NEWS
Power Rankings Volume 1
Only a handful of teams were in action last week, so we held off on our weekly Power Rankings. This is a great week to start it–the cream has already begun to rise to the top. We will be adding more teams to the coverage this year–St. John’s, Fordham, Queens and Maritime. Typically, the weekly Power Rankings will be for Exclusive aXcess members only, but this week will be for everyone. Now is a great time to purchase your membership, as we will have an influx of member-only content throughout the season. Without further ado, here’s Volume 1 of the 2017 Power Rankings, only including the teams that have played a game. St. John’s (7-0, Stock UP): No debate here–the Red Storm have gotten off to a scorching start. They are off to their best start since 2010....
February 25 Recap
by Mike Guido The season has reached day two of weekend two and ball clubs are beginning to lay their foundations and discover their identities. Unfortunately, six out of nine teams took the loss in seven of the ten games played on Saturday. However, there were some bright spots and the season is young so progress is due. Division I: St. John’s remains unbeaten after six: St. John’s is off to a scorching start to begin the 2017 campaign earning their sixth win in as many games. The most impressive thing about this club’s streak is the fashion in which they’re grabbing victories. After beating Kansas State earlier this weekend 9-2, they added a 15-3 win against UMBC to their resume on Saturday. A strong outing by Mike LoPresti was a key component to the victory while earning his second win....
Q & A With Jimmy English
(Photo Credit: Kevin Carver) by David Moskowitz You went to Smithtown West. Both Smithtown High School teams are usually competitive. What was it like to play there? I was on The Smithtown West Varsity team as a 9th grader, competing until my senior year. Having a few strong players ahead of me, I was able to see how they would handle situations on and off field, forcing me to grow as a person and player. Having these experiences, I was able to become a leader myself in my later years on the team. Coach Mike Miller had helped me develop my confidence, work counts, and teach me the mechanics on how to throw different pitches. He was a huge part in cultivating my success throughout my four years at West. Can you comment on the rivalry between the two school districts? The rivalry between t...
Insider Notes: February 25
Through out the season I will be posting my observations from games in the Insider Notes column. It will be for Exclusive aXcess members only. It will include scouting reports and detailed descriptions of player’s strengths and weaknesses that they show in the game. Today I was at the Sacred Heart vs. NYIT game. Here is the information I gathered based on my conversations with the scouts that were in attendance: Elias Martinez: He is definitely on the draft radar. The Mets, Yankees, Orioles and Phillies were there to watch. He is a big, strong pitcher that throws hard (87-89 MPH in this outing but has thrown 96 MPH in the past) and has command of his breaking ball. In this game, he threw 100 pitches and threw 65 percent strikes. He showed a very good ability to throw breaking ba...
Ninth Inning Dooms NYIT
All eyes were on Elias Martinez today at Angelo Lorenzo Memorial Field. The big RHP impressed all the scouts on hand with a dynamite fastball and a big curveball that produced seven strikeouts while allowing only three hits over 8.1 IP. It was what happened after he left, though, that resulted in a 6-2 loss at the hands of Sacred Heart University. “I thought he commanded the zone well,” said pitching coach Al Sontag. “He had all the stuff working–he got ahead of batters. He went into the ninth inning with under 90 pitches, we wanted to give him a chance to try and get a ‘W’, but once he got over 100 pitches I thought it was time to get him out. He made one bad pitch all day.” The Bears took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning on a ...
2/24 Recap: A Wild “Walk”-Off for NYIT
There were six combined wins for the nine teams that were in action yesterday. As the season enters it’s second weekend it appears several teams that were struggling are starting to get their bearings, and have begun playing quite well. We’ll see if this holds up, but there are some promising signs showing all over. Division I Four-Run Eighth Carry’s Hofstra: 4-2 It’s back-to-back wins for the Pride after holding off a late rally from the Southern Louisiana Jaguars. In his first start in a Hofstra uniform Jorge Marrero pitched seven scoreless innings, during which he only surrendered five hits while striking out seven. Michael James then kept the game in check and went on to earn his first career save, striking out the side in the ninth. Stranding only three runners...
