NEWS
Insider Notes: March 8
Through the season I will be posting my observations of games from a scouting standpoint. Today I was at NYIT @ Hofstra, in which the Pride protected their field with a 14-3 victory. Here are some observations: Teddy Cillis: He got the start for the Pride, and they used one pitcher per inning, but it was a great outing for him. He struck out two batters–the second and third place hitters. Cillis is one of the few two-way players on the island at the college level and he is very deserving of it. He hit nine home runs last year and throws 91 MPH from the left side. He works very quickly, which is good when he is throwing strikes, but he does have the propensity to get overly amped and lose the zone. In my opinion, he is a closer because he can let it all out for one inning with no fear...
Hofstra’s Offense Explodes in 14-3 Win over NYIT
Sometimes you just need some good home cookin’. That was the remedy for the Hofstra Pride, who ended a four-game losing streak with a 15-hit attack in a 14-3 win over NYIT. David Leiderman led the way with four hits in five at bats and Tom Archer drove in four runs and Vinnie Costello added three RBI as well. “It was really nice to get some quality at bats against a very good pitcher in (Elias) Martinez,” said Head Coach John Russo. “Happy to see Archer, Leiderman and (Vito) Friscia have good days,” he added. Friscia got the scoring started with an opposite field HR to right field to put the Pride up 1-0. It displayed how strong the sophomore catcher is that he barely squared the ball up and it still went soaring over the fence to the opposite field. The Bears...
St. Joseph’s dominates in their opener
A cool March evening was the scene of the first game of the season for the Golden Eagles. St. Joe’s faced off with John Jay at Gregg Alfano field in Patchogue, and they took care of business to the tune of 12-1. It was a complete effort from St. Joe’s, their pitching nearly shut out their opponents and the bats did damage against John Jay’s staff. Lefty Nick Clemente got the start, and threw three shutout innings in which he struck out five and allowed only a single hit. However, it was Josh Outsen who earned the win after relieving Clemente and throwing two two-hit shutout innings. John Jay scored their lone run in the sixth, Brandon Lubrano gave up one unearned on a single to right, but he was excellent over his two innings otherwise. The game was finished by P.J. Marti...
aXcess Baseball 2017 Top HS Players on Long Island
Here is our list of the Top HS Players on Long Island for the 2017 season: Pitchers: Matt Boyko, Clarke (2017) Brad Camarda, Hills West (2017) Chris Cappas, Kellenberg (2017) Harrison Cohen, Cold Spring Harbor (2017) Jason Coules, Bellmore JFK (2018) Jason Diaz, Kellenberg (2019) Antonio Deodato, Wheatley (2017) Mark Faello, Plainview-JFK (2018) Luke Hansen, Southold (2018) Jimmy Joyce, Wantagh (2017) Bobby Lewis, MacArthur (2017) Brian Morrissey, Commack (2017) Brian Morrell, Shoreham-Wading River (2017) Max Nielsen, Ward Melville (2019) Peter Theodorellis, Commack (2017) Nicholas Trabacchi, Smithtown West (2017) Liam Pulsipher, Center Moriches (2018) Catcher: Logan O’Hoppe, St. John the Baptist (2018) Matt Pelcher, Calhoun (2020) Infield: Johnny Castagnozzi, Massapequa (2020) Antho...
David Real’s HR Leads Stony Brook to 7-2 Win over NYIT
With the rain pouring down, trailing 2-1 in the seventh and the Stony Brook Sea Wolves staring at the potential of falling to 1-9 with hard-throwing Frank Valentino on the hill, it was a huge moment in the game. Pinch hitter Chris Hamilton ripped an RBI double to tie the game up in the seventh and catcher David Real broke the tie with a two-run shot to left field in the eighth inning to propel the Sea Wolves to the 7-2 win over NYIT this afternoon at Joe Nathan Field. NYIT got out to an early 1-0 lead with an RBI double by two-time All-Long Island third baseman Louis Mele to score Frank Sanacore. In the home half of the first, the Sea Wolves tied it up on a solo shot by freshman Michael Wilson, who is now hitting .353 with a .500 SLG through 34 at bats. Both starting pitchers, Kevin...
Santiago, Adelphi Down New Haven 8-5
When TJ Santiago is on the hill, the Adelphi Panthers are a tough team to beat. The Panthers’ ace fired 5.2 IP, allowing zero earned runs with five strike outs in Adelphi’s 8-5 win over NE-10 rival New Haven. “Fastball and splitter were the duo today,” said the Linden, N.J. native. The Panthers offense got off to a quick start against Vincent Aprea (Comsewogue ’13) with a three-spot in the first inning. Eric Hassell ripped an RBI single to drive in Rob Vani. After the Panthers got an unearned run across the plate, Brett Malm drove in Brandon Morse with an RBI single. Santiago was very sharp out of the gate, allowing only one hit through four innings. In the bottom of the fourth, the Panthers broke through with four more runs. Kory Cassara smacked an opposite f...
