Greater Middlesex Coaches Summer Baseball League: GMCSBL News
CLOSING CEREMONIES
GMC Summer Baseball League comes to a close
The inaugural season of what looks to be another of Middlesex County baseball's recent success stories came to a close this week after Greater Middlesex Coaches Summer Baseball League and state champion South Plainfield exited the Don Mattingly World Series in New Mexico.
South Plainfield was bounced from the tournament in dramatic fashion as the Albuquerque Dukes defeated South Plainfield 10-9. South Plainfield went 3- 3 at the tournament. The team won its first game, an 8-6 victory over New Mexico ABA, and finished with an 8-7 win over New York Paveco Storm.
"To have one of the league's clubs advance to the Don Mattingly World Series in just our first summer was pretty special," GMC Summer Baseball League founder Glenn Fredricks said. "I think that just goes to show the level of competition in our league and the quality of baseball the teams played this summer."
The GMCSBL proved so strong this summer that five of the eight teams at this season's state tournament were from the league. Along with state champions South Plainfield, John F. Kennedy, St. Joseph, South Brunswick, and Woodbridge qualified for the tournament.
"The league was an overall success," Fredricks said. "Next year we'll be looking to add some teams from the Monmouth County area as well as creating a junior league to get even more area players involved."
Fredricks, who is also the coach of the Spotswood team in the league, did say the inaugural season was not without its hiccups.
"This summer was definitely a learning process," he said. "What I learned is that communication is incredibly important. I've been coaching for a while now, but having the responsibility of overseeing a league of 15 teams is a different story. Not only is communication among coaches important, but communication at every level is critical."
Noticing the toll this summer had on Fredricks did not go unnoticed by his coaching counterparts.
"Glenn is a great guy and he did a great job with the league, but I think he learned that he's going to need help," Woodbridge head coach Lou Urbano said. "You could see that he was worn out at the end of the season from taking on too much."
Fredricks concurs with Urbano's assessment and thinks the lumps he took as the league founder will only make the league stronger come next summer.
"Aside from a few hiccups, the benefits of the league were great," Fredericks said. "From my own personal standpoint as the coach at Spotswood High School, I got to see what my colleagues have coming back next spring. I got looks at the entire St. Joe's pitching staff, and I can tell you who looks to be strong in the White Division next year. I'm sure the other coaches feel the same way."
Fredricks added, "when you are surrounded by great people as we are in the GMC, it makes big moves like what we did this summer a lot easier. We had a lot of dedicated players, parents and coaches make it work. Next year will be a breeze because everyone worked so hard this year and you can't thank them enough."
Tuesday, July 14
GMCSBL TOURNAMENT FINAL
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SOUTH BRUNSWICK — As the cornerstone of the South Brunswick High School varsity baseball program, first baseman Mike Muha and shortstop Juan Perdomo Jr. faced a difficult decision this summer.
Should the rising seniors play in the more competitive Middlesex County Senior American Legion Baseball League against college freshmen and recently graduated seniors or in the newly formed Greater Middlesex Conference Coaches Summer Baseball League for players who will enter grades 9 through 12 in the fall?
Muha and Perdomo Jr. opted to play in the latter where they could bond with and help groom future varsity players.
The duo took their leadership role on and off the field seriously.
On Monday night, Muha and Perdomo Jr. belted back-to-back homers in the fourth inning to lead South Brunswick to a 7-2 victory over J.F. Kennedy in the GMCCSBL championship at Rowland Park.
South Brunswick and four other GMCCSBL teams — J.F. Kennedy, St. Joseph, South Plainfield and Woodbridge — will represent the league in this weekend's American Amateur Baseball Congress Don Mattingly New Jersey Championships in Bridgewater.
The double-elimination tournament begins Friday. Games will be played at Bridgewater-Raritan High School and Prince Edward Field.
South Brunswick's Senior American Legion team swept Iselin in their best-of-three playoff series on Monday night to earn Middlesex County's second bid in the Senior American Legion District Tournament, which begins Saturday. South Brunswick and regular-season Piscataway will represent Middlesex County in the districts at Memorial Stadium in New Brunswick.
