Sam Kessler
Re-Visiting The 2016 Top Prospects on LI List
It’s been five years since I really started following high school baseball here on Long Island. Back during the 2016, I tried to really immerse myself in the game and I was covering games 5 days per week – while bartending at Lombardi’s on the Bay on the weekend – so I did miss out on some action at times. But through conversations with high school and travel ball coaches, I attempted to compile a list of the Top 10 prospects on Long Island. This was not meant to be a prediction of who would have the longest and most successful career, but in that snapshot in time I wanted to gage who had the highest ceiling as a prospect. Like anything else in media, it got some attention from people that enjoyed it while others scoffed at it. I can laugh now, because I really had ...
Sam Kessler Reflects On A Crazy 2019
(Photo Credit: WVU Athletics) The phrase ‘bittersweet’ is often overused in sports media. There is not a more apropos phrase, however, to describe 2019 for Mount Sinai-native Sam Kessler. Let’s start with the bad. With his team hosting the NCAA Regional against Texas A & M, he was on the mound and yielded a walk-off grand slam with two outs in the 9th inning on a full count to turn a 10-7 lead by West Virginia into an 11-10 victory for Texas A & M. The loss eliminated the Mountaineers and with social media’s ubiquity, the clip has been played 2.5 million times on Twitter. Kessler noted that he thinks about it every day. What made matters worse, he stated was that his West Virginia squad was hosting the regional and that they led 9-1 in the fifth inning befor...
Tyler Badamo Not Ready to Throw in the Towel
Former All-American Tyler Badamo working his way back pic.twitter.com/PKZvMPkb3v — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) January 30, 2018 Command has never been an issue for Tyler Badamo. During his four-year minor league career, he has walked only 48 batters over 261.0 IP. That is a rate of 1.6/9 IP. Last season, he issued only 7 free passes over 70.2 IP, reaching as high as Triple-A with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Unfortunately, the velocity–which sat 91-93 MPH with an occasional 94 during his historic All-American season with Dowling College in 2014–has since faded. With the average fastball velocity in the game of baseball now up to 92 MPH, teams come to expect those numbers on the radar gun. His career, which was budding with the New York Mets through the middle p...
Catching Up With 2016 Top Prospect Sam Kessler
by Eric Moskowitz The recruiting process is always a stressful time for players entering their senior seniors–especially for a top-notch player like Sam Kessler. He ultimately chose to attend West Virginia after he graduates in 2016 from Mount Sinai High School. Kessler is currently ranked as the No. 12 prospect in the ’16 class by Blue Chip Prospects. Our reporter, Eric Moskowitz, sat down with him and discussed some things pertaining to his career. How is the recruiting process going so far? Recruiting went well–It got a little crazy at the end, but I’m going to a great school. What people have been the most influential during your baseball career so far? Probably my pitching coach Joe Valentine, my travel coach Mark Cuesta and my dad. How do you f...
