Baseball Heaven
Who Were the Top Performers At Today’s BCP Showcase?
Brady Clark (Bayport-Blue Point 2023) Brady Clark (Bayport-Blue Point 2023) touching 80 MPH with a 72 MPH breaking ball pic.twitter.com/TqTDVy0xL1 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 16, 2019 Liam Stemmler (Bayport-Blue Point 2023) Liam Stemmler (Bayport-Blue Point 2023) sitting 77-79 touching 80 MPH pic.twitter.com/HiFoXVey1M — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 16, 2019 Coach Jim Moccio is fortunate to have both of these young power pitchers for the next four seasons. I put them together because they are similar players. Both are high-end power pitchers that look ready for the varsity level right now. 78-80 MPH at this age is pretty rare and given their size, I wouldn’t be surprised if they eventually were in the 88-90 MPH range in three years. Stemmler also show...
Team Steel Gold Wins Back And Forth Battle
Final: Steel 12, Owls 9. pic.twitter.com/N432pbzpm1 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) June 20, 2019 On a muggy, foggy night at Baseball Heaven, Team Steel Gold came away with their first victory of the season, defeating the Islip Owls by a score of 12-9. Team Steel wasted no time getting a lead, scoring four runs in the first. With one out, Brayden Alemaghides worked a walk and stole second. Alex Casey followed up with a double, giving Steel their first lead. Casey then advanced to third and then scored on a pair of passed balls. With two guys out, Nikolas Infante reached on an error. James Minutillo made the Owls pay, blasting a home run to left field, giving his team a four run cushion in the first. The Owls clawed away at the deficit that they faced, scoring a run of their own in t...
Frank Catalanotto: Which Hitting Drills Work Best?
(Frank is a 14-year MLB veteran. He is a 1992 graduate of Smithtown East HS, where he was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 10th round of the MLB Draft. He compiled a .291 AVG in over 3,800 at bats. He is the Head Coach of NYIT and gives lessons for Steel Sports Academy at Baseball Heaven. This article originally was published in 2017.) by Frank Catalanotto The truth is that everyone is different, so when it comes to baseball and hitting drills, you need to find out which ones work for you and which ones don’t. The repetition of the drills is so important. Part of getting better is teaching muscle memory–especially for younger kids. Here are some that worked for me. One arm drills might be my favorite because each arm gets strengthened individually. I would get a small, lightweight bat...
Up Next: Taj Farmer
We’ve spent some time discussing the Catholic League this off-season, specifically the two programs with new Head Coaches; St. Dominic and St. Anthony’s. To me, the latter of which is the favorite to capture the CHSAA title this season. One player that likely won’t factor in this season–but certainly in the near future–is ninth grader Taj Farmer. Born Tajjiddin Farmer, he is coming off one of the types of seasons that turns heads. He batted .430 with 55 hits (27 extra-base hits) and 72 RBI. I had the chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Who are some players in Major League Baseball that you try to emulate? Miguel Cabrera is currently my favorite player because of his approach and success at the plate. Also Mike Trout, for his all...
Camelot Knights Quickly Becoming a Premier Organization
JJ Palumbo of the Camelot Knights working on a hitting drill pic.twitter.com/5TkbGkTuss Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) January 20, 2018 One of the keys to team success is continuity–especially at the younger levels. The Camelot Knights have built their program’s success with this principle and their players are still only 11-years-old. “We go to battle with the same kids every week,” said Joe Palumbo, Director of the Camelot Knights. “The nucleus of this team has legitimately played together since they were 8-years-old. This is a group of friends that will be friends in 20 years and when they’re old and gray will be talking about these days on Facebook,” he said jokingly. What he does not joke about is the rapid ascension of the organi...
Frank Catalanotto: Which Hitting Drills Work Best?
(Frank is a 14-year MLB veteran. He is a 1992 graduate of Smithtown East HS, where he was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 10th round of the MLB Draft. He compiled a .291 AVG in over 3,800 at bats. He gives lessons for Steel Sports Academy at Baseball Heaven.) by Frank Catalanotto The truth is that everyone is different, so when it comes to baseball and hitting drills, you need to find out which ones work for you and which ones don’t. The repetition of the drills is so important. Part of getting better is teaching muscle memory–especially for younger kids. Here are some that worked for me. One arm drills might be my favorite because each arm gets strengthened individually. I would get a small, lightweight bat and have someone flip balls to me. With just my front arm, I would take 10-1...