Muha has no regrets about playing with younger teammates who proved throughout this summer season that South Brunswick High School's varsity squad will be a force to be reckoned with next spring.
"Basically that is the reason we decided to stay," Muha said. ""The main goal since we came to high school was to win a championship as a team. We could play with this team, get this team ready for next year and get us prepared to win the county and state championships next year, which is our goal. So this is what best prepares us for that. At first, everybody was saying it's a sacrifice we made. I really don't think so because this team can play. Whether I played here or with legion, it was great. I had a blast."
South Brunswick (12-2) provided winning pitcher Zach Gildenberg with all the offense he needed in the home first. The victors parlayed four errors and two hits — Mike Heyer's leadoff single and Mike Kotarski's rally-capping two-run single — into a four-run rally.
Gildenberg did not allow a hit until the fourth inning. Nine of the 12 outs he recorded came off groundballs. J.F. Kennedy spoiled his shutout bid on Brandon He-Kalo's sacrifice fly in the fifth.
South Brunswick took a 7-0 lead in the fourth on Muha's two-run homer and Perdomo Jr.'s solo blast. Both home runs sailed over the left-center field fence off starting pitcher A.J. Pichalski.
"We needed someone to step up and score some more runs and make the lead more concrete," Muha said. "It kind of just raised the energy level and momentum on our side. I'm not going to say it sealed the game, but that was the changing point right there."
J.F. Kennedy produced the final margin on Dom Rella's run-scoring sacrifice fly in the seventh. Muha, who pitched the final two innings, worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh to preserve the win.
J.F. Kennedy's lineup featured six members of the reigning NJSIAA Group III championship team. Three starters from that squad who are regulars on J.F. Kennedy's GMCCSBL team were unable to attend Monday night's game.
Shortstop Joe Marciano, center fielder Jorge Rivera and left fielder Kyle Grimes were instead participating in a N.J. State Police Junior Trooper Academy, which conflicted with the championship.
Sunday, July 12
SEMIFINAL 1: SOUTH BRUNSWICK 3, SOUTH PLAINFIELD 2
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| Mike Muha (24) Celebrates With Teammates After 4th Inning Blast |
WOODBRIDGE — After uncorking a wild pitch with the tying run on third and two away in the top of the seventh, one thought raced through right-handed reliever Mike Muha's mind as he sprinted to cover home plate.
Muha scooped batterymate Gabe Frankel's one-hop throw out of the dirt and, in one sweeping motion, tagged sliding Brandon Downes out at home to preserve South Brunswick's 3-2 win over South Plainfield in Saturday's Greater Middlesex Conference Coaches Summer Baseball League tournament semifinal at Woodbridge High School.
The win lifted South Brunswick (11-2), which has won nine of its games by two runs or less, into Monday's 7 p.m. final against J.F. Kennedy at Rowland Park in South Brunswick.
"This is a special group," said South Brunswick coach Mike Muha, the father of the reliever. "When we started out eight weeks ago, we set a couple of goals. No. 1: We wanted to get to the (GMC) championship, not in the summer, but next year. And we also wanted to get to the state (Group IV) championship. Everything we've done — win lose or draw — is to win a championship next year.
"That's why these (rising seniors) stayed behind and didn't go play Senior American Legion. They are playing with the kids they are going to play with next year, and the chemistry with this group is just unbelievable. There is not one kid out here better than the other. They all approach the game the same way — that they are going out and work their rear ends off to do the best they possibly can."
The younger Muha's 1-1 offering to cleanup batter Matt Cesare sailed to the backstop, which is about 15 feet behind home plate. Frankel skillfully played the carom and came up throwing. Downes, arguably South Plainfield's fastest runner, said he believed he was out on the bang-bang play.
"I just started to go and then (Frankel) made the great throw," Downes, a catcher, explained. "I just slid and then (Muha) tagged me. It was pretty close."
South Plainfield coach Mike Battista, whose team stranded seven runners and committed two errors which led to two unearned runs, said the game's outcome was not decided on the final play.
South Plainfield squandered a quality outing by left-hander Dylan Papa, who scattered three hits, fanned five, walked two (one intentionally) and hit a batter.
