2012 Diamond Notes

Baseball fans everywhere are aware of Mike Trout, the Angels' sensational defensive outfielder who was the unanimous choice for American League Rookie of the Year. The 21 year old New Jersey native was the first player in major league history with at least 30 home runs, 125 runs and 45 stolen bases in a season.

He led the majors with 129 runs and 49 steals as he joined Ted Williams, Mel Ott, and Alex Rodriquez as the only players to hit .320 or higher with 30 or more home runs in a season they started as a 20 year old.

Baseball fans may not know that his father Jeff Trout was an outstanding second baseman for the ACBL champion Allentown Wings in 1982. "Trouty" established seasonal hits and runs records which still stand thirty years later. Trout hit .481 in 40 games with 57 runs and 77 hits which included twelve doubles, six triples, ten home runs and 44 RBIs. Amazingly he only struck out ten times in 160 at bats and stole 13 bases also.

In 1983 he was drafted in the fifth round by the Minnesota Twins out of the University of Delaware. Jeff played four seasons in the Twins organization with the last three seasons at AA Orlando. In 1986 he hit .326 and after the season he returned to Millville, NJ to teach history and raise a family.

Photo courtesy of Angels Baseball

Darin Gorski (Quakertown, 2007; Kutztown,2008) was recently added to the New York Mets 40-man roster.

The 6-4 LHP went 9-8 with a 4.00 ERA in 24 starts for Binghamton (AA) this summer. In 2011 he was the Mets Organizational Player of the Year after going 11-3 with a 2.08 ERA for St. Lucie (High A). He was a seventh round pick of the Mets in the 2009 draft and will join former Kutztown Rockie Zach Lutz on the Mets roster.

Eric Smith (Stamford, 2007) was added to the Arizona roster also. The 6-2 RHP was a second round pick of the Diamondbacks in 2009.

By Greg Diener (photos by Jeff Noreman)

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. – Heading into the ACBL playoffs, most people would have written off the North Jersey Eagles, who finished the regular season under .500 but still managed to grab the third seed in the Wolff Division playoffs. That didn’t stop the Eagles from overcoming the odds, and now they can head back to North Jersey as champions of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League, having defeated the New York Atlantics, champions of the ACBL Kaiser Division, by a final score of 3-2 at Charles B. Wang Athletic Complex.

North Jersey, which had never been in the playoffs in their four-year history prior to this season, earned their first-ever playoff berth near the end of the regular season. It overcame 1-0 series deficits against rivals Quakertown and Trenton to claim the Wolff Division crown. The Eagles continued their Cinderella run to the ACBL title defeating the Hamptons Division champ Southampton 4-3 before advancing to knock off the Atlantics. North Jersey’s last five victories came by one run.


The Eagles got all the offensive production they needed in the top of the fifth inning, when Chris Smith (Wagner) laced a single down the third base line for North Jersey’s first hit of the game. The hit by Smith ended a streak of 13 straight retired batters by New York starter Kevin Chenicek (LIU Post) to start the game.

Following a walk to Greg Smith (Rollins), the Eagles got the first run of the game on an RBI single by Jamie Wollerman (Southern New Hampshire). Kenneth Kirshner (St. Thomas Aquinas) and Stanley Paul (Connecticut) drove in the other two runs in the inning to give the Eagles a three-run lead. The Atlantics attempted to rally in the bottom half of the inning, when Mike Perrone (Vassar) ripped a double to right field that was fielded off the wall by the Eagles’ Tyler McCarthy (George Washington). McCarthy made an incredible throw to the cutoff man, who threw out Dan Roland (St. John’s) at the plate to keep the score at 3-0.

The Atlantics scored their first run in the game on a solo home run from Mike Russo (St. Thomas Aquinas) in the bottom of the seventh. Chris Kalousdian (Manhattan) hit a double to right center with two out that cut the score to 3-2.

Danny O’Neill (Rutgers) retired the Atlantics 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth to earn the save and clinch the ACBL championship for North Jersey. North Jersey starting pitcher Joey Gandolfo (Columbia) pitched the first four innings only allowing three hits with seven strikeouts.

The Eagles bullpen took over as Kevin Lee (Rhode Island) pitched a scoreless fifth inning, earning the win, while Pat Butler (Connecticut) and O’Neill pitched two innings each. For New York, Chenicek went the distance in the loss giving up three runs and five hits along with eight strikeouts with one walk.

The ACBL championship returned the Wolff Division for the first time since 2008. The Hampton Division captured the 2009 and 2010 crowns, while the Staten Island Tide chalked one up for the Kaiser Division last summer.

By Jeff Noreman (photos by Jeff Noreman)

Offensively, the Tide was quiet for much of game at Richmond County. But in the eighth inning, they smacked back with a wave of seven runs and built a four run lead. They made that lead stick and won by the score of 8-4 in the first game of the Championship Series of the Kaiser Division.

The Atlantics cruised through seven innings, building up a 4-1 lead. Up to then, they had seven hits against Tide starter Robert Maguire (Sacred Heart), several Tide errors made all of those runs unearned. Maguire pitched 6 2/3 innings, and then Richard Anderson (College of Staten Island) took over and held the Atlantics scoreless.

The Tide began rolling in their half of the eight. They began the inning with a Matt Troisi (Manhattan) single. After Juan Bueno (Manhattan) popped out to the catcher, Cliff Brantley (Wagner) reached on an error. Shane Alvarez (Kean) singled to left, loading the bases for Chris Selden (Seton Hall) who singled to center and drove in two runs. Atlantics starter Max Schonfied (Molloy) got Gabby Molina (Keystone) to ground to third without the runners advancing. But the next batter Richard Mejia (Adelphi) doubled in the two runners and the Tide took the lead for good.

"Rich Mejia came through with the big hit," said manager Tommy Weber. "He’s been clutch all season long. Outstanding hitter, kid out of Adelphi that’s going to have an outstanding future."

