West Islip
Can West Islip Continue Their ‘Even-Year’ Trend?
Over the course of his tenure, Shawn Rush has established West Islip as the model of consistency in terms of Suffolk County baseball programs. Since 2008, they have captured four Suffolk County Championships and two Long Island Championships. Last season, they once again captured their league title and made a deep postseason run but ran into a terrific Ward Melville team led by the Carl Yastrzemski Award winner, Max Nielsen. “I’m pretty proud of the group – the seniors did a nice job,” said Rush. “The ultimate goal is to win a county championship every year but that’s not always attainable. We reached the semifinals, it was a disappointing ending but we just got beat. We faced the Yastrzemski Award winner and he showed why,” he said, referencing th...
Nick Tropeano Signs With the New York Yankees
The New York Yankees signed Long Island native Nick Tropeano to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to big league camp, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. It is a homecoming of sorts, as Tropeano is a 2008 graduate of West Islip and was drafted out of Stony Brook following an incredible 2011 campaign. His Stony Brook tenure was among the best in program history, as he was a two-time America East Pitcher of the Year. He was named All-American in 2011 when he compiled a record of 12-1 with a program-record 1.84 ERA. Which brings the question to mind; imagine if Tropeano was on the 2012 team? In any event, he is looking to get his career back on track following his 2016 Tommy John surgery which has been followed by two abbreviated seasons. In 2019, he compiled a 9.88 ERA over...
What Are The Biggest Storylines of 2020 (High School)
(If you haven’t registered for our upcoming Martin Luther King Day College Showcase, please do so by clicking here.) We spent much of the past week recapping the biggest stories of 2019 but now the calendar has flipped to January and that means no more looking back. College baseball is just 6 weeks away and high school baseball is right around the corner as well. Players are gearing up for the season and now is the time to preview the upcoming season. First we look at the high schools and see what the major storylines are. Here it goes: Can West Islip’s ‘Even Year’ Success Continue? This is a pretty amazing phenomenon. West Islip captured the Suffolk County Class AA Championship in 2014, 2016 and 2018. Maybe there’s nothing to it, or maybe they are due for ano...
Mike LaDonna Commits to Palm Beach State
Final: West Islip 5, North Babylon 4 (13 Innings) WP: Brad Battaglini (5 IP, 1 R) Mike LaDonna: Wall-off sac fly pic.twitter.com/ogXGg6gd4Q — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 24, 2019 One of the most consistent pitchers on Long Island over the past two seasons was West Islip RHP Mike LaDonna. The hard-throwing RHP was a key cog in the Lions’ incredible 22-game win streak in 2018 that culminated in another Suffolk Class AA Championship. He also had a dominant 2019 season in which the Lions made it back to the Final 4 but ran into Max Nielsen and the Ward Melville Patriots. LaDonna also won the Boomer Esiason Award, given to the top QB in Suffolk County after an incredible season in which he threw for 19 TDs and ran for 21 TDs, but lost to Lindenhurst in the Suffolk II title ...
Max Nielsen Fans 18 in CG Shutout to Send Ward Melville To Suffolk AA Finals
Max Nielsen strikes out 18 batters to send Ward Melville to the Suffolk County AA Finals ! pic.twitter.com/RtJrqe4y4p — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 31, 2019 With a trip to the Suffolk AA Finals on the line, Ward Melville LHP Max Nielsen delivered the game of his life. The UCONN-commit struck out a school-record 18 batters in an 8-0 victory over West Islip to advance to host No. 3 Connetquot in a best-of-three series beginning tomorrow. After allowing the first two batters to reach base in the top of the first, a caught stealing and two strikeouts allowed him to escape unscathed. Facing 6’5″ RHP Anthony Cinquemani, the Ward Melville offense wasted no time. Matt Maurer doubled on a shallow pop up to left field, Ethan Farino was hit by a curveball and catcher Anthony ...
Suffolk AA Postseason Primer
May has been an exciting time for the local college baseball teams. We’ve been treated to some great conference tournaments and this past weekend was no exception. The only downside–if any–is that high school coverage has had to take a back seat to events like the Skyline Conference tournament, ECC Tournament and the East Regional. This has limited my time covering the local high school teams but today begins a clean slate–the postseason. There will be no shortage of compelling match ups this week. Additionally, it doesn’t appear weather will be a major factor this week (knock on wood). Remember last year the terrible downpour that caused the games to be suspended on Tuesday and cancel all of Wednesday. We don’t need that. I’m going to go over a fe...
