Hofstra baseball
Power Rankings: Week 1
It was the opening week for Division-I baseball teams. While it is always reason for excitement, the results are often underwhelming for Long Island teams considering the disadvantage of playing against southern teams that have been outside since January 1. It’s important to keep that in mind, because more often than not, a rough start to the season is not indicative of anything else. For Week 1 of our Power Rankings, we will limit it to the Division-I programs because the only Division-II school to play this weekend was LIU Post who played the 7-time Division-II National Champions. Without further ado, here she goes… Stony Brook (Record: 2-1, Trending UP) All things considered, it was about as good of an Opening Weekend for Stony Brook as they could’ve hoped for. To go d...
Freshman That Could Have An Immediate Impact
2019 could have certainly gotten off to a better start for some people. Such as me. I immediately got pneumonia after I got back from the Power Showcase in Miami, which has left me relegated to laying on the couch. Fortunately, that does not preclude me from blogging so the show goes on. This is one of my favorite pieces to write each year, because of the difficulty. You are dealing with 18 and 19 year olds and often times high school success does not translate well to college. I will give it my best guess based on what I saw in the fall during our Fall Ball Series Presented by The Greene Turtle and also the recommendations of people smarter than me. Here it goes… Ben Fero, RHP, Stony Brook Freshman Ben Fero flashing some heat pic.twitter.com/FUIl6GkpMK — Axcess Baseball LI (@...
What Are The Major Storylines For 2019? (College Edition)
Yesterday, we went over the major points of interest among the high school baseball season and now we will discuss the college community. The season approaches much quicker, in fact, only 43 days until the Division-I seasons kicks off. Below are some thoughts I have as it pertains to the upcoming season… How will Hofstra replace John Rooney? Rooney is the type of arm that doesn’t come around often to a mid-major like Hofstra. He came from upstate NY and in three years turned into one of the most dynamic pitchers in the country and was drafted by the Los Angleles Dodgers. It’s pretty interesting because had Kyle Young opted to go to school instead of signing with Philadelphia, he would’ve been in line to step right in the ace role for the Pride, but obviously that...
Key Points From Today’s Q & A at The Cage
This afternoon, I was a guest speaker at The Cage in Riverhead, NY to discuss a bevy of topics regarding to amateur baseball, how Axcess Baseball was started and the particulars of being an MLB scout. For those that couldn’t make it, here’s some of the key points I made: If you’re good, you will be found. This seems overly simplistic but it seems to get lost on people. The prevailing thought seems to be if you are not on an elite travel team, you have no chance to get a scholarship. I can attest to the fact that several players have received scholarships and even gotten drafted without attending every showcase. Our job as a scout, and also for college colleges, is to unearth the hidden gems. Those ones are much more satisfying anyway. Your results on the field does not im...
Fall Ball Series Presented by The Greene Turtle: Hofstra
Hofstra Head Coach John Russo discussing the impact John Rooney had on the program and the freshmen that have performed well this fall pic.twitter.com/cgw7FbHryd — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 14, 2018 Hofstra played their “Blue v Gold World Series” today which served as an intrasquad game with a competitive feel. With so many newcomers battling for starting roles come spring, it was the perfect way to get a sense for what they will be working with this season. They played it like a real game, with the Gold team even using starting pitcher Andrew Mundy in the last inning to put out a fire with runners on the corners and one out. The hard-throwing St. John the Baptist RHP threw one pitch, made a terrific sliding play on a bunt attempt and even doubled off the run...
Updated College Commitments
Please let us know if we have missed or have not updated your college commitment. We will keep the Class of 2018 active until December 31st. Class of 2018 Michael Abagnale-SUNY Old Westbury Robbie Affenita-Adelphi Chris Amato-Suffolk Alex Andrew-Middlesex County Jalen Bertie-SUNY Old Westbury Cameron Botta-SUNY Old Westbury Hayden Altimari-Penn State Brandywine Joe Amoroso-SUNY Old Westbury Justin Aviles-Marietta Matt Ayala-Alvernia Mike Badala-St. Joseph’s Ryan Baumann-Southern New Hampshire Nick Biscardi-Quinnipiac Jason Bottari-Albany Chris Buehler-LIU Brooklyn Matt Carey-NYIT Anthony Carleo-Lackawanna Michael Cartusciello-Belmont Abbey Dillon Cassidy-Herkimer CC Noah Centeno-Sacred Heart D.J. Chandler-St. Thomas Aquinas Paul Christopher-Oswego Anthony Cipri-Adelphi Michael Cole-F...
