Leader Article on Florham Park Game

Today's Leader (July 19th) has a nice article on the boys' recent victory over Florham Park. http://www.goleader.com/07jul19/07jul19.pdf

Schedule for July 20th through July 29th

The schedule for July 20th through July 29th is currently as follows...

• >> Fri, 7/20 at 6pm - This is the game against Berkley Heights which was originally scheduled for Wed, 7/18 .
• >> Mon, 7/23 - Practice at Houlihan from 6-8pm
• >> Wed, 7/25 - 2nd Rd Playoffs (Location TBD@6pm)
• >> Fri, 7/27 - 3rd Rd Playoffs (Location TBD@6pm)**
• >> Sun, 7/29 - Finals (Long Hill@8pm)**

** - only if we win the previous playoff game

There is a chance that there may be an additional practice over this coming weekend. I'll know more towards the end of the week.

Westfield Blue defeats Chatham 12-11 in nail biter

Westfield narrowly defeated a tough and scrappy Chatham team by the score of 12-11. Nick Mele started the game for Westfield and pitched 2 strong shutout innings and Eric Varakian, Chris “Mariano” Varano and Vin “Madman” Difilippo combined to pitch the last 4 innings getting out of tough jams when they needed to. Difilippo was especially tough entering the game in a bases loaded situation and only one out in the 5th and shutting down the Chatham threat.

Westfield’s offense jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the 1st. Eric Varakian led off with a walk and Chris Rinaldi followed with a double to the center field fence. Nick Mele followed with a 2 run double. After walks to Chris “Boots” Boutsikaris and Hopper Murray, Devin “The Animal” Anderson took one for the team and got an RBI when he was hit with a pitch. The inning ended without further scoring, but only because of a great play by the Chatham right fielder who fielded a one hop rocket off of the bat of Brett Robertshaw in right center field and threw to 2nd base to get the force out.

Westfield got 2 more in the 3rd and one more in the 4th In the 3rd, Rinaldi led off with a double and was promptly singled home by Boots. Boots stole a couple of bases and scored on a hard grounder that was hit by Vin Difilippo. In the 4th, Devin Anderson led off with a double to the left center field fence, advanced to 3rd on a Scott Tupper single and scored on a hard grounder from Brett Robertshaw. The score was 6-1 after Westfield’s turn at bat in the 4th, but Chatham stormed back with 3 in the bottom half of the inning to make it a close game.

Eric Varakian pitched solidly in the 3rd and 4th innings and Chris Varano and Vin Difilippo combined to pitch the 5th for Westfield. Chatham was threatening in the 5th and Difilippo came on to put out the fire and he also pitched the 6th to pick up the save.

The offense scored 6 runs in the top of the 5th to give Westfield some breathing room. Ethan “Smiley” Smith led off the inning with a single and Varakian followed with a double. Rinaldi was hit with a pitch to load the bases and then Mele, Boots Difilippo and Murray each hit the ball hard to knock in runs. Murray’s single, which was a missile of a line drive to right field, drove in Rinaldi and Mele and then “The Animal” Anderson cleared the bases with his 2nd double of the day. Mariano Varano knocked in Anderson with a single to close out the scoring.

Westfield got a big scare when Chatham batted in the bottom of 6th when Chatham pulled within 1 run and had 2nd and 3rd with only one out, but solid pitching and very good defense allowed Westfield to escape. With one out and 2nd and 3rd, the runner on 3rd attempted to score on a slow roller to 3rd that slipped past the Westfield 3rd baseman. Shortstop Chris Rinaldi backed up the play and threw a strike to catcher Nick Mele for the 2nd out. The batter advanced to 2nd on the play and Chatham once again had the tying and winning runs on base when second baseman Eric Varakian made the defensive play of the game. Varakian made a diving play in short right center field on a soft fly ball that looked like it would drop in for the winning hit. Varakian was mobbed by his teammates after the play.

The Westfield defense was solid throughout most of the contest. Pitcher Difilippo made an amazing play on a soft grounder to the left side of the mound and threw a strike to Nick Mele at 1st from his knees to nip the Chatham runner and end the 5th inning. Rinaldi made a nice backhand stab at short and threw across to a stretching Boots at 1st for a key out early in the game. Robertshaw made a nice catch on a high pop up in foul territory off of 3rd base for an important out in the 5th inning. Matt Macik hit the ball hard in each plate appearance and was robbed of a hit in 2 of his 3 at bats.

Next up is Berkley Heights on Wednesday at 6pm in Berkley Heights. Warm ups will start at 5:20pm and the boys will wear their gray uniforms.