"I got it off the end a little bit, so I thought he was going to catch it, actually," said Mejia of his eight inning double to left center. I got lucky, it found a gap in a good spot. The ball carried, so it was good." Mejia ended the day 3-for-4 with two RBI’s and two runs scored.

"We’ve been through this with these guys so many times," said Selden about the eight inning comeback. "It’s kind of the way our team is this year. We’re kind of relaxed. We don’t press, we don’t get excited where we have to score. It was the bottom of the eight and we still had another half inning to score."

"Chris Selden has been, in my opinion, the best player in the league all year," said Weber. "Once again, came through with a huge base hit in that last inning. He had a couple of miscues (at third base), so it was really good to see him make up for it with a big base hit."

The series is a best of three and continues today, Thursday August 2, at the Richmond Hill Youth Complex, 1350 Travis Avenue in Staten Island (directions are available here). Admission, as usual, is free.

With one swing of the bat, Trenton slugger Matt Moceri (Davis & Elkins) put his team ahead by a pair of runs in the first inning of Thursday’s Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League All-Star Game at Brooklyn’s MCU Park. Little did he or anyone know that the two-run single would be all the offense needed for the Wolff/Kaiser Division team, which rode its pitching to a 2-1 victory over the Hampton Division squad.

Steve Goldstein (Long Island / Stony Brook) legged out a single to lead off the first inning, and Corey Jensen (Lehigh Valley / Whittier) followed with a double down the left field line. After Hampton starter Paul Paez (Southampton / Rio Hondo JC) struck out Chris Selden (Staten Island / Seton Hall), Moceri stepped in and dropped a single over the shortstop's head to drive in two.

It was a pitcher’s duel from there, with impressive innings logged by individuals from both sides. No more scoring occurred until the ninth when the Hampton team slashed the deficit in half courtesy of an RBI fielder’s choice by Rob Fonseca (Southampton / Northeastern).

However, with runners at the corners and two outs, Dashon Jones (Staten Island/Union CC) reached back and zipped a pitch in for a called strike three to end the game.

Check back tomorrow for Jeff Noreman's complete rundown of the game.

By John Vittas

North Jersey’s Jamie Wollerman singled in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh to beat the Jersey Pilots, 10-9 at Overpeck Park in Ridgefield Park, N.J Tuesday.

"I wanted to stay simple, stay short and try to hit the ball hard into the outfield to send the team home with the win," Wollerman said.

Wollerman (Southern New Hampshire) scored Ryan Quinn on a line drive to right over a drawn-in infield. Quinn (Cincinnati) began the rally when he singled and stole third base off Pilots’ righty Mark Palumbo (Binghamton), which set up the game-winning play.

"I know Mark very well," Quinn said. "I played with him through high school. He has a high leg kick, so once he went to it, I knew I had third."

Quinn also stole third base in the ninth inning off Palumbo to set up a potential walk-off that was nixed on a diving catch by Pilots’ right fielder Joe O’Connor (Kean). O’Connor’s sensational grab temporarily saved the game for Jersey and robbed Johnny Gandolfo (Marshall) of his second extra-innings, game-winning base hit against the Pilots this year.

The Eagles did tie up the game in the bottom of the ninth against Palumbo, however. The inning started with a great running catch by the Pilots’ centerfielder Joe D’Annunzio (Rutgers), who crashed into the wall to preserve the lead. But Kyle Grimm (Seton Hall) drove in Stanley Paul (UConn) with a one-out single later in the inning to tie the game at nine. Palumbo answered by striking out Chris Smith (Wagner), intentionally walking Wollerman, and then getting the great catch by O’Connor to send the game to extras.

The Eagles led for the majority of the night until the Pilots took the lead in the eighth on a two-run double from DH Zach Passerelle (Gloucester CC). Passerelle’s double came on the first pitch from Eagles’ closer Rich Anastasi (Fordham).

"That kid’s a great hitter," Anastasi said. "He sat on a first pitch slider. I thought he would take it for a strike. I thought it was a pretty good pitch but he stayed on it and hit it to left and after that I had to bear down and make sure it didn’t get any worse from there."

Anastasi went on to retire the next eleven Pilots hitters, striking out nine of them to earn the win and not allow the Pilots to even sniff the bases.

"There’s pressure. Everyone on the team comes here every day and tries to win and play as well as they can," Anastasi added. "I just wanted to keep them in the game. I didn’t think about the strikeouts, I was just trying to make pitches in quality spots and get outs. Whenever you put up ten runs, you have to win."

Stanley Paul led the Eagles’ charge, going deep twice. Paul totaled four hits, three RBIs, a stolen base, three runs scored, earning the Goodman’s Deli Player of the Game honors.

"I’ve just been sticking with my approach and staying within myself to get a good pitch to hit," Paul said. "The league has really good pitching and competition. I’m really just trying to work hard and see good pitches."

Paul’s home runs came early in the game. He set the tone by leading off the first inning with a shot off Pilots’ starter Steve Melchiorre (Rowan), giving his team the 1-0 lead. Paul’s second tater came in the fifth off reliever Max Schmardel (Wagner), this one a two-run shot that gave North Jersey a three-run advantage.

"They definitely try and pitch me backwards," Paul said. "I just stay within myself and look for a good pitch to hit. It’s a grueling season. We’re going to see them again, and it definitely helps being able to recognize the pitches."

Six home runs were struck Tuesday night, with each team hitting three. Wollerman hit the other for North Jersey off Melchiorre in the third.

"Our hitters battled all night. We had a ton of great at bats," said Wollerman. "We never gave up and the pitchers helped us and did a great job."

Six Eagles hitters had multiple hit nights, with Paul and Quinn combining for seven of the team’s 17 base knocks. The Pilots combined for nine runs on ten hits of their own, with Passerelle, D’Annunzio and John Elson (Lehigh) picking up two each.

Melchiorre was tagged for six runs on seven hits, while striking out half a dozen in his three innings. Tuesday was Melchiorre’s first start in 2012, after serving as the ace of the Pilots staff last year.

