Dwight Gooden Speakes at SUNY Old Westbury's First Pitch Dinner - Axcess Baseball

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Dwight Gooden Speakes at SUNY Old Westbury’s First Pitch Dinner

On Friday, January 25th, SUNY Old Westbury held their First Pitch Dinner to kick off the 2025 season and to honor their 2015 Skyline Conference Championship team. Three-time World Series Champion Dwight Gooden was the guest speaker, as well as New York Yankees executive and best-selling author Ray Negron.

There was a huge turnout of current and past players, coaches, and incoming recruits.

Head Coach Rod Stephan introduced former coach Lou Bernardi who spoke about and recognized the 2015 team, which defeated Farmingdale in the Skyline Conference Championship at St. Joseph’s University. It remains the last Championship for the Panthers. That team was led by Tim Ingram (8-3, 1.82 ERA), who was a 2x Skyline Conference Pitcher of the Year and was selected in the 31st round of the MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays. They had several players selected to the All-Skyline Conference and All-Axcess Baseball teams – Nick Yip, Tommy Ziegen, Tyler Kapela, , Joey Walsh, Dean Sheridan.

Bernardi is currently the pitching coach at the United Stated Merchant Marine Academy. He previously had stops at LIU Post and Iona.

SUNY Old Westbury President Timothy E. Sams spoke to the audience about their commitment to their students, and how he pledges to continue to provide them with the best facilities and eduction possible.

Gooden took the microphone and spoke about his story, getting drafted in the 1st round out of a Tampa HS along with his teammates Floyd Youmans and his rapid ascension to stardom. He emphasized the importance of putting in the work and noting that there is no short cut to excellence. Gooden provided some humorous anecdotes such as having to climb into the Astrodome on the day of his Major League debut, as well as George Steinbrenner wearing sweatpants into their meeting. He was exceptionally candid and very insightful to the audience.

About Dwight Gooden

Gooden burst onto the scene as a 19-year-old in 1984, electrifying Major League Baseball with his high fastball and deadly breaking ball. He compiled a record of 17-9 with a 2.50 ERA, striking out 276 batters over 218.0 innings. He followed that up with an historic 1985 season in which he won the NL Cy Young Award with an incredible 24-4 record and 1.53 ERA (12.2 WAR) over 276.2 innings. The following season, he was the ace of the Mets’ rotation that won 108 games and defeated the Boston Red Sox in a classic 7-game series. It remains their last World Series title. Gooden remained with the Mets through the 1994 season, winning 157 games with a 3.10 ERA.

Following his Mets tenure, Gooden had his share of adversity – as he was suspended for parts of 1994 and entire 1995 season for failing drug tests. He was given a second opportunity in Major League Baseball – and did so in a memorable way. During 1996, he signed with the New York Yankees after meeting with owner George Steinbrenner. He not only pitched his first career no-hitter but also won the World Series.

After playing with the Cleveland Indians in 1997 and 1998, he came back to the Yankees in 2000, pitching in the first game of a day-night, two-stadium double header between the Mets and Yankees. He was given the start in the matinee and earned the victory over his former team. As fate would have it, the Yankees and Mets squared off in the Fall Classic, marking the first Subway Series in 44 years. The Yankees won in 5 games, capturing their third consecutive World Series Championship. They remain the last team to win consecutive titles.

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Vinny is the President of Axcess Baseball. He is a 2013 graduate of Adelphi University and he is currently the Long Island area scout for the San Diego Padres

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