by Trevor Dugan
Blue Line Rangers GM Brett Engmann discusses this morning’s showcase at PAL Stadium pic.twitter.com/RNshN7i2nK
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 12, 2024
The newly formed Blue Line Rangers organization hosted a private college showcase Saturday morning at PAL Stadium, offering players a great opportunity to be seen by coaches of many of the area’s top college baseball programs.
Both the 2026 and 2027 Blue Line Rangers were on site to showcase their talents. Coach Eric Strovink, Head Coach of Rocky Point Varsity Baseball, ran the drills along with his sons Coaches Brennan and Kyle Strovink.
It was a great turnout as 11 different coaches from around the tri-state area were in attendance, including coaches from St. Johns, Stony Brook, Dominican, and LIU.
This event was unique as it was smaller than most showcases, where there are typically dozens of players in attendance and it can be more difficult for players to differentiate themselves from the rest. Since only the Blue Line Rangers organization was in attendance, every player was able to get plenty of reps and opportunities to show what they can do.
Rangers General Manager Brett Engmann spoke to Axcess about the day and seemed pleased with how everything turned out.
“This is different from most showcases since we don’t have 100 kids down here, it’s just our two teams, 28 kids in total,” Engmann explained. “This way the players get more attention and you get to see a bit more than you would at most showcases. It’s just something we’re doing a little differently than most people, and hopefully it’s an annual thing.”
The event began at 9:00am with everyone ready to go, the first drill of the day was the 60 yard dash. There were plenty of strong showings, but the top speed was Brendan Rivera, a 2026 Longwood graduate, at 6.97 seconds.
Next was infield-outfield drills, giving the players a chance to show off their range and throwing arms. This included catcher drills as well, where Jack Lankowicz (Sayville 2027) showed off great pop time and a strong, accurate throwing arm. During infield drills, players like Jagger Franco (Longwood 2026) and Rivera had strong showings, exhibiting good range and great throwing arms from across the diamond.
During the batting practice portion of the day, Ashton Klugewicz (Pat-Med 2026) showed off his power, hitting line drives with great exit velocity to all parts of the field and even putting one over the right field wall. Nicholas Lawrence, the six foot one 14 year old (ESM 2028) hit a home run during batting practice as well.
Jacob Marcario (Miller Place 2026) with three strikeouts in his inning of work, demonstrating excellent command and a lively fastball pic.twitter.com/Gs9M8IrC7Q
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 12, 2024
The final event was the intrasquad scrimmage, meant to showcase pitchers and batters in live game situations. Every pitcher got to pitch one inning, and several pitchers stood out during the scrimmage. Jacob Marcario (Miller Place 2026) struck out three batters in his inning of work, showing off great velocity on his fastball and excellent command of all his pitches.
Nicholas Lawrence getting ready to pitch, the 6’1 2028 ESM grad features a fastball that sits in the low 80s pic.twitter.com/QAn9lhG7ds
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 12, 2024
The aforementioned Lawrence of Eastport South Manor High School came into pitch and had a very strong performance as well. The 14 year old’s fastball was sitting in the low 80s, and he had great natural movement on his pitches. As he continues to progress, it is easy to see his fastball eventually reaching 90 MPH
All in all, the showcase was definitely a success.
“The kids did great, a couple kids put one out which was impressive,” Engmann remarked to Axcess. “A couple good pitching performances too, and it looks like we’re gonna get some college interest.”