Pictures from Chatham Game (7/16)

Eric V looks in for a sign

Mariano shakes off the fastball

Hopper, Scott and Devin "The Animal" getting ready for the game

Chris R and Eric

Good buddies...Nick, Chris R and Eric

Eric visualizing his double

Eric practicing his swing

Directions to Berkley Heights for 7/18 Game (Fields are at Early Childhood Center at Hamilton Terrace School)

BERKELEY HEIGHTS DIRECTIONS TO BASEBALL FIELDS at Early Childhood Center at Hamilton Terrace School

TRAVELING 78 EAST:

Get off 78 at Exit 41 (Scotch Plains/Berkeley Heights). Take a left off the exit and travel to traffic light. Turn right at traffic light and travel approximately ¼ mile. Turn left onto Horseshoe Rd. and travel to traffic light. Turn left onto Mountain Ave. and travel about ½ mile. Turn right into The Early Childhood Center (you'll see a white sign on either side of the entrance).

TRAVELING 78 WEST:

Get off 78 at Exit 43 (Berkeley Heights/New Providence). Take a right off the exit onto Diamond Hill Rd. and go through 1^st light. At second light take a left onto Mountain Ave. Travel on Mountain Ave. going thru two lights and travel about ½ mile. Turn right into The Early Childhood Center (you'll see a white sign on either side of the entrance).

TRAVELING 22 EAST:

Pass "Sears" on your right and "Blue Star" on your left and get into the right hand lane. Follow signs for Berkeley Heights/New Providence. Turn right immediately after "Snuffy's" and then another quick right going over Rt. 22. Go thru light (the quarry will be on your left after about ¼ mile). Go thru 2 lights. At the third light take a left onto Mountain Ave. Travel on Mountain Ave. going thru two lights and travel about ½ mile. Turn right into The Early Childhood Center (you'll see a white sign on either side of the entrance).

TRAVELING 22 WEST:

Pass "Bowcraft" on your right and travel about 1 mile staying in the right hand lane. Turn right IMMEDIATELY after "McDonald's" and travel about ¼ mile. Turn right at road's end (the quarry will be in front of you). Go thru 2 lights. At the third light take a left onto Mountain Ave. Travel on Mountain Ave. going thru two lights and travel about ½ mile. Turn right into The Early Childhood Center (you'll see white signs on either side of the entrance).

Directions to Chatham (Monday, 7/16 @ 6pm)

Directions to Shunpike Fields and Castle Park complex in Chatham are as follows...

• -- Take NORTH AVE heading towards Scotch Plains (2.1 miles)
• -- Turn RIGHT onto CR-655 / N MARTINE AVE. Continue to follow CR-655. (0.8 miles)
• -- Turn LEFT onto CR-655 / PARK AVE. Continue to follow CR-655. (2.1 miles)
• -- Turn SLIGHT RIGHT onto MOUNTAIN AVE / CR-622. (0.9 miles)
• -- Turn LEFT onto CR-647 / SOUTH ST. Continue to follow CR-647 (2.4 miles)
• -- Turn LEFT onto SOUTHERN BLVD / CR-647 (2.5 miles)
• -- Turn RIGHT on Shunpike Rd and fields should be on the right (see map)

We are playing on field #3 which is the first ball diamond on the right.

Video Highlights from Warren Game (7/13)

(Press play button in lower left hand corner of the video frames below)

Westfield gets out of a bases loaded, no out jam in the 1st inning with great pitching and solid defense



Westfield outfielders come up throwing to the plate



Westfield hitting highlights


A big thanks to Rich Mele for taking video of the game.

Westfield's run in Babe Ruth tournament ends with 3-1 loss to Warren

Westfield Blue lost 3-1 to a tough, well coached team from Warren. The loss dropped Westfield to 2-3 in the Babe Ruth tournament and ended Westfield’s run at the tournament playoff round.

Westfield got incredibly strong pitching from Vin “Madman” Difilippo. Madman held Warren to only a single earned run through solid innings of work on the mound. He scattered six hits over 4 and battled fiercly to get out of trouble in the 1st and 4th innings. The 1st inning was particularly impressive as Warren loaded the bases with no outs, but Difilippo dug down and added a few MPHs to his fastball and snuck in a few timely changeups to escape the inning without allowing Warren to score. Nick Mele pitched one inning in relief and retired all 3 batters he faced. The defense was strong behind both pitchers. Centerfielder Scott Tupper prevented another Warren run when with a runner on 2nd base he charged a single up the middle and threw a strike to the cutoff man to hold the runners at 1st and 3rd.