Mike LaDonna Delivers Walk-Off Sac Fly In West Islip’s 13 Inning 5-4 Win
Final: West Islip 5, North Babylon 4 (13 Innings) WP: Brad Battaglini (5 IP, 1 R) Mike LaDonna: Wall-off sac fly pic.twitter.com/ogXGg6gd4Q — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 24, 2019 With their backs firmly against the wall in the seventh and 13th innings, West Islip did what only they are comfortable doing and that’s battling back from behind. They came back from deficits of 3-0 and 4-3 to win 5-4 in 13 innings against League 4 rival North Babylon. “We grinded today,” said winning pitcher Brad Battaglini. “We had a lot of opportunities and couldn’t really push a run across but we got the “W” today,’ he added. The reigning Suffolk AA Champs are comfortable with the uncomfortable and unflappable even in the stickiest of situations. ...
Predictions For Suffolk Class AA
The beautiful thing about traveling around to indoor facilities in the winter is that it gives me a chance to see how kids have evolved since last season. Since the Long Island Championship last June, players had additional opportunities to improve their game over the summer and increase their strength over the winter. I feel like with all that being said, I have a pretty good feeling as to who the top players and teams are across Long Island. Today, we will focus on Suffolk Class AA, where many of the top players in our region reside. From a scouting perspective, I’m looking forward to see how those select few players answer the bell and attempt to be this year’s version of Franklin Parra and Logan O’Hoppe on draft day. From a journalistic standpoint, I’m excited t...
Who Are The Top Remaining Uncommitted 2019s Available?
Randall Alejo, RHP, Pat-Med One theme that I have found common with Pat-Med players is that they are always wired a certain way. They are never fazed by the pressure spots, even when they are not necessary “supposed to be there”. Prime example: May 19, 2017, Pat-Med is ranked No. 14 and playing against No. 3 Hills East. It’s not just the ranking, but the fact that they were playing on the road and facing Vanderbilt-commit and Axcess Baseball‘s No. 1 ranked prospect on Long Island, Matt Hogan. Alejo outpitched the future Carl Yastrzemski Award winner and shocked the baseball community with a huge upset. Now a senior and named to our Pre-Season All-Long Island list with his 88 MPH fastball, Alejo has a chance to be an All-County pitcher. For a contemporary comparison,...
West Islip Has Become the Gold Standard for Suffolk County Programs
When it comes to the Mount Rushmore of Long Island baseball, there is no doubt that West Islip is firmly entrenched with their recent run of success. Head Coach Shawn Rush has been at the helm for nine years and has won Suffolk County Class AA Championships in 2014, 2016 and 2018. Additionally, they have 14 graduates currently on college rosters and one active player in the Major Leagues (Nick Tropeano). It’s been a run that only Massapequa can trump. Speaking of them, it was those Chiefs of Massapequa that finally ended West Islip’s 21-game win streak that culminated with winning the Class AA title over Eastport-South Manor. It was a battle of two red-hot teams but it was Massapequa that came out on top, avenging the 2014 Long Island Championship in which West Islip was victor...
Frank Valentino Signs Pro Contract
Frank Valentino (NYIT ’17) has extended his baseball career for at least another season as he signed a pro contract with the Florence Freedom of the Frontier League. The 23-year-old RHP attended West Islip HS and graduated in 2013. Last season, he played with the Vallejo Admirals in the Pacific Association, going 5-8 with 5.05 ERA and striking out 92 in 98 innings in 16 starts. The 6’3″ RHP has a low-to-mid 90s fastball which helped him dominate at Suffolk CC before transferring to NYIT and leading the rotation for two seasons along with fellow RHPs Elias Martinez and Matt Diaz. During his senior year, he suffered from some extremely difficult luck. His seasons defied all logic by going winless at 0-9, despite pitching two complete games and pitching deep into every game....
Preview for the Suffolk County Class AA Semifinals
This week the stage is set for the Suffolk County Class AA semifinals. Due to the suspended game on Friday between No. 2 Ward Melville-No. 9 Smithtown East, they will play tomorrow (weather pending) for the chance to play No. 4 West Islip on Tuesday in the first game of a best-of-three series. Also on Tuesday, No. 2 Commack will square off with No. 13 Pat-Med. Ward Melville vs Smithtown East: What to Expect: These teams have met twice so far, with Smithtown East winning last Wednesday, while Ward Melville won Friday/Saturday’s suspended game. Ward Melville will most likely throw ace Ben Brown, who has been tremendous all season, and Smithtown East will either throw Doug Goodwin or Nick Harvey. Both teams are well-disciplined, play great defense and can win close games. Ward Melville...
