by Max Edelman
Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series.
Clarke 12, Wantagh 6
Clarke captures the Nassau A-IV Crown
JJ Palumbo: 3-for-4, 4 RBIs
Tom Roche and Dylan Vikara each had 2 hits and 2 RBI
AJ Bardi hit a grand slam for Wantagh pic.twitter.com/TyhR3cNUn6— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 11, 2023
In his 25 years as head coach of the Clarke Rams, head coach Tom Abruscato has been league champion 23 times and compiled an .800 winning percentage. And 2023 was no different. But as sweet as last season was, the goal is always to win the county – as they last did in 2019.
“We won the conference.” Abruscato said. “We won the conference for the 23rd time in 25 years. So that was good. We’re in a very competitive league. It came down to the last game of the regular season and we were fortunate enough to beat Wantagh in a winner take all for the conference. We lost in the quarter finals of the playoffs, which for us is an early exit.”
They graduated a handful of impact players including Conference A-IV MVP Zaim Deljanin, All-Conference catcher JJ Palumbo and All-League OF Tom Roche. Deljanin batted .430 with a .484 OBP, 1.154 OPS over 23 games played. He hit 3 HRs, drove in 24 runs, scored 25 runs and struck out just 6 times. He stole 14 bases as well. On the mound, he went 5-1 with a 2.41 ERA. Palumbo batted .338 with a .453 OBP, .918 OPS over 22 game. He drove in 16 runs, scored 21 runs and struck out just five times. Roche batted .348 with a .464 OBP over 23 games.
To replicate the success the Rams have enjoyed over the last number of years, it will be up to the players who have been large parts of the team to take the next step. One of those players is senior St. Thomas Aquinas-commit Nick Berasti. Berasti was an All-County player last year. Berasti pitches and throws in the mid to upper 80s. He led the team with 39.2 IP, he went 4-2 with a 2.65 ERA and 1.59 WHIP. He struck out 41 batters on the season. He batted .300 with a .444 OBP over 21 games.
Junior AJ Cumbo, who was All-League for the Rams last year, is also committed to playing at St. Thomas Aquinas. He had a .397 OBP over 22 games. An All-Conference player is junior Dylan Vikara, who is currently uncommitted. Vikara batted .329 with a .410 OBP over 22 games and was second on the team with 21 RBIs.
Senior Giancarlo Rengifo, who is committed to playing at Adelphi following this season, drew praise from his coach despite missing a good portion of last season due to injury. He batted .359 with a 1.103 OPS over 60 at bats. He had 2 HRs and 12 RBIs.
Giancarlo Rengifo (Clarke 2024) pic.twitter.com/7BCMC5Iqcn
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 1, 2023
“He’s a big-time player.” Abruscato said. “He was limited in what he did for us last year, but still had a nice year for us.”
Committed to play college baseball following the conclusion of his senior season is Jaret Sarrantonio, who will be playing at Western New England University next year. Sarrantonio is primarily a pitcher and will be a big piece on the mound for Clarke this year. He threw 19 innings last year with 19 strikeouts.
While the upperclassmen will always be important for every program, having strong underclassmen is always a plus, and Abruscato believes that his current sophomore class is one of the best classes he has had in a long time.
“This sophomore class is the best class we’ve had since 2019.” Abruscato said. “The 2019 class, the team we won the County Championship with, was all juniors. They’re as good as that crew, so we’re really excited about the 10th graders.”
As to who some of the impactful sophomores will be, according to Abruscato, it’s open to anyone who goes and takes it.
“It’s going to be open to a bunch of tenth graders.” Abruscato said. “We’re lucky this year to have a lot of scrimmages before we start. We are able to bring up a bunch of them to see what they can do.”
The only sophomore who’s returning for the Rams this year is James Beckworth. He played as a shortstop and pitched for Clarke last year and found success as a freshman.
For Clarke, they are embracing quality over quantity, as Abruscato plans to potentially only carry 13 players this year.
“We might only have 13 kids on varsity this year.” Abruscato said. “Normally we have 24, we knew this was coming, but we are lucky to have some really great, high quality upperclassmen to mix in with a whole bunch of tenth graders that are going to get a chance this year.”
The Clarke Rams will open against LuHi on April 1. Their league opponents include North Shore, Island Trees, Seaford, Locust Valley and Cold Spring Harbor in Nassau A-II.
