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SIDMAN, Pa. – The game turned into a rout early.
Buffalo East Coast Pipeline chased starting pitcher Elias Garcia-Rodruguez with three runs in the first inning and scored in each of the first five innings as they breezed to a 21-3 victory against Schenectady PNA in an All American Amateur Baseball Association Tournament game Monday at Forest Hills Junior-Senior High School.
Play was halted after seven innings because of the mercy rule.
Victor Mazzara and Joey Haynes reached base on hit batsmen to start the game, and Brendan Bucello drew a walk that loaded the bases. Bryce Mucica singled home the first two runners, and Bucello scored on a wild pitch.
Schenectady manager Bob Godlewski removed Garcia-Rodruguez after he walked three men, hit the first two and yielded the run-scoring single.
“(Garcia-Rodruguez) is a guy who if he’s on, he’s tough to hit," Godlewski said. "It’s a chance we took because he has trouble with the strike zone, but if he’s around the strike zone, he’s very tough to hit, and he wasn’t."
Godlewski said his team was seeing its first action in three weeks. It apparently showed.
“A lot of the kids went home and ended up coming back here," Godlewski said. "This doesn’t surprise me. I know Buffalo’s a very good team."
Buffalo, one of the tournament’s strongest entries in recent seasons, reached the championship game in 2024 against Columbus. Manager John Haynes carried 15 players from the past two seasons, and he believes his team is ready to reach the next level.
“One of our biggest keys that we’ve been working on for the whole year is we need to play all three aspect of the game," Haynes said. "We need to hit well. We need to get great pitching, and we also need to play great defense. We did all three of those today."
Godlewski stressed the importance of game action in a national tournament.
“These guys are young," Godlewski said. "I want them to get the experience of coming down here. They’ll be coming down for the next three, four years."
Jackson Dwyer kept the game close until the third inning. Mike Zacher hit a two-run homer to highlight a third in which Buffalo parlayed seven hits, three errors, a balk, two more hit batsmen and three walks into 12 runs.
Buffalo took a 16-0 lead into the fourth inning.
“We’re going to put pressure on the team that we’re playing," Haynes said. "We’re very fast, we’re aggressive and we’re going to make them make plays."
Buffalo rolled up 17 hits off five pitchers. Ryan Vanderlip provided three hits, including a double, and three RBIs.
Matthew Weber also contributed three hits and drove in a pair of runs. Zacher drove in three runs for his part.
“We need to hit and play defense," Haynes said. "If we do that, and we take game by game, everything will fall in place for us."
Buffalo faces Altoona Imler’s Poultry at noon Tuesday at Portage and returns to Portage Wednesday against Zanesville.
Left-hander Ty Graczyk faced the minimum of nine batters. He walked a man who was retired on the front end of an inning-ending double play in the third inning.
“One of our goals is to try to keep guys off the bases by making them earn their runs," Haynes said. "Don’t walk anybody. That’s something two years ago that we did very, very well."
Graham Schultz worked the final four innings and allowed a two-run homer by Daniel Menzies in the seventh inning. Schultz gave up five hits.
Schenectady plays Zanesville at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at Windber Sports Complex and takes on Imler’s Poultry at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Roxbury Park.
Godlewski maintained the upbeat attitude that one might expect from a manager who has seen plenty in his time as Schenectady manager.
“Who knows what is going to happen?" Godlewski asked. "The reality is we needed to get through today, and I was happy with what I saw batting-wise later in the game.”
Continue reading...
Buffalo East Coast Pipeline chased starting pitcher Elias Garcia-Rodruguez with three runs in the first inning and scored in each of the first five innings as they breezed to a 21-3 victory against Schenectady PNA in an All American Amateur Baseball Association Tournament game Monday at Forest Hills Junior-Senior High School.
Play was halted after seven innings because of the mercy rule.
Victor Mazzara and Joey Haynes reached base on hit batsmen to start the game, and Brendan Bucello drew a walk that loaded the bases. Bryce Mucica singled home the first two runners, and Bucello scored on a wild pitch.
Schenectady manager Bob Godlewski removed Garcia-Rodruguez after he walked three men, hit the first two and yielded the run-scoring single.
“(Garcia-Rodruguez) is a guy who if he’s on, he’s tough to hit," Godlewski said. "It’s a chance we took because he has trouble with the strike zone, but if he’s around the strike zone, he’s very tough to hit, and he wasn’t."
Godlewski said his team was seeing its first action in three weeks. It apparently showed.
“A lot of the kids went home and ended up coming back here," Godlewski said. "This doesn’t surprise me. I know Buffalo’s a very good team."
Buffalo, one of the tournament’s strongest entries in recent seasons, reached the championship game in 2024 against Columbus. Manager John Haynes carried 15 players from the past two seasons, and he believes his team is ready to reach the next level.
“One of our biggest keys that we’ve been working on for the whole year is we need to play all three aspect of the game," Haynes said. "We need to hit well. We need to get great pitching, and we also need to play great defense. We did all three of those today."
Godlewski stressed the importance of game action in a national tournament.
“These guys are young," Godlewski said. "I want them to get the experience of coming down here. They’ll be coming down for the next three, four years."
Jackson Dwyer kept the game close until the third inning. Mike Zacher hit a two-run homer to highlight a third in which Buffalo parlayed seven hits, three errors, a balk, two more hit batsmen and three walks into 12 runs.
Buffalo took a 16-0 lead into the fourth inning.
“We’re going to put pressure on the team that we’re playing," Haynes said. "We’re very fast, we’re aggressive and we’re going to make them make plays."
Buffalo rolled up 17 hits off five pitchers. Ryan Vanderlip provided three hits, including a double, and three RBIs.
Matthew Weber also contributed three hits and drove in a pair of runs. Zacher drove in three runs for his part.
“We need to hit and play defense," Haynes said. "If we do that, and we take game by game, everything will fall in place for us."
Buffalo faces Altoona Imler’s Poultry at noon Tuesday at Portage and returns to Portage Wednesday against Zanesville.
Left-hander Ty Graczyk faced the minimum of nine batters. He walked a man who was retired on the front end of an inning-ending double play in the third inning.
“One of our goals is to try to keep guys off the bases by making them earn their runs," Haynes said. "Don’t walk anybody. That’s something two years ago that we did very, very well."
Graham Schultz worked the final four innings and allowed a two-run homer by Daniel Menzies in the seventh inning. Schultz gave up five hits.
Schenectady plays Zanesville at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at Windber Sports Complex and takes on Imler’s Poultry at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Roxbury Park.
Godlewski maintained the upbeat attitude that one might expect from a manager who has seen plenty in his time as Schenectady manager.
“Who knows what is going to happen?" Godlewski asked. "The reality is we needed to get through today, and I was happy with what I saw batting-wise later in the game.”
Continue reading...