"Dylan just pitches to the strike zone," Battista said. "If you can do that and mix up your speeds like he does you're going to have great performances like he did today. He's got a good future ahead of him."
With the score tied 2-2 in the home sixth, Papa drilled leadoff batter Jeff Dunleavy in the back on his first pitch of the inning. Muha reached on an infield error. Both runners advanced on Chris Palumbo's sacrifice bunt. Papa intentionally walked the next batter to load the bases.
Instead of playing the corners tight and his middle infield at double-play depth, Battista opted to play his entire infield in to try not only for a force at the plate but perhaps a home-to-first twin killing.
"Brandon has a great arm," Battista explained. "I was thinking a bang-bang play at the plate and (throw to) first base double play."
Battista nearly got the type of ground ball he hoped for, but the hot smash off John Yurecko's bat was two steps to the right of second baseman Rob Pasternak, who made a spectacular play just to keep the ball in front of him. The ball caromed off Pasternak's glove to shortstop Mark Benak, whose only play was at first base. Yurecko's fielder's choice groundout scored Dunleavy with what proved to be the winning run. Ironically, Yurecko's grounder would have been a tailor-made 4-6-3 double-play ball.
South Brunswick forged a 2-2 tie in the home fourth on Muha's leadoff homer. He crushed Papa's first-pitch fastball over the left-centerfield fence.
South Plainfield took a 2-1 lead in the top of the fourth. Kyle Hughes stroked a one-out triple to right-center. He scored on a botched suicide squeeze. No. 9 batter Mark McCullen failed to get the bat on a high fastball. The pitch caromed off the catcher's glove for a passed ball as Hughes crossed easily.
South Plainfield knotted the contest at 1-1 in the third. With two outs, starting pitcher Mike Heyer issued consecutive walks to Downes and Cesare. Downes scored on Dan Hansen's bad-hop single to shortstop.
South Brunswick took a 1-0 lead in the second. Cleffi used his speed to turn a Texas League-hit into a double. He scored on a one-out infield throwing error.
Sunday, July 12
SEMIFINAL 2: KENNEDY 12, ST. JOE'S 8
MARCIANO LEADS KENNEDY PAST JOE'S 12-8
Winning pitcher Joe Marciano helped his own cause with three hits as J.F. Kennedy rolled to a 12-8 victory over St. Joseph in Saturday's Greater Middlesex Conference Coaches Summer Baseball League tournament semifinal at Woodbridge High School.
J.F. Kennedy had eight successive batters reach base safely — six on hits and two on walks — while building a 6-0 first-inning lead. Kyle Grimes capped the rally with a sacrifice fly.
St. Joseph, which trailed 12-2 after three innings, chipped away at the deficit. Anthony Parenti's two-run homer in the seventh produced the final margin as St. Joseph could get no closer.
Shane Alvarez collected three hits for St. Joseph.
Thursday, July 2
PLAYOFF SEEDS ANNOUNCED
The first GMCSBL tournament will be contested over the course of the next week beginning Monday July 6th. Round 2 will be July 7th. The Final 4 is to be at a neutral site on Saturday, July 11th, as is the Title Game on Monday, July 13th. The tournament has 13 teams vying for 5 bids into the AABC/Don Mattingly State Playoffs (July 16-19).
The seeds were as follows:
9-SOUTH RIVER @ 8-SPOTSWOOD, WINNER AT 1-ST JOES
12-RUTGERS PREP @ 5-COLONIA
13-NORTH BRUNSWICK @ 4-KENNEDY
11-EDISON @ 6-SOUTH PLAINFIELD, WINNER AT 3-WOODBRIDGE
10-OLD BRIDGE @ 7-PERTH AMBOY (GAME TIME 4PM AT RUDYK PARK), WINNER AT 2-SOUTH BRUNSWICK
ALL GAMES FOR ROUND 1 WILL BEGIN AT 5PM AT THE HIGHER SEED ON MONDAY UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED.
