Axcess Baseball
My Favorite Player Growing Up: David Wright
Photo Credit: Demetrius Freeman/The New York Times The week before I started high school, the Mets went on a west coast trip. They went to Arizona and pulled off a 4-game sweep to reach a high-watermark of eight games over .500 for the season. While it was a far cry from a World Series parade, it certainly felt like it for a team that began the season 0-5 and struggled to find their groove for the first 4 months of the season. A major reason for that hot streak was the play of 22-year-old rookie David Wright. The young third baseman wound up being named Player of the Week, which coincided with reinvigorating the team’s fan base. Wright was far from the most accomplished player on a team that featured future Hall of Famers Pedro Martinez and Mike Piazza as well as 9x All Star Carlos B...
On This Day In Axcess History: Farmingdale Wins Thriller On Walk-Off Squeeze
Walk-Off suicide squeeze by Tyler Schrimpf and Farmingdale wins it 2-1 in 9 innings ! pic.twitter.com/WRVLyyDZuc — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) March 23, 2019 (Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on March 24, 2019.) The games were slated to be nine and seven innings, but that was not nearly enough to determine today’s winners. These are the two premier teams in the Skyline Conference at the moment, and the matchup more than lived up to the billing with a 13-inning and a 9-inning game, with the teams splitting the DH. Here’s how it went down: Game 1: This game appeared like the Rams would be in control all game. They scored two runs just three batters into the game, with RBI hits by Vinny Rice and Steven Burke, but that was all they would get for the game. USMMA st...
Vote On The Photos For Axcess Baseball’s Calendar
One of the true pleasures of covering the game of baseball is the ability to capture moments in time and make them timeless. To commemorate those moment, we will be putting out an Axcess Baseball themed calendar with a different photo for each month. It was not easy to narrow it down to 60 photos, and it will be even more difficult narrowing it down to 12, but the right way to choose is to have the audience vote and that’s exactly what we will do. The photos are all taken during the “Axcess Baseball era” beginning in 2017. We will keep the link open until April 1 so it gives everyone ample opportunity to take advantage. Here is the link to vote. You can vote one time per device. https://pollunit.com/polls/4bea4smoktuzveuxvo9cjw
My Favorite Baseball Movies Of All-Time
The unique thing about the game of baseball is that no two games are alike. Additionally, being that it is a global game, there are people from all walks of life. With scouts all over the world, it means there’s endless types of stories of how players were discovered. Lastly, the game has been going on for over 150 years so there has been ample opportunity for incredible rag-to-riches stories, especially during times of national crisis. This list is completely subjective. It is the movies that have had the biggest impact on my life. Here it goes: 10) Benchwarmers (2006) Alright I’m starting this off with a controversial one because this is not a traditional baseball movie about the big leagues. It’s purposely the opposite, but it’s right in my comedic wheelhouse and...
NCAA Presses The Nuclear Button
NCAA cancels remaining winter and spring championships: https://t.co/qzKAS4McEI pic.twitter.com/G6XreZx35E — NCAA (@NCAA) March 12, 2020 In the words of Jay-Z ‘it was all good just a week ago.’ Seriously, how did it come to this so quickly? What began as a virus on the other side of the world that most Americans were joking about has now completely infiltrated our livelihoods, temporarily suspended entertainment and pop culture entirely and could have major ramifications on our economic structure. As it pertains to sports, leagues went from ‘monitoring the situation closely’ and considering playing games with no spectators to hitting the nuclear button and canceling entire seasons within one day. Things have unraveled quickly since Rudy Gobert tested positive for co...
Who Are The Top Sophomores That Could Make Impact On Varsity?
13. Brady Steinart (Chaminade) Has grown a lot since this video, he close to 6’3 now. As a SS, that’s pretty rare, but he does appear to have the athleticism to stick. I really like the balanced swing in the video, looks like that will translate into extra base power. 12. Jake Moss (Manhasset) He’s already in the low 80s on the mound and has no nerves. He went 6.2 innings in his varsity debut as a freshman, needing just 70 pitches. His coach called him the “real deal” and they will be counting on him in the rotation this season. 11.Liam Bowes (Shoreham-Wading River) Liam Bowes (Shoreham-Wading River 2022) pic.twitter.com/8RjTaGi7kq — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) December 3, 2018 Power-hitting catcher that saw time on varsity last year. He may not start...
Axcess Preseason All-Long Island
First Team: Player of the Year: Brock Murtha, Sayville 2020 Pitcher of the Year: Justin Rosner, Farmingdale 2020 C: Chris Giardino, Clarke 2020 1B: Rob Copozzi, Center Moriches 2020 MIF: Travis Honeyman, Massapequa 2020 MIF: Johnny Castagnozzi, Massapequa 2020 3B: Matt Brown-Eiring, Connetquot 2020 OF: Idris Carter, Roosevelt 2020 OF: Matt Milone, St. John the Baptist 2020 OF: Tyler Cox, Clarke 2020 DH: Nick Papageorge, Wheatley 2020 UT: Kevin Bowrosen, Miller Place 2020 P: Aidan Crowley, Shoreham-Wading River 2020 P: Tommy Ventimiglia, Longwood 2021 P: Rafe Schlesinger, Sachem East 2021 P: Carlos Hidalgo, St. Dominic 2020 P: Dylan Johnson, Newfield 2021 CL: Andrew Ledbetter, Walt Whitman 2020 Second Team: C: Ryan Micheli, Sachem East 2020 1B: Sean Lane, St. Dominic 2021 MIF: Jack Reardon,...
Mattituck Prepares For 2020 With Third Head Coach in Three Years
by Tony Genualdo Last season, Mattituck underwent some drastic changes. After their longtime coach Steve DeCaro left the team prior to the start of last season, the team saw a changing of the guard for the first time in nearly two decades. New head coach Gene Rochler and his team had a successful run that ended in heartbreak after losing the Suffolk County B Championship to undefeated Center Moriches. Now, this season sees another head coaching change. Dan O’Sullivan, a teacher and longtime coach, is now coaching varsity baseball for the first time. He has spent the last five years being an assistant coach to the Mattituck varsity soccer team. But he does have experience in the baseball world. “I have had the opportunity to learn a lot of the game from my father-in law, who was the presid...
Who Were The Top Performers At The Axcess Showcase?
The site was Max Effort Baseball in Farmingdale, where we hosted our second annual MLK Day College Showcase. The event drew 83 players and 23 college coaches. It featured a number of impressive individual performances. Here’s a quick rundown of some players that garnered attention from the college coaches and from myself. William Polanco Jr (Bishop Loughlin 2021) Polanco caught everyone’s attention with his play, just like the player beneath him on this list. He displayed soft hands and the ability to control his body moving laterally on defense. Big and physical, using wood he had an exit velocity of 91 MPH. His 84 MPH from the outfield was just narrowly second in attendance and ran 4.74 seconds to first. A no-doubt Division-I player, borderline pro prospect. Henry Garcia (Jam...
What Are The Biggest Storylines of 2020 (High School)
(If you haven’t registered for our upcoming Martin Luther King Day College Showcase, please do so by clicking here.) We spent much of the past week recapping the biggest stories of 2019 but now the calendar has flipped to January and that means no more looking back. College baseball is just 6 weeks away and high school baseball is right around the corner as well. Players are gearing up for the season and now is the time to preview the upcoming season. First we look at the high schools and see what the major storylines are. Here it goes: Can West Islip’s ‘Even Year’ Success Continue? This is a pretty amazing phenomenon. West Islip captured the Suffolk County Class AA Championship in 2014, 2016 and 2018. Maybe there’s nothing to it, or maybe they are due for ano...
