St. John the Baptist
OTD in 2017: Recap of Mariano Rivera Clinic at St. John the Baptist
(Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on October 14, 2017) What an unbelievable experience it was for 50 young ballplayers this afternoon at St. John the Baptist‘s baseball clinic. Major League Baseball’s all-time save leader (652) and five-time World Series Champion Mariano Rivera spent nearly three hours signing autographs, speaking to the players, running drills and even providing personal pitching instructions. Everyone in attendance marveled at Rivera’s incredible down-to-earth demeanor despite the massive success he’s attained in his illustrious career. With rain in the early portion of the morning, the clinic began inside with Rivera taking plenty of time to sign an autograph and take photographs with every athlete. The other instructors–all with professional e...
GAME RECAP: Holy Trinity Uses 5-Run Fifth to Defeat St. John the Baptist
Final: Holy Trinity 6, St. John the Baptist 3 WP: Atkinson S: Perino Heppner: 2-for-3, RBI Sinclair: 1-for-3, 2 RBIs Alvarez: 1-for-3, 2 runs, RBI Tyler Cook: 1-for-3, R, RBI pic.twitter.com/gWEBAJAeN1 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 23, 2024 If there was one thing that the Holy Trinity Titans proved in 2023 during this magical run to the New York State Championship, it was that they should never be counted out. Whether it’s the first or the seventh inning, they are never out of a ballgame. They proved that once again today as they overcame a 3-1 deficit against St. John the Baptist on the road against a tough lefty, as they used a five-run fifth inning to win by the score of 6-3. Catcher Andrew Heppner who had two hits and drove in a run, said “Today really showed...
St. John the Baptist Looks To Returners For Bounce Back in 2024
by Max Edelman Last year was a mix of highs and lows for the St. John’s the Baptist Cougars. After a strong start to the season filled with promise, the end wasn’t as rewarding. Coach Ryan Dalton, who is entering his second year as head coach of the Cougars, highlighted the highs and lows for St John’s last season, who finished 2023 with a 7-14-1 record overall. “Last year we started off pretty well and then we struggled towards the end of the season.” Dalton said. “ We started strong and then ended up losing in the second round of the playoffs.” Although the overall record doesn’t stand out on paper, the Cougars did get off to a strong start in conference play, starting the season with a very respectable 5-2 record. Following the strong start however, it was rough sledding for St ...
GAME RECAP: Powered by 5-Run First Inning, St. Anthony’s Cruises to 11-1 Win over St. John the Baptist
Final: St. Anthony’s 11, St. John the Baptist 1 WP: Jason Decaro (6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 8 Ks) Kevin Baez: 2-for-4, run, 4 RBIs Jason Decaro: 2-for-3, 2 RBI, 1 BB Michael Mugno: 2 RBIs pic.twitter.com/dEyxi1pVtD — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 2, 2023 When we conducted the 2023 Season Preview on St. Anthony’s, coach Paul Parsolano pointed to their exceptional starting pitching duo of Jason Decaro and Torin Kassebaum for their biggest reason for optimism heading into the season. It’s what generally carries team in the playoffs – especially if you can get one of those top two seeds and get a bye. That’s exactly what they are working for and they are currently in position to do so – with just one week remaining in the regular season. The Friars – ...
St. John the Baptist Takes Field in 2023 Under First Year Coach Ryan Dalton
by Nick Cipolla An awesome moment for Long Island baseball as Logan O’Hoppe singles in his first big league at bat! pic.twitter.com/VrtoNLTjKz — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 29, 2022 Ryan Dalton is no stranger to St. John the Baptist program. He played for the Cougars, he was the JV coach for the past two seasons and his father is well-respected Athletic Director, Ralph Dalton. Casey McKay was at the helm before him, helping lead the Cougars to the CHSAA Championship in 2018 but decided to step down and is now an assistant coach on staff. There was a lot to celebrate for the St. John the Baptist program last year as 2018 alum Logan O’Hoppe reached the big leagues with the Los Angeles Angels and his close friends and family were able to be in attendance to watch him ...
