Predictions For Suffolk Class AA
March 25, 2019
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 to see which group of players is able to overcome all the inherent obstacles and capture the championship on Memorial Day weekend.
Without further ado, here’s how I see each of the four Class AA Leagues looking like: (Note: This year AA includes Leagues 1-4)
League I:
Champs-Longwood
This will be an extremely tight finish between Longwood, Ward Melville and Sachem East. As always, there will be a ton of firepower, parity and very little margin for error. While it may wind up that Sachem East possesses the favorite for the Carl Yastrzemski Award in Roman Dorosh and the top catcher in the northeast (Don Wille), I believe their varsity inexperience behind Dorosh will prove to be their only shortcoming. Ward Melville is always a 14-win team, but I believe the absence of Matt DiGennaro will prove costly. Max Nielsen is a bonafide No. 1 and I really like what I saw from Ethan Farino, Chris Vivenzio and Ryan Hynes so their pitching should be in good shape. Brady Doran is likely to be an All-County infielder again, following in the footsteps of his brother. Ultimately, the experience that Longwood gained last year, their starting staff of three Division-II arms (Dannenberg, Murphy, Gargano) and a lineup that is as good as any on the island with four terrific bats in succession (Matt Encizo, Jose Matos, Kyle Rausch, James Myler) will be too tough to overcome. People don’t realize that Encizo hit .449 last year and had a case for the Silver Slugger Award if not for McHugh’s incredible second-half power surge.
Longwood Looks to Repeat as League I Champs
March 11, 2019
From three wins to outright League I champs in just one season.
It was an incredible resurgent season for Longwood in 2018 under Head Coach Ryan McSherry. It came as no surprise to him, though.
“We knew we had high ceiling guys,” he said in reference to their 2017 season in which they started primarily sophomores and juniors. “They just needed a year to transition,” he added.
They certainly did that, outlasting Ward Melville to win the League 1 Champs and finishing with a record of 18-6 overall. With a pitching staff of Jarred Vanderhoof, Danny Owens and Jonathan Holmstock they were able to throw a quality arm each day at their opponent.
Unfortunately, they were dealt an extremely tough hand entering the postseason as the No. 6 seed, in the same bracket as the League II champs, Commack.
“I think we were disappointed in seeding,” said McSherry. “Being the outright League I champs and being the six seed, I don’t know if that’s ever happened. There was certainly a chip there because of that,” he added.
Even with the tough draw, they won three playoff games–in large part to junior Kyle Rausch (9-for-13 in the playoffs) and their strong pitching staff. Eventually, they had their dreams dashed by Commack, 4-1, against Boston College-commit Jake Krzemienski.
Despite graduating Vanderhoof (7-0), McSherry is confident in his team–and rightfully so. They are returning 12 players, with 10 of those committed to playing in college.
“Even with our big arms, we had guys waiting in the wings last year. We had a good mix of seniors and younger players. The core of this team is three-year varsity players. They took their lumps as a three-win team and then they experienced being League Champs,” he added.
The pitching staff features all D2 pitchers.
These four are Jake Dannenberg (Adelphi), Steven Murphy (Adelphi), Danny Gargano (Queens) and Kyle Owens (Felician).
Dannenberg was mainly a reliever but McSherry noted his stuff is too good not to move into the rotation. Murphy is the lone southpaw, and coach noted his intelligence in the classroom benefits him on the mound. Additionally, Neal Heaton spoke very highly of his pitching acumen and ability to throw three pitches for strikes.
Aside from Rausch, who batted .405 with 3 HR, 14 RBI, 19 runs and 10 stolen bases, there are a number of other impact players.
Matt Encizo (Queens College-commit) had a season that probably should have earned him League I MVP. He batted .449 with 40 hits, a team-high nine doubles, four HR, 23 RBI, 26 runs and a perfect 11-for-11 in stolen bases. McSherry said he is the “ultimate utility player” and can play almost any position.
Adelphi-commit Jose Matos is a unique player who can and will play both catcher and SS. He batted .337 with 2 HR, 21 RBI and played a Gold Glove caliber defense at two positions.
Radford-commit James Myler will play OF but did not have the opportunity to play much of last season due to getting hit in the head with a pitch early in the season, but he is a high-level power hitter that was in our 2017 Home Run Derby.
Their other college commits are Griffin Bell (CCNY) and James Maass (St. Joseph’s-Brooklyn).