Jake DeCarli Strikes Out 10 in 4-3 Victory over Southern New Hampshire
Jake DeCarli looked like the 2015 version of himself in last night’s outing against No. 6 ranked Southern New Hampshire. The senior RHP struck out 10 and allowed only four hits over 7.0 IP in the 4-3 victory. Dan Jagiello came on in relief and struck out all four batters he faced to record his first save of the season. The Pioneers’ offense was dormant for the first four innings, and they trailed 3-0 when they came to bat. They sparked a rally, with the first run coming on an RBI single by Michael Greene. Reigning All-Long Island outfielder Rob Andreoli smacked an RBI single of his own, as did Anthony Vaglica. The go-ahead run came across on a double play off the bat of Zach Fritz. With the victory, the Pioneers improved to 2-3. They will be back in action today against Felicia...
Hofstra Dominates in Season’s First Win
The Pride began their weekend at the Mardi Gras Invitational with a 10-3 win against Nicholls State. Hofstra tallied 18 hits to Nicholls’ three. Thanks in part to a masterful performance from starting pitcher John Rooney, he threw five no-hit innings in which he struck out six. When he left he had put his team in great position to win–as Hofstra was up 7-0. Hofstra wasted no time, first baseman Nick Bottari got them on the board with a two-run double in the game’s third at bat. They continued to pad their lead until the seventh inning, when Hofstra delivered a knock-out blow in the form of a three-run home run from shortstop Mikey Riesner. Nicholls came back to score three unearned runs in the eighth, but by that point it was all but over. Riesner led the team in RBIs wit...
Recap of Dominican Republic Trip
What a tremendous experience it was for the 20 players who were a part of Sal Agostinelli‘s All-Star team this past week in the Dominican Republic. The competition was top-notch. All players were either already signed and playing on the Dominican Summer League teams of their respective organizations or very worthy of being signed. In fact, a number of Dominican players were signed right on the spot after their performances on the field. All five of the games were played in front of several MLB area scouts. Here are some notes from the five games. There were 2 teams–one from the class of ’17 and ’18 and one from ’19 and ’20. Each team played the Dominican Summer League teams from the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers...
Queens Primed to Make Noise in Crowded ECC
by Troy Mauriello After a below-.500 season in 2016, the Queens College Knights head into 2017 picked to finish fifth out of six teams in the East Coast Conference (ECC) preseason poll. Those mild expectations, however, do not seem to have any effect on Queens manager Chris Reardon as he heads into his fourth season in the dugout. “It’s basically based off of last year,” Reardon said. “In terms of motivation, the guys know what we are this year. And they certainly want to do better, so that provides enough motivation to just keep improving and getting better.” A record of 22-26 overall and 9-15 in the conference may not look like much, but for Reardon, that mark shows something much more: consistent improvement. The Knights have improved their record in every year since Reardon took over i...
Hofstra Falls to No. 2 LSU 8-1
The Pride’s bats were asleep for most of the night in Louisiana, against one of the top teams in the country, Hofstra mustered just one run on four hits verse LSU. The second-ranked Tigers were able to shut the Pride out for the eight innings, until they pushed a run across on a throwing error in the top of the ninth. LSU went up 2-0 in the first, but three one-hit innings from Gjon Ljucovic, James Beasley, and Ryan Kieran slowed the Tigers, neither Beasley nor Kieran allowed a baserunner against one of the nation’s top offenses. On offense, left fielder Teddy Cillis reached base three times, on a two-for-four day with one walk. Hofstra stayed within striking distance for much of tonight’s game, but failed to upset a great team. While the Pride are currently winless at 0-...
St. John’s Beats No. 9 Coastal Carolina in Extras
It took ten innings but St. John’s topped last season’s NCAA champions, No.9 ranked Coastal Carolina. Tied at four after nine, it was Robbie Knightes who, with one out in top of the tenth, hit an RBI double off the wall in left. The Johnnies added two more later in the frame when Coastal walked, and hit a batter with the bases loaded. Turner French earned his first win of the year when he closed out the final 2 1/3 innings while giving up only one hit. A team-high four runs were driven in on two hits by junior Anthony Brocato, and John Valente tied a career-high with three hits while driving in one run. Michael Donadio, Jamie Galazin, and Jesse Berardi each had two-hit days as well. This was St. John’s first win over a top-10 opponent since beating then No. 9 Florida Stat...