ALL TOURNAMENT GAMES ARE TO BE PLAYED UNDER NJSIAA HS RULES WITH NO EXCEPTIONS.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF THE TEAMS IN SEARCH OF BECOMING THE FIRST GMCSBLT CHAMPION!
Thursday, July 2
4TH OF JULY TOURNAMENT
4TH OF JULY BEACH BLAST AT RED BANK REGIONAL
Directions to Red Bank Regional HS: Take Parkway to Exit 109. At the end of the ramp make a left onto Newman Springs Rd. (Rt. 520). From Southern Middlesex County you can take 520 all the way out. At the end of 520, take a left onto Broad St. (Rt. 35). Go to 3rd traffic light which is Harding Rd. and make a right. Red Bank Regional HS is approx. 3 miles down on the right side.
Game 1 is at 10.45am. Report no later than 9.30
Monday, June 29
GMCSBL/MATRIX NEWS
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| Matrix 17U is Led By Middlesex County's Top Underclassmen |
It didn't take long for Glenn Fredericks to reap the benefits of managing some of the better young players Middlesex County has to offer.
"You can rotate in pitchers whose names you were reading in the paper every day and now they're on your staff," said head coach Glenn Fredericks, the league's founder and the head coach at Spotswood High School. "It's pretty humbling when you have that kind of talent."
Of course, that's life as the head coach of a showcase team, and the first-year GMCSBL has two of them.
Fredericks coaches the younger of the two, which features the top 17 underclassmen who are also members of the league's regular teams dispersed throughout the county. Those squads play during the week, freeing the showcase team to come together for weekend tournaments.
"With the format we were going to create for the coaches league, it was going to leave weekends open," he said, "which was perfect for the idea of these showcase-type teams being incorporated to run with league play."
This type of All-Star squad isn't as feasible for players in the American Legion league, Fredericks said, because their schedule is too hectic to allow them to also participate with other teams. Since Legion was losing players to showcase teams, he saw a way to kill two birds with one stone.
"Why don't we create a league," he said, "where we keep the players and have the showcase?"
For Muha, participation in both the league and the U17 team is helping build toward his ultimate goals of state and county championships. He said he enjoyed playing Legion last year, but jumped at the opportunity to join the GMCSBL.
"In the high school league during the week, we're getting our team ready for next year," he said. "Then you get the chance to play some great competition around the state, it's really good and exciting."
In that way, Fredericks sees a system that will benefit the GMC in the long run, as the best high school players get to hone their skills during the scholastic offseason.
Then there are the graduating seniors who aren't eligible for the GMCSBL, which is designed as a feeder system for high school teams. Those players instead are members of the 18-year-old team coached by Mark Blevins, a member of Kean's 2007 Division III national championship team who currently works as an instructor at the Baseball Warehouse in Highland Park.
"We wanted an 18-year-old team to play its own schedule," Fredericks said. "They're playing two, three nights a week. They have time to enjoy their last summer before going to college, but we're also prepping them for what they're going to see in the fall."
And that is perhaps the biggest benefit to this squad, he said. Legion offers outgoing seniors the chance to play against first-year college players, which is something the GMCSBL can't offer through its regular teams.
"These guys are going to get a good glimpse at what's out there, and what colleges are looking for," Fredericks said. "I think it's going to be really good to see where they stand."
Of course, this is still a relatively new venture, and to some extent, the GMCSBL teams are playing catch-up with teams such as DiamondJacks, which draws players from, among other teams, Group IV champion Hunterdon Central. Frederick's club got to face off against DiamondJacks in the preliminary round of the Super 17 tournament June 19 to see where they stand.
"I'm having a great time getting to know some of the better kids around the county," Muha said. "As a player, it's great to know you have them to back you up. It's a good challenge because you want to play with the best competition."
And whether they win or not in that game and others, the process is underway, thanks in large part to the players who are giving the GMCSBL a shot.
"A great deal of respect has to go out to kids who got on board," Fredericks said. "It's not easy to do new things, especially when you only have a year or two left of summer ball. I give a lot of credit to them to be the first to go through the process. We're four and five years behind everybody else, so these guys are really setting a foundation."