McSherry noted that he is high on some other young players such as Tommy Ventimiglia, Kyle Allen and Brian Monahan.
They will open up on April 1 against Ward Melville, who they figure to compete for the League Championship with.
Congratulations to Jose Matos (2019), Kyle Rausch (2019) and Matt Encizo (2019) on being selected to Axcess Baseball’s pre-season all Long Island team!
PM’s Alejo, Cocchiaro combine for shutout
DeJohn, Kenny. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 09 May 2019
There was no sleight of hand, no magic and no trickery. Randall Alejo was just a good old-fashioned escape artist in a good old-fashioned pitchers’ duel.
The Patchogue-Medford starter faced a bases-loaded, one-out jam Wednesday in the top of the seventh inning of a scoreless game against Longwood. Facing the heart of the order, the 6-foot righthander had to be mistake free.
Alejo recorded a strikeout before ending a nine-pitch at-bat against No. 3 hitter Jose Matos by inducing a groundout to shortstop.
Pat-Med (9-5) then went quietly, prompting extra innings. The Raiders finally broke through in the bottom of the ninth. Tyler Miller led off with a walk and scored on an overthrow on a sacrifice bunt attempt by Gerard Phil for a 1-0 Suffolk League I victory.
Sophomore Gio Cocchiaro pitched two perfect innings to earn the win. Alejo struck out 10 and worked around five hits, one walk and two hit batsmen over 108 pitches.
“We just kind of grind it out,” said Pat-Med coach Anthony Frascogna, who added that his team clinched a playoff berth. “These are our games.”
Frascogna said Alejo sits in the mid-80s but can touch 90 mph, and he challenged Matos in the game’s biggest moment. Matos was right on Alejo’s fastball – fouling four straight – and eventually scorched a grounder to Patrick Dallas at short, who fired across the diamond to get Matos at first base.
“He always fights,” Alejo said. “That’s a good fight. I like that. I just kept throwing the same thing at him, changing locations with my two-seamer and four-seamer.”
Alejo and Longwood’s Steven Murphy matched zeros for seven innings, but Murphy had more left in the tank for the Lions (11-6). He tossed eight clean innings but was handed the tough loss. He walked Miller in the ninth, pushing his pitch count to 109 before being relieved by Jake Dannenberg.
“When I see a pitcher going at it, I’m going to fight back and do the exact same thing,” Alejo said, crediting Murphy. “That’s what I do.”
Not to be outdone, Cocchiaro struck out the first two batters of the eighth with a sharp curve and sneaky fastball. He varied his delivery, modeling himself after Pat-Med star Marcus Stroman of the Blue Jays.
“Stroman went here, and you know he mixes it up a little bit,” Cocchiaro said. “You have to idle it sometimes, mix it up and throw them o
Matt Encizo’s 3-R Home Run, Tommy Ventimiglia’s Arm Sends Longwood Into AA Semifinals
May 25, 2019
With a trip to the Suffolk AA semifinals on the line, Longwood sent sophomore sensation Tommy Ventimiglia to the mound against No. 2 Smithtown East. The talented youngster answered the bell by throwing six strong innings, striking out six and holding the Bulls to one run. Longwood came away with a 5-1 victory.
With the game scoreless in the bottom of the third inning, the first two Lions’ batters were retired. The next two batters drew walks to bring up the middle of the order.
SS Matt Encizo turned on an inside fastball and deposited it over the fence in right field for a 3-run home run. In the next inning, James Myler launched a solo shot to extend the lead to 4-0.
Ventimiglia showed his toughness, navigating through a couple of jams, notably in the top of the fourth when he induced a 1-6-3 double play to escape a jam.
Smithtown East got on the board on an RBI single by Matt Tempone but Ventimiglia ended the inning.
“Ventimiglia works both sides of the plate well,” said Head Coach Ryan McSherry. “He mixes up his pitches and keeps poised regardless of the situation. The offense is capable of churning out runs each time through the order. It’s someone different each time,” he added.
In the top of the seventh, Jake Dannenberg came on to seal the deal but struggled a bit and Smithtown East loaded the bases with two outs.
Coach McSherry gave the ball to Adelphi-commit Steven Murphy, who coaxed a check swing come backer to end the game and finish off the 5-1 win.