Nate Newhall (Sacred Heart) started on the mound for North Jersey. After two hitless innings to begin the night, Newhall allowed five runs on two swings in the third, giving up home runs to Pilots’ catcher Mike Zavala (Rutgers) and second baseman Rob Bernardo (Queen’s College).

Chris Carroll (Seton Hall) got the Eagles out of two bases loaded jams in the fourth and fifth, but eventually allowed two runs in his two and one third innings. After a leadoff single to D’Annunzio in the sixth, the Rutgers outfielder stole two bases and scored on a wild pitch to cut the Eagles lead to 8-6. Carroll also allowed a solo home run to Brandon Gonnella (Towson) to begin the seventh, ending his night.

Jonathan Reich (Fordham) came in and retired the first four Pilots he faced before loading the bases on two walks and hitting O’Connor. At that point, Reich was relieved by his spring teammate Anastasi, who allowed the big double to Passerelle.

Schmardel, Greg Baruka (Towson) and Carlos Ruiz (Rowan) combined to pitch three scoreless innings for Jersey from the sixth to the eighth, allowing the Pilots to come back and take the lead.

But it was Grimm’s ninth inning single past a diving Elson at third, Quinn’s stolen bases and Wollerman’s single in the eleventh that ultimately got the Eagles the win, putting them back at .500 for the year.

"Our team all together is coming out here and playing hard," Quinn said. "I think we have one of the best offenses in the league. Our kids can swing it. Our pitchers put us in good positions. Usually we don’t have to put up ten runs to win the ball game. Usually we can win with four or five. That’s a good thing."

The 12 wins the Eagles have experience in 2012 match their win total from last year, a season where they went 12-24. The turnaround has garnered optimism amongst the Eagles’ clubhouse.

"It shows that we have a great group of guys," Stanley Paul said. "From the coaching staff to our GM, we just keep our heads up and never give up."

By Associated Press

Former Lehigh Valley Catz standout, Drew Sutton smacked a one-out solo homer in the bottom of the ninth and propelled the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-7 win over the Houston Astros.

Sutton was acquired via waivers last week, Sutton homered for the first time since Oct. 3, 2010.

Click here to read the entire article

By John Vittas

The Trenton Generals blew out the Jersey Pilots 18-1 Sunday night in Berkeley Heights, N.J., regaining sole possession of first place in the ACBL’s Wolff Division.

The offensive onslaught began early for Trenton, roughing up the Pilots’ starter Greg Baruka (Towson) for seven runs on six hits in just an inning and a third. Baruka also walked three and hit two in his least impressive outing of the year.

Alex Mottle (Delaware) was Baruka’s nemesis, taking Baruka deep twice in as many innings. Both shots drove home three runs and gave the Generals a quick 6-0 lead.

"I was just looking for fastballs both at bats," Mottle said. "First one he threw a slider, second one he threw a fastball but I just stay with the same approach every time."

Mottle (Delaware) at just five feet ten inches tall, is not usually a home run threat, but was moved into the three-spot in the Generals’ batting order for Sunday’s game.

"It definitely felt good to break out. I’m not usually a home run hitter," said Mottle. "I just put good swings on it and with the smaller field, I got it out without even getting it that high in the air."

Matt Moceri (Davis & Elkins) drove in one more in the second with a single off Pilots’ reliever Pat Lia (UMass). The hit scored Eric Forth (East Stroudsburg), which was the final run charged to Baruka.

Lia, Mike Cranston (Adelphi) and Dashon Jones (Union CC) combined to throw four scoreless innings, before Jones walked in a run in the seventh.

Christian Spurr (Ramapo) drove in the only Pilots’ run in the fourth, scoring Mike Zavala (Rutgers), who also singled.

Josh Jensen (William Paterson) started for the Generals and dominated the Pilots. He went seven innings, allowing just that one run on four hits, walking four and hitting one. Jensen struck out eight, throwing 115 pitches.

"I feel great after a win like that, it doesn’t matter how many pitches I throw," Jensen said. "It’s so much easier to pitch with a big lead. You can just keep throwing strikes and you know they’re going to be swinging so it’s a lot of fun.

Jensen’s performance came on the heels of a long doubleheader the Generals endured the day before.

"A game like this helps our pitching," Mottle added. "Josh went most of the game, which really helped our bullpen after yesterday in Staten Island when the whole second game was pieced together. We really needed someone to eat innings."

Sunday night belonged to the Generals offense, which put up nine runs in the final two innings against Pilots’ righty Karl Fiske (Brookdale CC).

Scott Kelly (TCNJ) went yard off Fiske in the ninth, driving in three runs to blow it open, 18-1.

"When you have pitching like Josh had tonight, it really keeps you in tune with the game and everyone keeps hitting and it just rubs off," Kelly said. "When everyone starts hitting, you realize you have that much more confidence and motivation to provide for your team."

Kelly reached base six times in the game. He went 3-4 with five RBIs, three runs scored, two walks and was hit by a pitch. Eric Forth, Moceri, Rich McLaughlin (Mercer CC), Ian Moyer (Mercer CC) and Ryan Gibbons (William Paterson) all reached base at least three times, as the Generals’ hitters came to the plate six or seven times each.

The Generals’ win comes after losing a heartbreaker on the very same Snyder Field three days earlier. Trenton now evens the season series with the Pilots at 1-1-1 and regains sole possession of first place.

"This is what our offense can do," Kelly said. "This is what we’ve been waiting for all year. Today showed what a potent offense we have. We knew from the start that this was the type of offense that we had."

By John Vittas

Kyle Grimm drove in four and reached base four times as the Eagles beat the Jersey Pilots 11-2 in game two of a doubleheader Wednesday night in Ridgefield Park, N.J.

Grimm homered twice and drove in a run on each of his three hits.

"It feels good that we bounced back after game one," Grimm said. "Coach gave us a really good speech and you saw the results."

The Pilots won game one of the doubleheader, 7-4, but the Eagles rebounded with 11 runs on 14 hits in just six innings in game two.