Tuesday, June 23
SUPER 17 TOURNAMENT RE-CAP
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| Perez Connects for the HR vs the Wladyka Nats in Game 2 |
"We had a 2-0 lead for the better part of the game, but the Diamond Jacks put together a rally off Nick Marics in the fifth," Matrix head coach Glenn Fredericks said. "Marics pitched a heck of a game and did a great job of mixing speeds all day. Getting into wood bat play allows Nick to pitch to both sides of the plate with more confidence. He didn't deserve to lose, but the Diamond Jacks strung together a couple of cheap hits and their pitching is top notch, and they held us off."
The Matrix rebounded in the second game of the tournament with an offensive attack that resulted in a 10-run first inning. Left fielder Eric Perez smacked a two-run homer and teammate Mike Muha belted a grand slam in the fourth inning to lead the way.
"The team gelled really quickly," Fredericks said. "I think that is a testament to their respective high school coaches. Their coaches did such a great job throughout the spring that the kids came together so well in the summer. The kids are talented enough to make the transition to playing with unfamiliar teammates and get the job done."
Muha's slam gave the Matrix a 14-0 mercy-rule victory over the Wladyka Nationals from Bergen County.
Unfortunately, the Matrix needed Wladyka to beat the Diamond Jacks in order to advance to the playoffs, but the Diamond Jacks defeated Wladyka, 9-0. The Matrix finished the tournament in ninth place among 32 teams.
"We had a great time," Fredericks said. "In just our first tournament, I thought we did really well. We got a chance to see what we got, and our kids got a chance to play in front of an impressive crowd. Representatives from Purdue, Kansas and Rutgers were on hand, and even from schools like Miami and Long Beach State. How many times do you get to see that in New Jersey? It was special. In my four years of coaching Legion ball, I never saw a turnout of scouts like that."
Wednesday, June 24
TONIGHTS GAME UPDATES
GAMES FOR TONIGHT, JUNE 24th:
Tonight's Kennedy vs. Edison game will be played at the Edison Boys Baseball Complex. First Pitch is 8:30pm.
All other games are on as scheduled. Metuchen will be playing at Myrtle Field in Metuchen through Saturday.
Good luck......
MANAGERS PLEASE CALL PETE FAZZINO (732) 771 6275 AND TEXT GLENN FREDRICKS AS WELL WITH UPDATE ON YOUR GAME. DO NOT FORGET TO CONTACT THE OPPOSING COACH BEFORE 4PM ON THE STATUS OF YOUR GAME.
IF YOU HAVE A DOMED STADIUM, YOU'RE IN GOOD SHAPE.
Wednesday, June 24
Woodbridge vs. Spotswood
The Woodbridge baseball team rode an 11-run first inning to a 14-2 victory over Spotswood in the GMC Coaches Summer League Tuesday night.
Spotswood used three pitchers in the first inning alone, giving up six straight walks to begin the game. Woodbridge went through the order plus four more batters, with the first nine batters all making it home.
On the mound, Woodbridge pitcher Zach Hopf put together a complete game, giving up two runs on seven hits and walking two. Hopf struck out four batters by getting ahead in the pitch count.
"Getting ahead of hitters is most important. If you have two strikes against you, the pitcher could throw anything," Hopf explained, adding that his fastball was his best pitch during the game.
Hopf added two runs to his cause in the first inning, getting on base with a walk and getting hit by a pitch.
Coach Lou Urbano was impressed with his top ace.
"Every time he throws, he gives us a chance to win," Urbano said. "We have the utmost confidence in him."
Nick Natole was 2-for-2 with two runs scored, and James Lyzkowski was 1-for-2 with a double and three runs scored from the leadoff spot.
After the disastrous bottom half of the first inning, Spotswood settled down behind pitcher Jeff Coy. Coy retired the side in the bottom of the second, and finished the game with five runs on five hits in three-plus innings pitched.
"We forgot about the first and went from there," coach Glenn Fredricks said. "It's hard to refocus but we did that. Certain kids showed a lot of heart."
Spotswood got on the board in the third inning when Pete Mehr singled, followed by a Corey Weeks' single to center field and Corey Brown's walk. Mehr came home on a Cody Pace fielder's choice.
