Baseball Summer League Update
Jul 28 | Baseball
PISCATAWAY, NJ - Several Scarlet Knight baseball players are enjoying success in leagues spanning from New Jersey to Massachusetts to Illinois this summer. Here is an update on where they are and how they are doing this summer.
Junior Todd Frazier (Toms River, NJ) highlights the group, as one of 22 standouts from around the nation to earn a spot on the USA Baseball National Team. Frazier has played in 14 of Team USA's first 16 games with 10 starts. He is hitting .243 in 37 at-bats with two home runs and seven RBI. The two-time All-BIG EAST shortstop has played both the infield and outfield for the National Team during his summer with the club. Team USA is 15-1 through July 23rd. They will play in the FISU in Havana, Cuba next month.
Junior Ryan Hill (Hillsdale, NJ), along with his brother Dennis Hill (Hillsdale, NJ), who will be a red-shirt freshman pitcher next season, is playing with the Concord Quarry Dogs of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. Ryan has started all 34 games in left field for Concord, hitting .213 (26-of-122) with seven doubles, a triple and a pair of home runs. He has scored 13 runs and driven in another 12. Dennis' 12 appearances are the fourth-most on the roster this summer. He owns a 2-1 record and a 2.28 ERA with three starts. Dennis has registered 32 strikeouts this summer - second-most on the team. Concord is 13-21 and currently in fifth place in the league's Northern Division.
Junior catcher Frank Meade (Linden, NJ) is enjoying a successful summer with the Galesburg Pioneers of the Central Illinois Collegiate League. He was recently named to and started in the league's All-Star Game on July 12. Meade is second on the Galesburg roster and fourth overall in the league in batting with a .323 average. He has started 20 of the Pioneers' 31 games behind the plate. Offensively, he has registered 21 hits, including four doubles and four home runs, while driving in 12 runs for the Pioneers this summer. Galesburg entered the week 12-19 overall.
Senior pitcher Sean Spicer (Pearl River, NY) has made six appearances, including three starts for the Torrington Twisters of the NECBL. Spicer owns a 5.12 ERA and a 0-1 record in 19.1 innings pitched. The Twisters played Team USA in an exhibition contest on June 29, however Spicer did not face Frazier in the game.
Sophomore pitcher Matt Giannini (Watchung, NJ) was one of three Scarlet Knights to play for the Chatham A's of the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League this summer. Frazier played in several games for the A's earlier in the summer before joining the National Team, while senior Dave Williams (Franklin, NJ), played for the A's in several games this summer. Giannini owns a 3.21 ERA and a 0-1 record in seven appearances, including one start for Chatham this summer. He has logged 14.1 innings, striking out 14 during that span. Chatham is 14-17-1 overall, sitting in fourth place in the Cape Cod League's Eastern Division.
Senior Tim Querns (Cherry Hill, NJ) and junior Tim Woodhull (Princeton Junction, NJ) both play in the Shenandoah Valley League. Querns plays third base for the for the Haymarket Senators and Woodhull pitches for the Winchester Royals. Querns is hitting .292 with 45 hits, including seven doubles for the Senators. He ranks second on the team with 23 RBI and 19 walks this summer, while proving successful on both of his stolen base attempts. He has started 40 of Haymarket's 42 games this summer, guiding them to a 22-20 record. Woodhull has made 10 appearances for Winchester, sporting a 3-1 record and a 6.57 ERA in 12.1 innings pitched. Haymarket is second in the league's north division, while Winchester is tied for third place in the same division. Both teams have qualified for the playoffs.
Junior Jason Downey (Ballston Lake, NY) is the lone RU player spending his summer in the New York Collegiate League. Downey, who began the 2006 season as a pitcher but moved to the Scarlet Knights' backup catcher role last season, has played several games in the outfield, while pitching for the Saratoga Phillies. He owns a 3.45 ERA in seven starts for the Phillies. Downey has logged 44.1 innings this summer. His four wins (4-3 record overall) and 32 strikeouts rank second on the roster.
Sophomore Tom Edwards (West Caldwell, NJ) is one of the stars of the Jersey Pilots of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League. He has started nearly every game for the Pilots, playing second and third base. Edwards is hitting .259 this summer with 22 hits, including four doubles and a triple. He has driven in 11 runs for the Pilots and scored 11 more. The Pilots are 15-18 this summer, in third place in the league's Wolff Division.
Ten Scarlet Knights are representing several teams in the Atlantic Baseball Confederation Collegiate League. Senior Nick Stavrakis (Warren, NJ), a member of the Toms River Black sox, is near the top of the league with a .362 batting average. In 94 at-bats. He has 34 hits, including five doubles and five triples. He leads the league with 24 RBI on the season. Black Sox teammate and fellow senior Chris Lillis (Fair Haven, NJ) is enjoying a stellar summer on the mound with a 1.98 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 41.0 innings pitched. He owns a 3-1 record in nine appearances. Lillis owns the second lowest ERA on the roster and is tied for the most strikeouts among Toms River's regular pitchers. The Black Sox are 17-14-1 overall and are in fifth place in the league.
Red-shirt freshman pitcher Kyle Bradley (Howell, NJ) has logged over 11.1 innings in four appearances for the Ocean Giants. He owns a 1-1 record and 10 strikeouts on the summer. The Giants are 8-12 in sixth place in the league.
Sophomore Mike Livingston (Red Bank, NJ) has seen action in 11 games for the Freehold Clippers (11-20-1). He has five hits on the summer, scoring four runs and driving in another.
Sophomore Vinny Sangemino (Nutley, NJ) has played in seven games all in July for the Jersey Shore Tides this summer. He is hitting .313 with a double and a home run for the Tides, who are 9-19-1 this summer.
The Middletown Monarchs' roster is made up of three Scarlet Knights - Luis Feliz (New Brunswick, NJ), Jon McCue (Hillside, NJ) and Donny Callahan (Sparta, NJ). Callahan, who has played in 28 games, is hitting .289 for the Monarchs with four doubles. He has scored 18 runs and driven in another 10. Feliz has played 23 games for the Monarchs, hitting .242 overall with a pair of doubles. He has recorded a team-high 15 stolen bases. McCue owns a 2.23 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 36.1 innings pitched for the Monarchs. He owns a team-best 4-3 record, while surrendering just two extra-base hits all summer. The Monarchs are 17-14 in the league.
Junior Vic Cegles (Phoenix, AZ) and red-shirt freshman Tim Reilly (Egg Harbor City, NJ) round out the RU contingent in the ABCCL as members of the Protocall Starz. In eight games, Cegles is batting .250 with five hits. Reilly has played in seven games for the Starz, registering a pair of hits. Protocall has played just 10 games this season and owns a 6-3-1 record in the league.
Rutgers represented the ABCCL All-Star Game well with five Scarlet Knights - Lillis, Stavrakis, Cegles, McCue and Callahan - earning a spot in the game.