Grimm’s two-run home run in the first inning got the Eagles going. They added three more in the second on a sacrifice fly by Stanley Paul (UConn), an RBI double by Ryan Quinn (Cincinnati) and a run-scoring single by Grimm.

The first five Eagles’ runs were scored against the starter, Max Schmardel (Wagner), who went three innings, giving up eight hits and striking out one over than span.

Grimm went yard for the second time against Karl Fiske (Brookdale CC) in the fourth. Johnny Gandolfo (Marshall) and Danny O’Neill (Rutgers) added RBI singles later in the inning against Fiske to make it 8-2 Eagles. O’Neill is the usual ace of the pitching staff, and was in the DH spot for Wednesday’s nightcap, going 2-3 at the plate.

Ryan Casey (Wagner) started for the Eagles, pitching five innings and allowing just two runs on six hits, striking out three, walking one and hitting two.

"The Pilots have been playing well all year. I just had to buckle down and not try and do too much and get the win," Casey said. "When you start seeing kids over and over, you get to start knowing hitters and their habits. Against the good hitters, I tried to stay away and keep them off-balanced."

The final three Eagles runs were scored in the final sixth inning. The rally started when Pilots’ shortstop John Brucker (Rutgers) made an error and Pilots pitcher Carlos Ruiz (Rowan) walked three of the next five batters. Ken Kirschner (Siena) then drove in two on a single to make it 11-2.

But what seemed like a typical blowout took a turn when Stanley Paul stroked a single to centerfield. Pilots’ centerfielder Aaron Vogt (Heartland CC) fired a throw to the plate in an attempt to throw out Eagles’ catcher Ray McCourt (Molloy) at the plate. Just before the throw reached the plate, Overpeck Park went black, as the lights failed, and the play and final score ended in question.

With no explanation for the failure and no apparent solution, the game was called in the sixth. With no visual proof that McCourt reached home safely, the score remained 11-2.

Victorious, the Eagles jump back over .500 to 10-9 after their 6-game win streak was snapped in game one of Wednesday’s doubleheader.

Prior to 2012, the Eagles had never beaten the Jersey Pilots. Wednesday was the second time that has occurred this year, with the season series now even at two.

Optimism now surrounds the Eagles team, as they search for their first winning season in the franchise’s four-year history.

"By doing this, I think it shows that we can take the league," shortstop Kyle Grimm said. "We can probably win first place. Who knows what can happen. It’s good to see we can bounce back after a loss like that and come out and put up eleven runs."

"This is my second year playing for the North Jersey Eagles and the past couple years we’ve been struggling," Ryan Casey attests. "We really stepped it up a notch after a big recruiting year. It’s a whole new team except for three or four of us. We started the year a little slow but now we are starting to gel."

The Eagles can now sit on their winning record until Sunday, when they travel to Quakertown to take on a hot Blazers team in a doubleheader.

By John Vittas

The Jersey Pilots scored ten runs in the third inning and five more in the eighth to beat the Lehigh Valley Catz 16-6 Sunday night at Snyder Field in Berkeley Heights, N.J.

The win snaps the Pilots’ three-game losing streak, their longest of the year.

"It was a really important win," Pilots’ second baseman Rob Bernardo said. "We needed this after losing three games. Last year, I don’t think we ever lost three games in a row. Before the game, Coach Davis told us that we needed to up the focus and we did in that third inning."

Zach Passerelle led the 3rd-inning attack, hitting both a 2-run home run and 2-run double in the inning. The Pilots’ DH finished the game going 3-4 with a walk and two runs scored.

"I can’t say I’ve done that [4 RBIs on two hits in the same inning]. That was something new and pretty interesting for me. It was a great feeling," Passerelle said. "I have to give it up to the offensive guys for getting on base. The pitching did well tonight and everyone just had a real good game."

The Pilots scored 10 runs on eight hits and three walks in that long third inning that saw 13 men come to the plate.

All of the damage was charged to starting pitcher Jordan Smith (Lehigh), who was lifted with two outs in that miserable third inning. He had given up one run through his first two frames, and appeared to be settled in.

"Smith was rolling through the first two innings but he left a couple pitches up in that third," Passerelle said. "It was a good job by him early but credit to our guys for making an adjustment the second time through."

Dashon Jones (Union CC) started the game for Jersey and went five strong innings, allowing just two runs on four hits while striking out and walking three.

"It feels good. This is my field and I own this field," informed Jones. "I need to give it up to my team. We played hard."

One of the runs came on a solo homer from Catz’ catcher Tyler Boyd (Seton Hall). Boyd also scored the other run on a sacrifice fly from Tyler Urps (Yavapai).

Rob Bernardo (Queen’s College) complemented Passerelle’s performance with three hits of his own. He scored twice and drove in a run as well.

"I’ve been putting in a little extra work with my father," Bernardo said. "After work, he’ll come and throw me some balls and work on some things and I’m feeling better and seeing the ball."

Bernardo also had three hits last Saturday against the Catz, all doubles.

Cory Brown (Brookdale CC), Carlos Ruiz (Rowan) and Stephen Nappe (Montclair St.) combined to finish off the final four innings, allowing four runs. Nappe started the game at first base and came in to chew up an inning on the mound for a Pilots team that has four games in the next four days. Brown gave up three earned runs over two and one third innings, allowing four hits and a walk, including a 2-run blast by Brian Mauro (DeSales).

Anthony Elia (Seton Hall) and Josh Prevost went four and a third scoreless for Lehigh Valley, before Westyn Baylor (Radford) gave up five in the eighth. Urps, the second baseman, got Baylor through the eighth, coming in to get the final out.

Aaron Vogt (Heartland CC) reached base four times and scored three runs, going 2-3 on the night. John Elson (Lehigh) reached base three times and had a bases clearing double in the eighth.

The Pilots will head to Trenton to play the first place Generals for the first team this season Monday. First pitch is scheduled for 5p.m. The Catz will head to Allentown to take on the Railers Tuesday.

By John Vittas

Saturday’s 7-inning slugfest included a combined 21 runs on 25 hits, as the Blazers were able to escape with a one-run win over the Jersey Pilots at Memorial Park in Quakertown.

