Body Armor Titans
Up Next: Don Wille
It’s not often that you see catchers 6’3″ or taller at any level of baseball. At the Major League Level, for example, only Joe Mauer and Matt Wieters stand that tall (both 6’5″). The main reason for this is that it is difficult for them to quickly get out of the crouching position and into a throwing position as efficiently as a shorter player. Don Wille (Sachem East 2020) is not only 6’3″, but he curtails the running game as well as anyone. In fact, playing on JV last season, he threw out every runner that attempted to steal off him. I had the opportunity to watch him training with Charles Galiano this evening and it became evident pretty quickly just how much of a weapon he is behind the dish. He possesses very strong wrists for a 15-year-old tha...
Recap of WWBA Underclass World Championship
This weekend I was in Fort Myers for the immensely-popular WWBA Underclass World Championship. There were five Long Island-based teams competing; Motus Academy, MVP Beast, Body Armor Titans, Next Level Baseball and the East Coast Lumberjacks. Here are some of my biggest takeaways from the weekend. With 202 teams in the tournament and college coaches from everywhere–including Power 5 conferences, this is a must-attend event. The facilities of the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins are absolutely gorgeous. If you love baseball as I do, it really reminded me of why I fell in love with the game. With no Major League game being played, I was able to walk around the ballpark and it made me appreciate the rudimentary aspects of the game such as that feeling when you walk through the rotunda...
Will Feil Commits to Albany
One of the top bats in the class of 2018 is now off the board with Will Feil (Wheatley 2018) committing to the University at Albany this evening. The third baseman with a sweet left-handed swing really rose his stock with a tremendous 2017 campaign in which he led Wheatley to the Class B Nassau County Championship over Oyster Bay. He went 3-for-3 in that game with three separate RBI hits. He also performed well this summer in the tournament and showcase circuit. Albany has shown an affinity towards Long Island players over the years with several of the top players choosing to attend there; notably Stephen Woods (Hills East ’13, San Francisco Giants draft pick). Feil will be with us in our inaugural Home Run Derby on September 9 at NYIT for Team Fontana.
Who Is Jordan Rose?
The St. Anthony’s Friars put together one of their most talented teams on paper in 2017. Their lineup consisted of a few players that had already gone on to accept scholarship offers such as Cameron Tomaiko, Noah Fortuna and Kyle LaGrutta. They also had a few other players such as Jared Restmeyer, Steven Rizzo and Jordan Rose who are certain to accept scholarships as well. While Restmeyer and Rizzo enjoyed breakout seasons, Rose suffered a painful injury against St. John the Baptist which cut his season short and sidelined him for the summer season as well. He is back to 100 percent, however, and will take part in our inaugural Home Run Derby on September 9 at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT). He is a tremendously gifted outfielder with premium power. He spoke with Vinny Messa...
