Bobby Molinaro
Babylon Ready To Begin New Era Under Mike Birnbaum
by Tony Genualdo For the last six seasons, Babylon’s Mike Birnbaum has been coaching at every level. He’s coached junior high, JV, and has most recently been an assistant to the varsity team. But this year, he has a new role: head coach. Despite the new challenge, Birnbaum says that not much will change. “Player (and character) development has always driven my coaching,” said Birnbaum. “There’s a new degree of emphasis on winning. But as a competitive person, I can’t wait.” His last two seasons as varsity assistant saw success for Babylon. This season as a head coach, he knows that nothing is guaranteed. “Baseball is a game of inches, as cliché as that is,” Birnbaum said. “You can’t dwell and carry things over.” The team has been preparing for this season since the beginning of December. T...
Catching Up With Bobby Molinaro Sr.
Bobby Molinaro Sr is the former Head Coach of Suffolk West Community College from 2002-2010. He helped lead them to the JuCo College World Series three times during that span. Additionally, several of his coaches have gone on to carve out their own successful coaching careers as well. His son, Bobby Jr, is entering his senior season at Babylon HS and is one of the top left-handed pitchers in Suffolk County. I had a chance to speak with Bobby Sr, and here’s what he had to say… During your youth, who were some ballplayers you tried to emulate? Willie Randolph and Don Mattingly. Who are some influential people in your life? Baseball wise I would say Jack Bryant (coached at Briarcliffe and Suffolk West). Incredible knowledge of the game. In life, my two kids. Life changes when you ...
Babylon Looking To Overcome Last Year’s County Championship Defeat
In 2018, Babylon once again had a season to remember. They finished with a combined record of 18-6 and reached the County Championship game. Unfortunately, they fell just short of their ultimate goal, which was winning the county championship. Coming off an extremely successful year, Babylon comes into this season facing some difficult tasks. The main obstacle standing in their way is replacing their seniors from last season. As county runner-ups, their roster was loaded. Joseph Rende (2nd Team All-State), Ian Morgan (All-League), Mitch Carmody (All-League) and Frank Vano (All-League) all graduated in 2018, leaving Babylon with big shoes to fill. Although Babylon has to replace these productive seniors, they bring in plenty of talented players who were key pieces towards their deep postsea...
