Baseball – 2014 Preview: Class A Central

There is no debating that Red Bank Catholic has turned itself into a premier Shore Conference baseball program and the Caseys' dominance within their division is evidence of that. Still, RBC has its share of demons like everyone else and the bitter endings that have befallen them in recent years despite Shore Conference Tournament and Monmouth County titles have haunted them some.

RBC can still take solace in the fact that the division is again theirs to lose after going 14-0 in A Central last year. The Caseys should not get too comfortable, however, because there are actually teams good enough to take their title. St. John Vianney has the best roster it has had in years, while Rumson-Fair Haven boasts one of the best starting pitching trios in the Shore Conference. Mix in the high-scoring offenses throughout the rest of the division, and Class A Central appears to have thin ice (and hitters parks) around every turn.

Predicted Order of Finish (Click on team names for team preview)

1. Red Bank Catholic
2. St. John Vianney
3. Rumson-Fair Haven
4. Shore
5. Manasquan
6. Raritan
7. Holmdel
8. Monmouth

Division Lineup

Anthony Santoro, Catcher, St. John Vianney – The Rutgers University recruit hit .416 with 10 extra-base hits (two home runs), stole 10 bases and assumes the mantle as the Shore’s top defensive catcher.

Joe Sadler, 1B, Holmdel – Led the conference in batting average (.552), on-base percentage (.628), and slugging percentage as a junior.

Andrew Schulz, 2B, Shore – Table-setter (.489 on-base percentage) on a team that was quietly one of the better offenses in the Shore Conference in 2013.

Al Molina, SS, Red Bank Catholic – Coastal Carolina recruit is one of the best in the field, at the plate and on the mound, which makes Molina a preseason Player of the Year candidate.

Bruce Strickland, 3B, Raritan – Finished percentage points behind Sadler for the Shore Conference batting title (.551), rapped 10 doubles, and went 6-2 on the mound for good measure.

Evan Pietronico, OF, St. John Vianney – New Jersey Institute of Technology recruit posted eye-popping numbers in the middle of the loaded Lancers order: .519 average, 10 doubles, four home runs, 10 stolen bases.

Matt Cosentino, OF, Shore – The George Washington University recruit was limited to 32 plate appearances last year, but he made them count: 12 hits, three doubles, two triples, one homer, 10 walks, 11 stolen bases.

Chris Drummond, OF, Rumson-Fair Haven – The two Division I pitchers on his team have generated most of the talk, but Drummond let his play do the talking last year: .449 on-base percentage with eight doubles, and a 3.36 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 25 innings.

Joe Rotelli, 1B/DH, St. John Vianney – The Carson-Newman College recruit slugged a robust .787 as a junior, which was somehow only second on the team to Pietronico (.831).

Division Rotation

Tom Puza, RHP, Red Bank Catholic – Quietly one of the most dependable pitchers in the Shore last year: 39 2/3 innings with a 1.06 ERA and 40 strikeouts.

Morgan Maguire, RHP, Rumson-Fair Haven – Will pitch for Justin Verlander’s alma mater (Old Dominion) in two years, but for now will help anchor a rotation that could be the Shore Conference’s version of the Detroit Tigers.

Shane McCarthy, RHP, Rumson-Fair Haven – Missed all of 2013 while recovering from elbow surgery, but reports have been positive on the Seton Hall recruit heading into his senior season.

Justin Chin, LHP, St. John Vianney – Gutted through the 2013 season while battling some shoulder trouble, posting a 1.25 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 33 innings.

Dan Schirmacher, RHP, St. John Vianney – One of the breakout pitchers of 2013, Schirmacher logged 48 quality innings (2.02 ERA) and earned a reputation as a staff horse in only his sophomore season.

Breakout Players to Watch

Tom Pulcine, INF, Raritan – The .344/.412/.410 slash line as a sophomore suggests he could be the next big breakout offensive player at Raritan. And there is one of those every year.

Jack Sheehan, 3B/P, Manasquan – After showing off his athleticism on the basketball court for the Warriors 19-4 squad, Sheehan brings versatility to the diamond for a potentially upstart Manasquan club.

Evan Madigan, 2B/SS, Red Bank Catholic – Played some innings at second base at the end of his freshman year and is a projected top-of-the-order hitter for one of the Shore’s best programs heading into his sophomore year.

James Kelly, 3B/P, Shore – Had a breakout of sorts last year in the batter’s box (.319, five doubles), but the junior should also take a big leap forward on the mound while also further developing as a hitter and fielder.

Tyler Fischer, SS, Holmdel – Held his own at the plate during his freshman year, so another year to mature physically could mean a jump up in production as a sophomore.

Burning Questions

Is this finally Vianney’s year in Class A Central?

If ever there was a year for St. John Vianney to run down Red Bank Catholic, this should be it. RBC returns enough talent to start the season as the favorite considering the Caseys went 14-0 in the division last year, but no team outside of Wall returns the amount of production that Vianney brings back. If the Lancers can keep their top three pitchers healthy and Red Bank Catholic has some trouble putting a staff together, SJV could dethrone the defending champs.

With two presumably healthy Division I pitchers heading the rotation, is Rumson a threat to win the division?

No team with two Division I arms at the top of its rotation can ever be considered a “sleeper” to win its regular-season division title, but if this season is supposed to be a race between non-public rivals Red Bank Catholic and St. John Vianney, then Rumson is the team that could sneak through the back door. Any team that relies on two or three pitchers is also crossing its fingers that those arms stay nice and healthy, but if they do and the Bulldogs can become just an average-to-above-average team in the field and at the plate, that gives them a shot.

What can Matt Cosentino do with a full season and what does it mean for Shore?

The numbers Cosentino put up in 22 at-bats and 32 plate appearances last year were staggering. His total number of official at-bats was equal to the number of times he reached base and his slash line of .545/.687/1.000 rivals that of Sadler, which should put Sadler’s year into perspective as well. Cosentino could be one of the Shore’s best offensive players this season, but if he can fully bounce back on the mound after an injury-shortened 2013, he could be a Player of the Year sleeper, which means Shore would likely be contending for a Group I title.

Can Manasquan flip the script in close games?

The Baltimore Orioles’ surprise 2012 playoff appearance raised some debate about the degree to which luck is involved in a team’s record in one-run games (the Orioles went 29-9, a Major League record for winning percentage in such games). I’m not here to settle that debate, but if luck has anything to do with it – or even if the slightest adjustment can change the fortunes of a team – then Manasquan could be one of the surprise teams in the conference this year. Not only should the Warriors improve as their young core develops, but they should also be able to avoid a 1-8 record in one-run games and a 2-12 record in games decided by three runs or fewer, which was the nightmare they endured last year.

What does the Post-Jarmusz Era have in store for Monmouth?

Paul Crivello is disciple of Ted Jarmusz, so while Crivello will bring his own approach to coaching, the culture of baseball at Monmouth should remain for the time being. Unfortunately for Monmouth, while the culture remains, the players don’t. The Falcons have to replace their top two pitchers and the entire middle of the batting order, which is more than they’ve had to address in recent years. There have been years in which there was not much pitching returning or the offense had some question marks going into the season, but this is the first year in some time that Monmouth will not have any power bats or arms returning to the fold. In the long run, Crivello could very well pick up where Jarmusz left off, but it might have to start with baby steps as he looks to reload the program.