this has always been a strong conference, everyone is out there battling for a playoff spot, and it will likely always come down to who finishes strong at the end of the season.” Though wary of the strength of the teams within their conference coach Bohringer is confident that his group will continue to work well together and succeed in 2022.
The Mineola Mustangs will open their season against Plaindege on March 28th.