Whitestone Renegades Capture 14U East Coast Labor Day Bash
And Renegades are your East Coast Labor Day Champions! pic.twitter.com/4vzDfFZQF9 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 3, 2018 The East Coast Labor Day Bash tournament 14u division featured some of Long Islands well-renowned travel organizations including the Hitters Club Hawkeyes, Long Island Royals and the Long Island Black Diamonds. However, it was the Howard Beach Wolfpack and the Whitestone Renegades who were the final the teams remaining and were ready to square off to bring home the trophy and possibly some bragging rights for the best team in Queens. On a blazing hot afternoon, reaching the upper 80’s at Eisenhower Park both teams took the field stocked with their best 9. Out of the gate, the Wolfpack sent John Dezago to the mound. Dezago breezed through the first innin...
Recap of Week 6 of the New York Baseball Academy
This was the sixth and final week of the 2018 New York Baseball Academy at Hofstra University. Over 43 years in business, the academy has helped so many young ballplayers develop their skills and realize their potential. They have been nothing but welcoming to us since the inception, and for that we are extremely grateful. This week’s winner of the Axcess Baseball Player of the Week was Trevor Yetkofsky. Below he is pictured with longtime NYBA lead instructor Mike McCabe. There was also a group of players that were recipients of the Gold Glove Award. Their photo is at the top of the article. Last but not least, the recipients of the coveted “Super Hustler” Award for each group are below. Group 1: Coach Timmes Nathan Walker Mason Montanez Jayden Keinath Marco Laza Group 2:...
PODCAST: Live From the Turning Point With Vito Friscia & Steve Corrado
Below is the transcript from our August 16 podcast live from The Turning Point with Vito Friscia and Steve Corrado. [00:00] Hello, and welcome to the Axcess Baseball podcast. We are here at The Turning Point bar and grill in Farmingdale, New York joined by our special guests Vito Friscia. He just won the, Axcess Baseball home run derby at baseball heaven. 15 home runs in the first round and he hit four in the championship to beat Thomas Colombo from Adelphi. So Vito, you were in a rhythm in that first round, what did that feel like? [00:23] First off, thank you for having me, Vin. I appreciate it. I don’t know, I mean I was just having fun out there, trusting my swearing that trying to do too much. Um, you know, I like to take a lot of pitchers, keep my muscles relaxed. We’re a...
Steven Rizzo & Vito Friscia Capture the 2018 Axcess Home Run Derby
On a hot & humid August afternoon, two players stole the show and stood above the rest in their respective brackets. Steven Rizzo (St. Anthony’s) captured the high school division and Vito Friscia (Hofstra) captured the college division in front of a packed crowd at Baseball Heaven. Rizzo led all high school hitters with 10 home runs, including seven in the first round. He defeated Matt Brown-Eiring (Connetquot 2020) in the championship round with two home runs. David Falco (Center Moriches 2019) smacked 3 HR, Brock Murtha (Saville 2020) hit two while Kyle Rausch (Longwood 2019) and Brown-Eiring each hit one. The college age players put on a clinic. St. Joseph 1B Paul Britt hit four home runs. He is a finalist for our Axcess Most Valuable Player for his amazing 2018 season for th...
Recap of Week 5 of the New York Baseball Academy at Hofstra
Today concludes Week 5 of the New York Baseball Academy at Hofstra. I was there on Monday and I was going around from field-to-field taking some pictures/videos/notes. The first thing you noticed is the structure. Each field has nonstop action–whether it be teaching or game action. It truly is an academy and not simply a summer camp. Now in its 42nd year, that has been consistent over the 4 decades. The Axcess Baseball Player of the Week was Ivan Epps of Group 6. Above he is pictured with Coach Hector Duprey (left) and NYBA Director (John Russo). Ivan possesses incredible power for such a young player. He turned heads all week, and I even recall coaching him at the camp two years ago and getting the sense this kid had an incredibly bright future ahead of him. He is certainly a player...
