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| Left-handed hitters may not like what they see when they face Wolcott sophomore southpaw Jack Moore, who has pitched well in the preseason. (Copyright, Sports on CT-69) |
It was just a scrimmage, but Wolcott baseball showed some solid pitching in a Tuesday afternoon game against Bristol Central at Page Park.
First, it was junior Jack Drewry who took to the mound. Drewry put in some strong work without allowing a run. Drewry also showed that he can be a tough out at the plate, working the count before drilling a line drive for a hit.
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| Wolcott junior Jack Drewry provides a patient approach and solid bat at the plate for the Eagles. (Copyright, Sports on CT-69) |
Sophomore southpaw Jack Moore was next, and he continued an impressive strikeout streak to begin his season. The left-hander threw strikes, got his curveball over, and stranded a Bristol Central runner on second base.
“We’ve got arms,” Eagles head coach Tary Scott said before the scrimmage.
Offensively, Wolcott did lose some good bats like Steve Urbanski and Ray Bartoli to graduation, but they also bring some back. Drewry had a home run and four RBI in a 13-6 first round Class M win over Woodland in 2017. Nick Trager scored three times and drove in a run, and Trey Nastri had two runs scored.
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| Bristol Central junior catcher Jake Santiago is ready to uncork a throw to second base. Santiago threw out a Wolcott runner on the play. (Copyright, Sports on CT-69) |
In a regular season game against Wilby, Jeff Nicol went 5-for-5 with a home run, two doubles, five RBI and four runs scored. Nick Longo went 4-for-5 in that game with a double and six RBI. Longo was hitting in the No. 9 spot that game.
Players who were sophomores and juniors last year gained valuable experience in an up-and-down 13-9 season. That season ended in a 3-2 second round loss to Lewis Mills in Class M. Mills went on to reach the state final and was the runner-up. Eight players who were in the batting order or substituted in that second round game are back for Wolcott.
The Eagles are hoping for a more successful 2018, and it starts Saturday in Beacon Falls against Woodland at 1 p.m.
Bristol Central
The Rams are a young team with a bunch of sophomores, and that youth showed at times in Tuesday’s scrimmage. Central head coach Bunty Ray spent most of his time instructing or correcting his players.
One positive was the pitching of freshman Sean Wininger. Wininger gave up some runs in the first inning, but settled down over his next three frames. Junior catcher Jake Santiago threw out a runner trying to steal second, and also showed leadership qualities when he told Wininger to slow down on the mound.
The Rams may have their struggles, but they’re hoping first half learning curves turn into second half success.
GALLERY: Click here to see my photos from Tuesday’s scrimmage.