Joe Cappa scored the other run for Spotswood in the fourth.
"The older kids are doing a good job showing the younger kids how to battle," Fredricks said. "That will make a difference next spring."
Thursday, June 18
SUPER 17 TOURNAMENT
17 U MATRIX FOR SUPER 17 TOURNAMENT
HERE IS A GLANCE AT TOMORROW'S OPENER AT JACK CUST'S DIAMOND NATION FOR MATRIX 17 PLAYERS:
- ALL PLAYERS MUST BRING THEIR BIRTH CERTIFICATE FOR IDENTITY VERIFICATION. THEY WILL NOT BE HANDED IN, SIMPLY CHECKED IN WITH THE PLAYER, SO BRING ORIGINAL.
- FOOTWEAR. METAL SPIKES ARE ALLOWED, HOWEVER MOLDED OR TURFS ARE ENCOURAGED. THERE IS TO BE NO "DIGGING IN" ON THE FIELD TURF.
- THESE GAMES ARE PLAYED WITHIN A 2 HOUR TIME LIMIT. IF THE HOME TEAM IS LEADING AFTER THE 2 HOUR LIMIT DURING PRELIMINARY ROUND PLAY, THE GAME WILL END.
- BATTING PRACTICE. THE HOME TEAM WILL HIT 1 HOUR AND 10 MINUTES BEFORE SCHEDULED 1ST PITCH, AND THE VISITING TEAM WILL HIT 40 MINUTES PRIOR.
-CHECK IN. PLEASE HAVE YOUR BIRTH CERTIFICATE READY FOR CHECK IN BY 2PM FRIDAY IF AT ALL POSSIBLE. IF SCHOOL DOES NOT PERMIT YOU TO DO SO, BE THERE AS SOON AS YOU CAN THEREAFTER.
- ALL 3 PRE-LIM GAMES ARE SLATED FOR DIAMONDNATION.
GAME 1- FRIDAY, 4PM VS. DIAMONDJACKS
GAME 2- SATURDAY, 10.15AM VS WLADYKA NATIONAL
GAME 3- SUNDAY, 8AM VS. ITZ ANGELS
THE ELIMINATION ROUND WILL BEGIN AFTER SUNDAY MORNING GAME FOR TEAMS WHO QUALIFY.
Thursday, June 18
18U MATRIX NEWS
Local baseball talent gravitates to new summer league squad
Without an Edison Post 435 American Legion team taking local diamonds this summer, some of the area's best talent will be sporting new uniforms and suiting up for the Middlesex County Matrix. The Matrix 18-and-under team provides another opportunity for graduating seniors to hone their skills before making an attempt to land on a college roster.
With the newly developed Greater Middlesex Coaches Summer Baseball League off and running for players set to return to their respective high school teams next spring, many graduating seniors gravitated to the Matrix. In seasons past, such players would have joined local American Legion teams and battled for spots among seasoned college players. The new team is being touted as a college prep team by founder Glenn Fredricks.
"This travel team will help players that plan to compete for a spot on a college roster," Spotswood head coach and Matrix founder Fredricks said. "Just about every guy on the team wants to walk-on next year. This will prepare them for the task ahead."
Overseeing this summer's team with Fredericks is Mark Blevins, Tim Banos, Fred Cole and Kevin Dalton.
"I think the travel team is a great idea for these players," Banos said. "All of the guys are in it for the same reason, and that makes a difference."
"These kids play a high brand of baseball, and the big focus is to get these guys to play in front of scouts and college coaches," Banos said. "Scouts don't come near Middlesex County, and our goal behind the GMCSBL and the Middlesex County Matrix is to build from the ground up."
Middlesex County Matrix also fields a 17-and-under team with local stars such as John F. Kennedy Memorial High School's Kyle Grimes and Joe Marciano, and Edison High School's Nick Marics.
"If you take a look at the two teams in this year's county championship, you can see that their emphasis has been on building from the ground up," Banos said.
The inaugural season has already produced positive results for the Middlesex County Matrix. The 18-and-under team is off to a 1-0 start with a victory over the Roselle American Legion team.