Blazers’ reliever Jim McDade (Millersville) earned the save by getting Pilots’ second baseman Rob Bernardo (Queen’s College) to ground into a double play with the bases loaded to end the game.

"I didn’t have much time to warm up but I knew coming in with the bases loaded I had to get a double play to get out of it as quick as possible," McDade said.

The Blazers’ bats accounted for 11 runs on 17 hits in just six innings. Dylan Tice (IUPUI) and Tyler Brong (Lehigh) had three hits apiece, while Ryan Hartley (Delaware) went 4-4 with a double, two runs scored and 2 RBIs. Brong and Tice also scored twice, doubling and driving in at least a run each to knock off the division’s second best team.

"We don’t necessarily look at the standings," Hartley said. "We just come out here and play the same game every time. I guess we were just seeing the ball well today and they left some balls over the plate for us."

Greg Guers (USC-Upstate), Dave McInerney (Cincinnati) and Ryan Pater (Saint Joseph’s) also had two hits each.

"We have a good fan base," Guers said. "There was a nice crowd out today so it was a good day for baseball. We all live closer so it’s just more comfortable."

Eight of the 11 Blazers runs came against Pilots’ ace J.R. Seader (Kutztown), who lost for the first time this season, falling to 3-1. Seader was facing the Blazers for the second time, winning the first meeting in New Jersey, 3-2.

"It’s a lot easier when you know what he throws and what his velocity is," Guers added. "Whatever he did against us last time, he’s probably going to do again, so we adjusted and it worked."

Seader was only on the mound for six of the eight runs he allowed.

Karl Fiske (Brookdale CC) came in for Seader in the fifth and gave up two consecutive singles, allowing both of Seader’s runners to score.

Fiske allowed three runs of his own in the sixth inning on five more hits.

Jerry Mulderig (Rider) started for Quakertown, getting knocked out after allowing back-to-back doubles to Joe O’Connor (Kean) and Stephen Nappe (Montclair St.) in the third. Mulderig was charged with five runs, three of them earned in only two and one third innings. He struck out the first two batters of the game and failed to retire another on strikes for the remainder of his outing, while also walking two.

Josh Mellon (Millersville) earned the win Saturday, pitching four innings in relief. Before the fateful seventh inning, Mellon had allowed just one hit in his first three and two thirds, a solo home run to Nappe.

In the seventh, Mellon allowed three singles and two walks, while only getting one out before being lifted for his Millersville teammate, Jim McDade.

"I haven’t stretched much this year and my pitch count got up there on a pretty hot day so it kind of fell apart," Mellon explained. McDade proceeded to walk John Elson (Lehigh) and hit the leadoff hitter Aaron Vogt (Heartland CC), before getting the fateful groundball from Bernardo to end the game.

"It was all fastballs to the last hitter [Bernardo]," said McDade. "Ravel and Tice made a nice double play to end it."

"I knew Jim would get it done," said Mellon. "He’s pretty consistent it was just a matter of time and he finished it."

The Blazers held on to improve to 8-6, moving to within a half game of the 9-6 Pilots for second place in the ACBL’s Wolff Division.

By John Vittas

The North Jersey Eagles rallied for two runs in the top of the tenth to knock off the Jersey Pilots, 6-4, Thursday night at Snyder Field in Berkeley Heights, N.J.

Johnny Gandolfo (Marshall) drove in Chris Smith (Wagner) with a single to right field, as the Eagles finally broke through against Pilots’ reliever Greg Baruka to earn his team their sixth win of the year.

"He’s a great pitcher. Hats off to him," Gandolfo said. "I was on him, I just didn’t let the ball travel enough. I like to be in those situations where the game is on the line and I can pick my teammates up. I got a fastball on the outside corner and just drove it the other way."

Chris Bonti (Wesleyan) added an insurance run by driving in Gandolfo later in the inning off J.R. Seader (Kutztown), who came in for Baruka.

Jonathan Reich (Fordham) was the winning pitcher, going three and two thirds scoreless innings to seal the win. Reich struck out two in his perfect bottom of the tenth.

"My guys scored a couple runs for me," said Reich. "I definitely got the energy from these guys. I was able to throw a little harder in the last inning because I felt that we were coming to the end and we had to get the win there. It was a big win for us."

Reich relieved Chris Carroll (Seton Hall), who hit two batters in a row in the seventh. Reich retired Chris Berry (Franklin Pierce) and Joe D’Annunzio (Rutgers) to get the Eagles out of the jam.

Clutch pitching was a theme for the Eagles, as they stranded 14 Pilots runners.

"When it comes down to the wire, you’ve got to find something extra," starting pitcher Brian Drapeau said. "You’ve got to dig down and find it within yourself. With runners on, it’s no prisoners from that point. You just have to bear down and do your job because everyone is counting on you."

Drapeau allowed one earned run over four and one third innings. He stranded six of those 14 Pilots’ runners. Drapeau pitched against the Pilots on June 6, allowing four runs in two innings of relief. He was much more effective in the starting role Thursday.

"We’ve been working with Doug Sinella, our pitching coach the past few weeks. Doug’s a smart guy and he just helped us work on keeping the ball down in the zone," Drapeau said. "Last game I was up and wasn’t finishing my pitches so I made an adjustment and put the work in to make sure I prepared better. I kept the ball down so the best they could do was beat it in the dirt."

The big inning for the Eagles was the fifth. In a scoreless ballgame, they scored four runs off Pilots reliever Max Schmardel (Wagner). Schmardel allowed five hits, walked two and was unable to get out of the inning. Baruka got Gandolfo to pop up to end the frame, before eventually allowing the deciding runs in the tenth.

Mike Cranston (Adelphi) started for the Pilots, and pitched four shutout innings, allowing only two hits and one walk, while striking out two.

Bonti joins teammates Stanley Paul (UConn) and Tyler McCarthy (George Washington) as the three Eagles with multiple hits. Paul also drove in two on a single against Schmardel.