Sal Agostinelli and Neal Heaton Providing Player Evaluations
We are excited to announce our new promotion that we will be running beginning today: Any player that registers for our Exclusive aXcess Annual Membership will be entitled to a complimentary player evaluation from our Head Scout Sal Agostinelli or Neal Heaton, our Pitching Analyst. Sal is the Director of International Scouting for the Philadelphia Phillies and has signed 31 Major Leaguers during his scouting career. Heaton is a 12-year Major League veteran. Upon completion of your registration, you can simply email your highlight video to sal@axcessbaseball.com . Please allow 72 hours for your assessment to be completed due to Sal’s World Baseball Classic obligations. If you are a pitcher and would prefer a Neal Heaton to provide your evaluation, you can email neal@axcessbaseball.com...
Power Rankings Volume 2
The unexpected arctic temperatures put a huge damper on baseball this week on Long Island. A few of the teams were able to escape down south to get their games in, but the rest were left to track the weather fronts all weekend. In the case of Farmingdale and St. Joseph’s, the weather delayed there season until the second week of March. With that being said, here is my best attempt to rank the teams in our coverage area. (Note: These rankings are based off a team’s current momentum and performance against their competition, not weighted to Div-I, Div-II, etc) St. John’s (Record: 10-1, Stock UP) It’s hard to imagine a team getting off to a better start than them. This week they defeated the reigning national champions in Coastal Carolina. They finally lost today, but ...
March 4 Recap
by Mike Guido After a number of games being cancelled due to weather, it was a tough day for Long Island baseball. Though Long Island went 1-5 on the day, there were some bright spots in particular for the teams competing yesterday. We are still early in and growth is visible with these ball clubs. Division I: Fordham Splits With Canisius The Rams snapped a six-game losing streak on a walkoff single by Brian Goulard to score Reiss Knehr. It was a wild game, with the Rams battling back to tie the game three times when trailing including erasing a 4-1 deficit in the bottom of the sixth inning and a 5-4 deficit in the bottom of the eighth. Ryan Mahoney‘s two-run shot in the sixth inning tied the ballgame up at 4-4 and Mark Donadio‘s RBI double scored Justin Bardwell to tie the ga...
Sal Agostinelli Joins aXcess Baseball
Sal Agostinelli will be our Hitting Analyst/Head Scout–in this role, he will be providing player evaluations and hitting videos throughout the 2017 season. He brings a wealth of experience that is matched by very few people at–not just at the amateur level but–any level. Agostinelli (Hills East grad) is currently the International Scouting Director for the Philadelphia Phillies. Sal was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 22nd round of the 1983 draft out of Slippery Rock University. He was named All-American and at the time of getting drafted, held the program mark for highest single-season batting average at .466 in 1981. That mark is currently third in program history. He played in the minor leagues for 10 years, topping out at Triple-A. He has drafted 31 Major Le...
Is St. Joseph’s Becoming a Destination College?
It was not too long ago that fouls balls landed on Sunrise Highway and overthrows by infielders ended up in the middle of campus at St. Joseph’s. Now coming off winning the Skyline Conference championship, with a six-year old turf facility and getting an influx of talent via transfers and incoming freshman, St. Joseph’s might be becoming one of the top choices for top players on Long Island. “Depth is everything,” said Rick Garrett, who will enter the 2017 title defense with a 42 man roster. “We got kids coming from all over because they hear about it. Some of our coaches are from there. Now it’s become an all Long Island school,” he added. In the past, they were a predominantly eastern Suffolk-based team, which put them at an obvious disadvantage ...
3/3 Recap: Adelphi Loses a Pitching Duel, St. John’s Stays Undefeated
Another day, another victory for St. John’s. The Red Storm continues to ravage opponents this season, while Fordham, Stony Brook and Adelphi struggle. Division I St John’s Remains Undefeated: 7-3 St. John’s continues their historic start with a dominant 7-3 win against Appalachian State. The Red Storm moved to 9-0 this season behind Kevin Magee’s spectacular performance, and another strong day for the offense. Magee shut down Appalachian’s bats for 5 2/3 innings of no-hit ball before surrendering a lone run in the sixth inning. This was his third win of the season, a game in which he notched a career-high seven strike outs while walking four. Sophomore Turner French also earned his first career save by rerecording the game’s final out. John Valente, Jesse Berardi, and Josh Shaw each ...