"Ultimately, this will benefit Middlesex County baseball," Banos said. "The travel team will bring recognition to someone like Perth Amboy's Alex Vasquez. The numbers he put up this spring were pretty ridiculous, and more people need to see his talent on display."
At last week's GMC Senior All-Star Game, Vasquez fanned six batters in two innings of work. His feat was an accurate sample of what he did during the regular season.
"He finished the season with 87 strikeouts in something like 50 innings," Banos said. "That's pretty amazing."
On June 19, the 17-and-under team will be in Flemington for the N.J. Super 17 Invitational at Diamond Nation (Flemington), an event likely to draw some serious attention from college coaches and scouts. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m vs the NJ DiamondJacks. Second round play will be on Saturday at 10:15am vs. the Wladyka Nationals and pool play concluds at 8am on Sunday vs. the ITZ Angels.
Saturday, June 13
Spotswood vs. JFK
JFK opened the scoring on a lead off walk to Nick Mergel. He was advanced 2 bases on consecutive wild pitches and made his way home on Joe Marciano's sac fly to left. Jay Stolz would double after that, but was stranded at second by SHS starter Chris Stout. Marciano had the second hit off Charger pitching in the 5th. Those would be the only two hits surrendered by the Chargers on the day.
Spotswood responded in the bottom of the 3rd at the expense of the Kennedy defense. After a Cody Pace double, Mike Liming's fly to center field was mishandled by the sure handed Jorge Rivera. The error tied the game at 1. Catcher Shawn Weeks followed with a single, and Anthony Pietanza plated the go ahead run with a single up the middle. The score held for the rest of the contest.
Freshman lefty Chris Stout, Jeff Coy, and freshman closer Anthony Berg combined on the 2 hitter for SHS.
This was the opener for both teams in GMCSBL play.
Thursday, May 28
THE FUTURE IS HERE
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| Former Legion Star Cody Pace Leads the Way for the GMCSBL |
New GMC Coaches Summer Baseball League a Threat to American Legion?
APRIL 13, 2009 • 5:19 PMBy Greg Tufaro
For Edison High School baseball coach Vinnie Abene, the decision to join a new summer league that will allow him to keep his incoming varsity team intact was easy.“”To me,” Abene said, “”it’s exactly what you would want over the summer. You want to see what you are going to be in store for the following year. You want to see the players who are all coming back for your varsity team, how they are going to gel and how they are going to play together.”
The Greater Middlesex Coaches Summer Baseball League, founded by Spotswood High School head coach Glenn Fredricks, differentiates itself from the competing Senior American Legion Baseball League, a 19-and-under league that allows recently graduated seniors and college students to play.Only scholastic players who are currently freshmen, sophomores and juniors are eligible to compete in the GMCSBL, which Fredricks said has received commitments from 14 schools. They are Edison, South Brunswick, Old Bridge, St. Joseph, Woodbridge, Colonia, South Plainfield, North Brunswick, Perth Amboy, New Brunswick, J.F. Kennedy, Spotswood, Metuchen and South River.Fredricks said several other schools, including Bound Brook and Rutgers Prep, are considering joining the newly-formed league, which will adversely impact Middlesex County Senior Legion.
Middlesex County American Legion Baseball Chairman Walter Zjawin said his organization currently has commitments from nine Senior Legion teams, a drop from the 14 that participated a year ago.The future of successful Senior Legion programs such as perennial state powers Iselin and Father & Son, which won the 2007 state title and finished second in New Jersey last summer, appears to be in jeopardy.Iselin draws its high school players from Colonia, Woodbridge and J.F. Kennedy. J.F. Kennedy coach Jerry Smith Jr. and Colonia coach Tom Hennessy both benefited from playing Senior Legion as high school sophomores, according to Iselin coach Frank Notaro.Notaro, who is also the head coach at Cardinal McCarrick High School, said he believes Smith and Hennessy enjoyed successful playing careers at Kean University because of their legion experience.