"This game says a lot about our heart and character," Reich remarked. "They killed us earlier in the year and we just got a little revenge. We’re starting to gel and I think we are going to be a good team going forward."

The Eagles are now on a 3-game winning streak, pulling to within four games of first place after beating the Pilots, who were tied for the division lead entering Thursday. They will be in action next on Saturday, hosting a doubleheader with the Lehigh Valley Catz.

"I just love this game so much," Gandolfo said. "Just trying to get as far as I can, I want to pick these guys up. I don’t want to get all the credit because I love these guys and we all fight really hard and are molding together as a team and a unit."

By John Vittas

The Pilots pitching staff combined to allow two runs on 12 hits in 16 innings Saturday in Easton, P.A., sweeping a doubleheader from the Lehigh Valley Catz.

"It was definitely nice coming here for one day and getting two wins," starting pitcher Greg Baruka said.

Baruka (Towson) went four innings in game two, allowing just one run on two hits. Greg Fazio (Rider) and Brian Ernst (East Stroudsburg) both singled off Baruka in the 4th inning to cut the Pilots lead to 4-1, which was the final score.

"I had to sit out this season [due to NCAA transfer rules] so I had to work my way back with just a couple innings here and there," Baruka said. "It was fun to get out there as a starter. The adrenaline really took over."

The only adversity Baruka faced through the first three innings was a broken bat that struck him on the back of the leg. The putout was made by Pilots’ second baseman Rob Bernardo (Queen’s College), but the coaching staff’s attention quickly turned to Baruka.

"It was tough getting hit with the bat in the first inning, but there was no way I was coming out," Baruka said.

Not only did Baruka stay in the game, he needed just 54 pitches to get through his four innings to earn the victory.

The Pilots scored all four runs in the first two innings off Catz’ starter Ryan Lubreski (UMass).

After Lubreski allowed a double to leadoff hitter Brandon Gonnella (Towson) and walked Bernardo, Lehigh Valley shortstop Stephen Rogers (Trinity) made two consecutive throwing errors, each allowing a run to score. Both throwing mistakes were in the dirt, which first baseman Ty Neuhaus (Yavapai) could not handle. After a run-scoring groundout from Stephen Nappe (Montclair St.), the Pilots headed to the field for the first time with a 3-0 lead.

"You got to love getting runs early because you can be a little more daring," Baruka said. "Not only did we get one, we got three. You can definitely challenge batters a lot more."

Bernardo drove in the second inning run on a groundball that Aaron Vogt (Heartland CC) beat out at the plate. Vogt had reached on a single and stole second.

Lubreski shut out the Pilots for the next four innings, before Conor Krauss (Seton Hall) got through a scoreless seventh.

Dashon Jones (Union CC) pitched a hitless bottom of the seventh to pick up his first save of the season.

"Saving is my thing, so there was no pressure for me," Jones said. "I just had to come in, throw strikes and get three outs to go home." Karl Fiske (Brookdale CC) and Kevin Luna (Union City H.S.) each got out of trouble during their scoreless innings of relief. Jones, Fiske and Luna all pitched in Friday’s doubleheader in Allentown as well.

The Pilots will return home to New Jersey Sunday to play another doubleheader with the Allentown Railers, which marks their sixth and seventh games played in the past four days. With a pitching staff belittled by injuries and enduring a harsh schedule, healthy and rested pitching will be at a premium on Sunday.

"Tomorrow, I’ll be ready to come out again," Jones said. "One, two innings out of the bullpen, whatever coach needs, I’ll be ready."

By John Vittas

Brandon Shimo pitched a complete game as the Railers won their first game in team history, beating the Jersey Pilots 7-1 Friday afternoon at ECTB Stadium in Allentown, PA.

Shimo, who was making his season debut for the Railers, pitched all seven innings, allowing just one run on six hits and two walks. He struck out three to earn the win.

"I didn’t really know what to expect," Shimo said. "All I knew was that I was coming in with a bunch of guys I never met before. All I knew was I was going to pitch like it was any other teammates and play to win the game like I always do."

Shimo (Kutztown) allowed a single to the Pilots’ centerfielder Joe D’Annunzio (Rutgers) to begin the game. D’Annunzio stole a base and came around to score on a wild pitch. Unfazed by the early speed of D’Annunzio, Shimo did not allow a run over the next six innings.

"From my experience of giving up many runs in my career, I just stayed calm and collected," said Shimo. "I knew one run wasn’t going to win the game for them so I just tried to keep pitching my game and do what I do best, knowing my team would back me up."

Shimo appeared to get stronger as the game went along, allowing just one man to reach in the final two innings.

"I noticed my velocity went down a little bit but I was able to place my off-speed pitches better," he said. "As I got through the game, all my pitches seemed to develop a little better. I was able to settle in after the first two innings and after that, it all seemed like I was in a rhythm."

The first time Allentown hosted the Pilots on June 1, the Pilots scored 13 runs, blowing out the Railers and ruining their inaugural game.

At the time, Shimo was not even a glimmer in the minds of the Railers. Two weeks later, with the Railers 0-5 and still looking for their first win, Shimo delivered.

"The fact that I don’t have the highest velocity, I need to use every advantage that I have," said Shimo. "What makes a good hitter is a hitter who knows what’s going to be coming in a certain count. I like to mix it up and use different arm angles to get that extra split second where he’s behind the ball."

Shimo’s teammates appreciated the performance.

"He threw a lot of strikes. You don’t want to walk people and make them hit it and he did a good job today and kept us in the game," said Allentown second baseman Jeff Birkofer.

Birkofer (Morehead St.) went 3-3 on Friday, scoring three runs and driving in two. Both RBIs came on his double in the 4th, giving the Railers their first lead, 3-1. Pitt outfielder Mike Douglas followed with another RBI double, scoring Birkofer.

The first four Railers runs came off Pilots’ starter Max Schmardel (Wagner), who was also making his first start of the season. Schmardel lasted four innings, giving up four runs on seven hits and being charged with the loss.

