by Nick Cipolla
An awesome moment for Long Island baseball as Logan O’Hoppe singles in his first big league at bat! pic.twitter.com/VrtoNLTjKz
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 29, 2022
Ryan Dalton is no stranger to St. John the Baptist program. He played for the Cougars, he was the JV coach for the past two seasons and his father is well-respected Athletic Director, Ralph Dalton.
Casey McKay was at the helm before him, helping lead the Cougars to the CHSAA Championship in 2018 but decided to step down and is now an assistant coach on staff.
There was a lot to celebrate for the St. John the Baptist program last year as 2018 alum Logan O’Hoppe reached the big leagues with the Los Angeles Angels and his close friends and family were able to be in attendance to watch him notch a single in his first at bat. He is the first Long Island position player to appear in a big league game since Reid Gorecki in 2009 and he enters 2023 with a shot to be the everyday catcher on a team with arguably the two best players in the world. Additionally, 2019 alum E.J. Exposito was selected in the MLB Draft by the Atlanta Braves out of Long Island University. It was a great deal of excitement surrounding the program.
As far as the results on the field, they went 10-8 in league play before losing a tough one, 1-0, against Chaminade and getting eliminated by St. Dominic’s.
Now the program enters a new era, as they not only have a new coach but Kyle Chase is now a freshman at St. John’s University after posting one of the finest seasons in program history and being named ABCA All-Region.
“I am very excited for my first year as the varsity coach, after growing up around the program since I was born, and getting to coach with my dad will be very special.” Dalton said “One thing about this group that makes it special is that everyone is hungry and we all feel that we have something to prove. This might be one of the most talented groups we have had, yet we have a lot of unknowns from the outside looking in.”
In addition to graduating Chase, they also must replace Jason Campo (Stony Brook University), Aedan Ford (New Haven), Jayden Asencio (St. Peters), and Nick Petrelli (Lynn University).
Ray Ferguson is a senior catcher competing for the starting role behind the dish. Coach noted that at the moment, only third base, manned by Pace-commit Rocco Cimino (‘23) is solidified.
The pitching staff will likely be anchored by Maine-commit Braden Davis (‘23) and Nick D’Avanzo (‘24). Both have varsity experience, albeit not a ton of innings accrued. They will look for others to step in and lock down spots before the season.
End of 3: NYC leads 1-0 and Maine-commit Braden Davis is on to pitch pic.twitter.com/b9R80sDEml
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 12, 2022
Despite having some studs, Coach Dalton feels that there isn’t a single player or aspect of the game that separates them from the rest. “There’s no one guy or thing that puts us ahead of the rest of the league. We are solid all around but everyone this year has something to prove. we have been working hard so far, this group is hard working and extremely competitive. We all know we aren’t clear cut favorites this season, but we can prove a lot of people wrong this upcoming season.”
A key for coach Dalton’s group to be successful is staying healthy in 2023. “One obstacle we may have this year is not many guys in this group have played varsity in the past or they have missed time with some injuries. (Braden) Davis was hurt all last year, D’Avanzo was hurt, and Rocco Cimino is one of the only current returners that was playing during the 2022 season.”
It remains to be seen whether freshman SS Keegan McElligot gets the call to varsity. Regardless, he has exciting potential and could be the focal point of their next championship window.
St John the Baptist opens their 2023 campaign on March 17th with a scrimmage against the Stony Brook School. Following the scrimmage, they will play their first non-league game on March 19th against Christ the King and the first league game will be on April 1st vs St Francis Prep.
“The league is always strong and it’s full of talent every year,” Said Coach Dalton, “we have a chance to surprise people this year. I’ve been around the CHSAA my whole life and I’ve seen great talent come out of every school in this league. it will be super competitive, everyone has a few studs, and every game is going to be competitive.”