They will face Connetquot in a best-of-three next week. They will face Elon-commit Joey Savino in Game 1.
Matt Encizo, Longwood: He snapped a scoreless tie with a three-run home run in a 5-1 Class AA win over Smithtown East Friday. May 26
LONGWOOD DEFEATS CONNETQUOT IN ‘AA’
Amato, Laura. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 30 May 2019
The Longwood baseball team kept its season alive Wednesday afternoon, sparked by strong pitching performances from Danny Gargano and Tommy Ventimiglia.
The two combined to throw a two-hitter, leading the seventh-seeded Lions to a 1-0 victory over No. 3 Connetquot in Game 2 of the Suffolk AA semifinals. Longwood‘s win forces a deciding Game Three, Thursday at 4 pm at Connetquot.
“They were able to throw strikes in the spots they needed to and in the right counts,” coach Ryan McSherry said. “There was a lot of energy.”
Giuseppe Vicidomini drove in James Myler with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second inning, getting Longwood (18-7) on the board, but it was the Lions’ pitching that stole the show. Gargano threw 5 2/3 innings, striking out three and left a pair of Connetquot runners stranded in the fifth, while Ventimiglia picked up the save, going 1 1/3 and didn’t allow a hit.
Longwood now turns its attention to the next game, looking to keep racking up strikes and a berth to the county finals.
“It was a constant battle,” McSherry said. “But we know how to ground out tight games.”
Matt Brown, Connetquot: He pitched a five-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts in a 2-0 win over Longwood in a Suffolk Class AA elimination game on Thursday. It was his first start of the season. June 2
Brown-Eiring is on fire: Pitching, hitting and on defense, he lifts Connetquot to title
Rubin, Roger. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 05 June 2019:
Connetquot righty Matt Brown-Eiring saw the ball skip past catcher Josh McGee and dashed to cover the plate. Ward Melville’s Max Nielsen saw it, too, from third base and saw the chance to tie the score with two out in the second inning. They both arrived at the same time an instant after the throw from McGee at the backstop.
Brown-Eiring snatched the ball and threw his body in front of Nielsen to make the tag in a big collision that left both splayed on the ground. The run was prevented and the inning over, but the Thunderbirds junior slammed his glove to the ground and grabbed his right knee at the spot of the players’ impact. The T-birds held their collective breath for a moment until Brown-Eiring sprung to his feet and screamed “Let’s Go!”
That play was the match that ignited what became a Connetquot fireworks show. The Thunderbirds scored 13 unanswered runs over the next three innings as they defeated the host Patriots, 14-1, in the decisive third game of the Suffolk Class AA championship.
Connetquot (21-6) pounded out 15 hits, including a mammoth tape-measure home run by Alex Ungar, and a second excellent Game 3 pitching performance from Brown-Eiring to capture its eighth county title and first since 2015. The Thunderbirds will face defending state champion Massapequa on Saturday for the Long Island championship at St. Joseph’s College.
“We had a lead and there was no way I was going to let that run score,” said Brown-Eiring, who also pitched the T-birds to a Game 3 win over Longwood in the semifinal round. “I got up and screamed because I was fired up and I wanted everyone fired up.”
“That play at the plate set the tone for us – it was a game-shifter,” McGee said. “He lit it and our bats were on fire.”
Connetquot scored three runs each in the third and fourth and seven in the fifth to turn it into a rout. Brown-Eiring and James Goff had RBI in the third. Ungar’s homer led off the fourth and McGee and Jared Yalon drove in runs before the frame was over. Yalon finished with four RBI, Ungar with three and McGee, Joe Zimmerman and Goff with two apiece.
The contest was especially rewarding for Ungar, the shortstop, who made four errors in Monday’s Game 2 win. His mother, Roseann, gave him a special cross on a chain to wear in the game and he said “this is a much better feeling than I had yesterday.”
“When I met with the team at the start of the season I asked them to fill out some cards and asked what their expectations were,” first-year coach Rob Burger said. “They overwhelmingly communicated that it wouldn’t be enough just to win a division title. They wanted to at least get here and they did it like good teams do with everyone contributing.”
Brown-Eiring has been a special player for the Thunderbirds in the postseason and said “the thing about the postseason is you have to be clutch and that’s what I’ve wanted to be – it’s what makes people remember.”
“The guy has flipped some kind of switch,” McGee said. “Matty’s just been awesome.”