by Aaron Diaz
Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series.
Manhasset 13, Valley Stream North 3
W: Theo Zacharia (5 IP, 3 H, 8 Ks)Trey Zaffiro 2-3, HR, 3 RBI
Theo Zacharia 1-2, 2 RBI
Tyler Hadziyiannis 2 RBI pic.twitter.com/wAB1eB3Rsw— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 18, 2023
2023 was the season of new beginnings for Manhasset and the new head coach Anthony Serrapica.
They squeaked into the playoffs by beating Bethpage in the last game of the season. In the playoffs, Manhasset played a close game against Calhoun in their first playoff game, losing 3-0 finishing with a 7-13 record. Now in his second season at the helm, Serrapica is determined to add some spark to his young team in 2024.
Calhoun 3, Manhasset 0
WP: Danny Goodman (CG, 3-hit shutout)Brian Sanchez 2-3
Ryan Pucella 1-3 double, RBICalhoun will face Wantagh tomorrow pic.twitter.com/CvLvCjlRjd
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 16, 2023
“That just goes to show the effort and grittiness of those kids,” Serrapica said. “This had to be one of the youngest teams in the county last season and we’re returning many players and starters. There’s a lot of good baseball players on this team.”
There were only two seniors on Manhasset’s 2023 team behind a dugout of sophomores. Second baseman, Chris Infranco will leave a hole at second base after graduating in 2023—one of the many positions that will be battled over during the offseason. “I’m not 100% sure who’s going to replace Infranco at second base but a lot of players are going to have roles this year.”
Pitcher Theo Zacharia will also be missing from the mound this season after graduation. Zacharia performed extremely well for Manhasset in his tenure with the team. His last outing was a gem for Manhasset keeping them within striking distance in their playoff game against Calhoun.
In 2024, Manhasset will send out a well-rounded team of experienced players led by senior pitchers Trey Zaffiro and Luke Girillo. Zaffiro will be playing at Lafayette in 2025 after an impressive 2023 performance with a .327 batting average and .893 OPS. On the mound, he compiled 48 strikeouts with a 3.60 ERA.
RHP Trey Zaffiro (Manhasset 2024). He has been clocked at 89 MPH in the past. Sitting 83-84 MPH today pic.twitter.com/KCc4ogoB0t
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) February 12, 2023
Girillo also committed to play college baseball in 2025 with the Washington College of Maryland. “I’m so excited for Luke,” Serrapica said. “He got hurt early last year and was basically out foe the year. I don’t think there’s a player whose worked harder than him since the fall.”
Junior Lucas Lerian will contribute his talents through the infield and at the DH position in the lineup. In 2023, he delivered a .812 OPS.
Mike Diorio will play the outfield for Manhasset and toss some innings from the mound as coach Serrapica establishes his pitching staff throughout the offseason. However, Tyler Hadziyianis will round out the staff as a pitcher and outfielder. From the plate, he delivered a .283 batting average.
On a pitching-heavy team, Parker Madden will be receiving all of those pitches from behind the plate as a key contributor on both sides of the field. “He was outstanding last year,” Serrapica said. “He was lock down behind the plate and I couldn’t be more excited about his junior year because he made playing varsity baseball as a sophomore look easy.” Madden batted .381 from the plate and had a .923 OPS.
Now that the season is almost here, coach Serrapica presented some goals for his team in 2024, especially after their playoff apperance. “We try to use the offseason to be prepared as possible,” Serrapica explained. “Last year, we had all new staff so players had to get used to new things. So the offseason was a lot of clicking and growing together and getting on the same page.”
As prepared as they come, Manhasset faces a gauntlet of teams within their league but that isnt much of emphasis of Serrapica’s game plan heading into 2024. “I personally don’t care about whose on the other side,” Serrapica said. “The only thing we talk about when it comes to our opponents is to play our absolute best. We’re aiming to play our best baseball no matter whose on the other side of the field.”
Manhasset will start the season against Bethpage in their first in-league game on April 11. Their other opponents include South Side, Glen Cove, Bellmore JFK and Hewlett.