“”I’m certainly disappointed,” Notaro, who will enter his 26th year as a legion coach, said of having to compete with a new league for players.“”I think it’s not a bad thing for kids to get away from their high school coach and play somewhere else. Playing Senior Legion is really playing up. You are facing some of the top high school kids who just graduated and you are facing top college kids. What boy doesn’t want to play up?”
To that end, Fredricks will form two showcase teams, one comprised of the top 17 high school seniors and another comprised of the top 17 underclassmen. He said those squads will play showcase doubleheaders on Wednesdays and on weekends.Some of those games will be contested before college scouts. They will not conflict with GMCSBL regular-season games, which will be played on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights (remaining weeknights are reserved for make-ups).GMCSBL teams will play 16 to 18 regular-season games from June 5 through July 24. All teams will compete in an in-season tournament, with the winner earning the league’s spot to participate in the Connie Mack State tournament in Bridgewater, NJ.
Fredricks said he believed many GMCSBL players would not have a roster spot on most Senior Legion squads, which are usually stocked with recently graduated seniors and college players. Most legion programs draw from more than one town, increasing competition for playing time.“”(The GMCSBL) becomes a high school feeder program which will benefit our kids going into the next high school baseball season,” Fredricks said. “”It gives them an extra five or six kids who are not playing against somebody else’s graduating seniors and are not sharing valuable playing time with kids from other towns.”
Some current underclass stars, such as junior shortstop Juan Perdomo Jr. from South Brunswick, which will field a GMCSBL and Senior Legion team, face a difficult decision.“”We are in the middle of it,” said Perdomo’s father, also named Juan. “”We’ve been talking a lot about it. It would be nice if he would be able to play with the (GMCSBL) showcase team and also play on the Senior Legion team. That would be the best of both worlds, but we know that probably he can’t do that.”Perdomo Sr. said he understands a coach’s desire to maintain continuity in their program, but Notaro said he believes baseball players simply do not need the same time to gel as football and/or basketball players, who require more “”coordination as a team.”“”How long does it take a baseball player, like the second baseman and shortstop, or a pitcher covering first base, to work together?” Notaro asked. “”It’s really nine individuals trying to play a team game.”
The bottom line, Zjawin said, is more players will have more opportunity to play ball in Middlesex County this summer.“”We wish everyone well,” he said.
Tuesday, June 9
OPENING DAY
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| Newly Crowned Group III Champs JFK Open Play Thursday |
GMCSBL OPENER A HIT
Opening day play of the inaugural season in the Greater Middlesex Coaches Summer Baseball League was a great success. 10 teams started their seasons' with some top flight pitching and some heavy hitting around Middlesex County. A quick trip around the diamond:
The defending GMC Champion St. Joe's Falcons opened up in style with a 13-0 blanking of Metuchen. Jared DeBrizzi and Anthony Parenti combined on the 1-hit shutout for Joe's. Alphonse Muglia and Shane Alvarez both belted triples for the Falcons, while Anthony Feltre had the only knock for Metuchen.
The South Plainfield Tigers also got solid pitching with Matt Cesare and Ryan Harrington shutting out Old Bridge 4-0.
At Woodbridge High School, White Division rivals Perth Amboy and Woodbridge battled to a 3-3 draw after darkness fell at the completion of 8 innings. Carlos Perez homered for Amboy and Mike Clark plated a run in the 3rd for the home Barrons.
Also in 2 late games: South Brunswick plated the winning run in the bottom of the 8th to down neighboring rival North Brunswick in a hard fought 5-4 battle. Blue Division South River took Colonia to the wire before falling 6-5 at South River High School.
5 teams still wait to open their summer campaigns with Spotswood, Kennedy, Edison, Rutgers, and New Brunswick getting the night off.
Some intriguing matchups take us into the weekend. Kennedy, fresh off of their 2009 NJSIAA Group III championship, hooks up with Spotswood on Thursday and Edison on Friday.
Early favorite St. Joe's will meet a familiar foe in South Brunswick out at Joe's Thursday in what may be the matchup of the young season. With Victor Diaz from St. Joe's, and Mike Muha on the S.B. side, two of the league's best pitchers could be on display Thursday night in Metuchen.....
Stay tuned!