Karl Fiske (Brookdale CC) relieved Schmardel and pitched a scoreless 5th, before allowing a two-out, bases clearing double to Railers’ first baseman Robby Patete (East Stroudsburg), breaking the backs of the Pilots. Patete’s double cleared the glove of D’Annunzio by a slim margin and bounced off the centerfield wall, breaking the game open, 7-1, and propelling the Railers to their first ever win.

"We just tried to sit fastball and if we get our pitch early in the count, we’re going to be swinging," Birkofer said. "We talk in the dugout. We ask whether the ball’s moving in and out and just try and get a feel before you get up there and see if you can get your pitch."

With the win in the first game of the doubleheaders, the Railers improve to 1-5 and the Pilots fall to 5-3. The Pilots now begin their 7 game stretch in a 4 day span at 0-2, after losing to Staten Island Thursday night.

But Friday belonged to the Railers, who are encouraged by their first win in franchise history.

The group of guys behind supported me the entire game and made some amazing plays," Shimo said. "I think all together we are going to bring that record up to at least .500."

By John Vittas

Felix Lopez shutout the Pilots’ bats during his seven innings of work as the Staten Island Tide defeated the Jersey Pilots 3-0 Thursday at the Richmond Youth Complex in Staten Island, N.Y.

Lopez scattered seven hits, striking out seven and walking three. Thursday was Lopez’s first day on the mound for the Tide in 2012, as he did not disappoint.

"I did not expect to go seven," Lopez said. "I was just trying to go out there and throw strikes and get my team back in the dugout as soon as possible to give them a chance to hit."

Lopez allowed the leadoff man to reach in four of his innings, and permitted 11 men to reach base in total. He escaped a bases loaded jam in the 4th, getting Aaron Vogt (Heartland CC) to line out to centerfield. Lopez worked through trouble again in the 5th, when Pilots’ catcher Christopher Berry (Franklin Pierce) was gunned out at the plate by Tide left fielder Cliff Brantley (Wagner).

"To get out of the jams I just worked on keeping the ball down, hitting corners as much as possible and keeping it off the fat part of the bat," Lopez said.

Matt Mantione (Kean) pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth to earn the save. Mantione gave up just one hit, a double to Pilots’ shortstop John Elson (Lehigh). Mantione struck out two, including Berry to end the game.

The offensive attack for the Tide was lead by fist baseman Matthew Troisi (Manhattan), who went 3-4 and drove in one of the three Tide runs.

"We all were trying to get out early and hit the first pitch fastball," Troisi said. "He was throwing mostly first pitch fastballs so we were jumping on that."

All three Staten Island runs were scored in the second inning off of Pilots’ starter Cory Brown (Brookdale CC). After Juan Bueno (Monroe) and Tim McCormick (Florida Southern) lead off the inning with singles, Brown plunked the next two batters, allowing the first run of the game to score. The second run scored on a fielder’s choice before Troisi drove in the third and final run of the day.

Brown went five innings for Jersey, allowing those three runs on seven hits and walking one, striking out one as well. He fell to 1-1 on the year, after winning his first start of the season last Wednesday at the North Jersey Eagles.

Greg Baruka (Towson), J.R. Seader (Kutztown) and Rob Corsi (Rutgers) each pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the Pilots.

The Pilots managed nine hits off Tide pitching, with three players having multiple hit days. The most notable of which was Christian Spurr’s (Ramapo), who had two line drive doubles to the fence in his two at bats. In his subsequent two, he flew out deep to the warning track, as he had the number of Tide pitching all night.

Ian Glassman (UMBC) and Berry also had two single apiece.

With the loss, the Pilots fall to 5-2 and out of first place in the Wolff Division, half a game behind the Trenton Generals. The Tide improves to 2-3, maintaining their third place position in the Kaiser Division.

Staten Island will rest Friday before traveling to Long Island Saturday to play the Shamrocks in a two-game set. Jersey begins a string of three straight doubleheaders Friday when they head to Allentown to take on the Railers at ECTB Stadium at 5pm.

By John Vittas

Joe O’Connor’s 9th-inning single allowed the Jersey Pilots to walk off with their fourth win of the season Thursday night at Snyder Field in Berkeley Heights, N.J.

O’Connor’s walk-off hit came after the Pilots’ bullpen blew a four run lead in the top of the inning.

"I knew I had to come through. So I did whatever I could to see the ball well and put the bat on it," O’Connor said. "The kid was struggling so I was looking fastball and once I saw it I just let it loose."

O’Connor’s single scored Rutgers outfielder Joe D’Annunzio, who began the inning with a well-struck single off Tide right-hander James Farrington. D’Annunzio quickly stole second base before being moved to third on a groundout by Pilots’ second baseman Rob Bernardo.

"It’s another at bat. Nothing changes. You try and put a good swing on it and thank God, that time it happened for me," D’Annunzio said about the base hit. Regarding the stolen base, he said, "First pitch I wanted to see how his move to the plate was. Coach Davis gave me the sign, I saw the leg kick and took off."

D’Annunzio reached base in three of his five plate appearances Thursday, going 2-4 with a hit-by-pitch, two runs scored and two stolen bases. O’Connor was 2-4 with two stolen bases, a walk, sacrifice bunt and game-winning RBI, earning him the Delicious Heights Player of the Game honors.

Brandon Dolan of Marist College started the game for the Pilots, pitching five scoreless innings and allowing only one hit. He struck out six while walking just one. Dolan was in line for his second win of the season before the bullpen blew the lead. He has allowed just one run in 9 innings this season, striking out 14.

"I threw the ball hard and when I locate my changeup and curveball it makes my fastball that much better and that’s what kept them off-balance again today," Dolan said.

Dashon Jones, Karl Fiske and J.R. Seader each pitched a scoreless inning of relief to maintain the Jersey shutout into the 9th. Carlos Ruiz of Rowan University started the 9th and allowed five of the seven batters he faced to reach base. Ruiz struck out two, walked three and allowed a single to Chris Selden.