Up Next Powered by Eye Q Investigations: Keegan McElligott
(This is the ninth installment of our weekly “Up Next Series Powered by Eye Q Investigations” in which we highlight the best underclassmen from across Long Island. Previously, we featured Miguel Sime Jr, Matt Cruz, Luke Coats, Michael Gardner, Tyler Scarry, Kenny Meliere, Jaiden Zoller and Max Donacea Make sure to check out Eye Q Investigations by clicking here) Keegan McElligot (St. John the Baptist 2026) pic.twitter.com/gMh5BIlvc1 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) December 20, 2022 Defense up the middle is a very important aspect to building a winning ballclub. In the case of the 2026 Titans Quattrini, they have one of the best in the class with SS Keegan McElligot. The silky smooth defender showed a penchant for making incredible plays. It doesn’t hurt that he was also outsta...
Logan O’Hoppe Promoted to the Big Leagues
Surprise! It was a very short stay on the taxi squad for Logan O’Hoppe. He’s starting tomorrow.https://t.co/DFHFsHYzST — Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) September 28, 2022 Huge news out of LA: Logan O’Hoppe (St. John the Baptist 2018) has been promoted to the big leagues by the Los Angeles Angels and will be starting tonight against the Oakland Athletics. O’Hoppe was traded at the deadline by the Philadelphia Phillies to the Los Angeles Angels for CF Brandon Marsh. The move was surprising at the time considering O’Hoppe had already established himself as one of the top 100 prospects in baseball and at the premium position like catcher nonetheless. After the move was completed, he was immediately regarded as the top prospect in the Angels system. Since that ti...
Q & A With JJ Palumbo
The phrases “it’s a grind” and “putting in work” often get overused. But when it comes to an athlete on Long Island that embodies what it means to be committed to improving, look no further than Clarke senior JJ Palumbo. The catcher/infielder transformed his body in just over a year – losing fat and putting on muscle – and turning himself into an impact player on Clarke’s team that played in the county finals this season – even knocking the game-winning hit in one of the games against Calhoun. Here is the go-ahead hit by Palumbo. Clarke is 3 outs away and have ace Sean Welsh warming up pic.twitter.com/8KYITmI95B — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 29, 2022 This past week, Palumbo announced his commitment to SUNY Purchase. While m...
Led by the 2021 CHSAA Pitcher of the Year, St. John the Baptist Hungry to Get Back on Top
By Michael Malaszczyk Coach Casey McKay of St. John the Baptist’s baseball team sees only good things for his team this upcoming season. After what was a difficult start for all teams as a result of losing their 2020 season to the coronavirus pandemic, St. John the Baptist had a strong season in 2021, finishing third in the Catholic League. St. John the Baptist came up just short in the semi-finals, losing 2-1 to Chaminade in a pitcher’s duel between ace Kyle Chase (‘22) and Seton Hall-commit John Downing (‘22). McKay is in no way discouraged by this event and instead feels the experience gained from last season will lead the team to great places this season. “While we were disappointed with the result, the coaching staff was extremely proud of the way our players competed during the sea...
Chaminade LHP John Downing Fires Gem To Advance to CHSAA Finals
Chaminade LHP John Downing on his complete game gem to send Chaminade in the Championship series pic.twitter.com/Q4XMnYbwWg — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) June 7, 2021 Pitching and defense is the name of the game in the CHSAA and Chaminade has always thrived in that category. In the ultra-competitive Catholic League, the difference between a win and a loss is sometimes a defensive miscue or failed bunt attempt. That was the case as No. 2 Chaminade edged No. 3 St. John the Baptist, 2-1, to advance to the CHSAA Championship Series against Kellenberg on Wednesday. Chaminade knew they had a tall order in facing St. John the Baptist ace RHP Kyle Chase (St. John’s-commit) who has the ability to shut down any opponent. What he can’t control, though, is what happens once the ba...
St. John the Baptist Enters 2021 With a Formidable Roster
by Chris Sacchi Casey McKay’s St. John the Baptist baseball team has been a consistent contender for the CHSAA title since he took over in 2016. With one title, another title appearance, and most recently a semi-finals loss to St. Anthony’s in 2019, McKay has coached a lot of great players. So how does he feel about this year’s squad, ahead of a unique 2021 season? “This is probably the most talented team we’ve had,” McKay said. “I would almost say since the team’s been nationally ranked in the early 2000’s. It’s more talented than the team we had when we won in 2018.” “They’re ready to play, they’re hungry to play. We have a lot of college baseball players on this team that are really, really excited for this year to see what they’re able to do and pu...