Greg Baruka replaced Ruiz, seeking his second save of the season. He hit the first two batters he faced to allow the tying runs to score. All four Tide runs in the 9th were unearned, due to an error by Pilots’ third baseman John Elson, which kept the Tide rally going.

Baruka ended up earning the win thanks to O’Connor’s heroics. With Thursday’s win, the Pilots improve to 4-1 on the early ACBL season, while the Tide fall to 1-1. The Pilots return to action Sunday afternoon at 4p.m. when they host a doubleheader against the Quakertown Blazers.

By John Vittas

The Jersey Pilots took advantage of the short fences at Overpeck County Park in Ridgefield Park, N.J. by hitting three home runs to beat the North Jersey Eagles, 11-4.

"It’s always in the back of your mind," Pilots’ first baseman Stephen Nappe said about the short fences. "You always come to the ballpark and see how far the fence is, but at the end of the day you’re not thinking about that. You’re just trying to drive runs in and see what you can do for the team."

Nappe (Montclair St.) began the home run parade for the Pilots with his two-run shot in the 4th inning against North Jersey’s Nate Newhall (Sacred Heart). His home run gave the Pilots their first lead of the game, a lead they would never relinquish.

The next hitter, Zach Passerelle (Gloucester CC), also went deep, pulling a homer to right field to make it 4-1 Pilots.

Jersey added three more runs against Newhall in the 6th, on an opposite-field home run by Joe O’Connor (Kean). It was O’Connor’s second three run home run of the year. The first one came in Allentown on June 1.

The Pilots scored two more on a two-run single by Passerelle in the 7th. In the 8th, they tacked on another two spot on back-to-back RBI hits from Joe D’Annunzio (Rutgers) and Kevin Luna (Brookdale CC). Both late-inning rallies came off Eagles’ reliever Brian Drapeau.

Danny O’Neill (Rutgers) started on the mound for North Jersey, pitching three perfect innings. He was relieved after just three innings by Newhall because of his relief role with the Scarlet Knights in the spring.

Cory Brown started the game for the Pilots, making his season debut. He persevered through four innings, allowing two runs while stranding four. He allowed five hits and a walk while striking out one to earn the win.

"I had some nerves," Brown said. "It was mostly because my mechanics aren’t the best right now. I was just thinking about doing too many things at once."

Brown allowed the leadoff man to reach in every inning, pitching from the stretch virtually the whole night.

"I don’t mind pitching out of the stretch but definitely prefer pitching out of the wind-up," Brown said. "But there’s not a better feeling than having a man on third and getting out of the inning."

After Brown’s exit, the next three Pilots’ relievers combined to throw four shutout innings, while the offense pulled away. Greg Baruka (Towson) pitched a perfect 7th inning, Rob Corsi (Rutgers) a scoreless 8th and Mike Cranston (Adelphi), two scoreless in the 5th and 6th.

Cranston allowed just one man to reach in his two innings, bouncing back from his loss on Sunday, when he gave up 7 hits in three innings against Lehigh Valley.

"I changed a couple things with my mechanics from last outing to this one. I think that really benefitted," Cranston said. "I was able to throw more strikes and have a little more velocity. This game I got ahead and was able to throw my curveball and I think that was the biggest difference."

The Eagles scored two runs in the 9th inning off Carlos Ruiz (Rowan), making the final score 11-4.

With the win, the Pilots improve to 3-1, while the Eagles fall to 0-2. The Pilots will play the Staten Island Tide at home on Thursday night, while North Jersey will head to Quakertown.

Wednesday marks the second time in four games the Pilots have reached double figures in runs.

"We have a lot of returners from last year, including me and a good amount of other people," Nappe said. "They came in with the mindset of having fun and getting together with everybody and the new kids came right along with it. They didn’t hold back."

The Quakertown Blazers defeated the Trenton Generals 5-2 in the opener. Tim Ravel, Dylan Tice and Greg Guers each had two hits to pace the Blazers' offense.

Bryan Morris pitched five innings for the win while Adam Zipko picked up the save.

The Generals won the nightcap 7-3 behind the two home runs and five RBI of Matt Moceri. Ryan Hartley posted a solo home run for the Blazers.

Former Lehigh Valley Catz star, Drew Sutton, capped off a whirlwind tour by going two-for-four with a double and RBI as the Rays defeated the Blue Jays 8-5 on Tuesday.

The journey began on Sunday night when he was pulled from the Gwinnett Braves lineup in the fourth inning at Rochester. He was told that he was traded to the Pirates and he should pack for Buffalo to join the Pirates AAA club. Soon after he made plans to go to Buffalo, he was notified that he had been traded again, this time he was to join the Tampa Bay Rays in Florida.

He arrived in time to start at second base for the Rays, now his fourth MLB team. The 28 year old switch hitter played previously with the Reds (2009-10), Indians (2010) and Red Sox (2011) where he hit .315 in 31 games.

Brad Eldred (Jersey City Colonels) joined the Detroit Tigers from Toledo (AAA) where he hit 12 home runs in nineteen games. The 6-5, 265 pound 1B from Florida International, may see time as a 1B or DH for the Tigers.

Three former Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League players were promoted to the big leagues this week. The other two players include Zach Lutz (Kutztown Rockies, Mets) and Joe Martinez (Jersey Pilots, Diamondbacks).

Brad Eldred started his career with the Pirates in 2005.

Colorado lefthander Jamie Moyer (Allentown Wings) pitched himself into the record books when he held the Padres to six hits and two unearned runs in seven innings as the Rockies defeated the Padres 5-3 on Tuesday night. That made him the oldest pitcher in major league history to earn a victory.

At 49 years and 150 days, Moyer passed the Brooklyn Dodgers' Jack Quinn, who beat the Cardinals in 1932 at Ebbets Field at the age of 49 years and 70 days.

With the win, Moyer, who missed the entire 2011 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, also tied Hall of Famer Jim Palmer for 35th position on the all-time wins list with 268. He is slated to pitch Monday at Pittsburgh and then again Sunday in Colorado against the Mets.