Warren got great pitching as well and the Warren starter had a perfect game going until Nick Mele broke through with a single with 2 outs in the 4th. A few pitches later Chris “Boots” Boutsikaris followed Mele’s single with a single of his own and the only run of the game for Westfield. The only other hit of the game for Westfield was Brett Robertshaw’s clutch leadoff single in the top of the 6th. Eric Varakian followed with a line shot to center field, but the Warren center fielder made a nice running catch to head off the rally that seemed like it was in the making.

Next up is Chatham on Monday, 7/16 in Chatham in North Jersey League play. Warm ups will start at 5:20 and the boys will wear their gray uniforms. Directions to Chatham will be available later in the weekend.

Leader Articles on Branchburg and Cranford games

The July 12th issue of the Westfield Leader has two articles on the team. One on the game against Branchburg and the other on their Babe Ruth Tournament game against Cranford.

The articles can be accessed online at http://www.goleader.com/07jul12/07jul12.pdf

Westfield Blue defeats South Orange Maplewood in Babe Ruth Tournament

Westfield stayed alive in the Babe Ruth Tournament with a 12-2, 5-inning mercy rule shortened victory against a solid South Orange Maplewood team. The victory puts Westfield at 2-2 in the Babe Ruth Tournament and 16-5 overall and it puts them in a position to advance to the District playoffs on Saturday with a win against Warren tomorrow evening.

Nick Mele started for Westfield and pitched 3 scoreless innings to set the tone for the game. Chris Rinaldi pitched the last two innings for Westfield and struggled some with his control, but he kept the damage to a minimum holding South Orange Maplewood to 2 runs.

The defense was strong behind both pitchers and heads up defense and solid execution in the field helped keep South Orange Maplewood off of the board early. In the 1st inning South Orange Maplewood attempted to send a runner home on a ground ball to short with one out. Shortstop Rinaldi charged the ball and threw a strike to catcher Vin “Madman” Difilippo who made a nice tag to record the out at the plate. In the 2nd inning with runners on the corners, South Orange Maplewood attempted a 1st and 3rd play but Westfield picked off the runner on 3rd base for the 2nd out of the inning. In the 3rd inning, Mele threw to Eric Varakian at 2nd to nail a South Orange Maplewood runner who strayed to far of the bag. Also in the 3rd inning with runners on 1st and 2nd, shortstop Rinaldi charged a slow roller, fielded it bare handed and threw a strike to a stretching Chris “Boots” Boutsikaris at first for a key out. Varakian made a couple of key plays at 2nd base and Difilippo was strong behind the plate and kept the South Orange Maplewood running game in check.

The offense was explosive for the 2nd game in a row and production occurred up and down the lineup. Varakian was 4 for 4 from the lead off spot with an RBI and 2 runs scored and Nick Mele went 3 for 4 with a double and 4 RBIs. Devin “the Animal” Anderson continued his hot hitting, going 2 for 2 with an RBI (Anderson is now 5 for his last 5) and Chris “Mariano” Varano was 1 for 1 with a hard hit single to left. Brett Robertshaw scored a run and drove one in with a sac fly and Rinaldi had a hit and 2 RBIs. Difilippo hit the ball hard in 3 of his 4 at bats and ended the game with a walk off RBI single.

Next up is Warren on Friday at 6pm in the Babe Ruth Tournament. The game will be held at Memorial Field in Scotch Plains and warm ups with start at 5:10pm. The winner will advance to the District Semi-finals and play South Orange Maplewood on Saturday morning at 10am. The boys will wear their blue jerseys to the remaining Babe Ruth Tournament games.

Warren game rescheduled to Friday due to weather

The Babe Ruth tournament game against Warren, which was scheduled for tonight, has been rescheduled for Friday, July 13th due to the inclement weather. The revised schedules is as follows...

• >> Thursday, July 12th at 6pm against South Orange/Maplewood at Memorial Field in Scotch Plains. Warm ups will start at 5:10pm.
• >> Friday, July 13th at 6pm against Warren at Memorial Field in Scotch Plains. Warm ups will start at 5:10pm.
• >> Saturday, July 14th (time, location and opponent TBD) - This is the semi-final round and will only happen if we qualify for this round
• >> Sunday, July 15th (time, location and opponent TBD) - This is the championship round and will only happen if we qualify for this round

The boys will wear blue jerseys for all Babe Ruth tournament games.

Ethan "Bob" makes a surprise appearance at Florham Park game

Ethan "Bob" Prevoznak made an unannounced visit to the team during their game against Florham Park. "Bob" was sporting a new hair style and new number (93) and he arrived after playing a good game against a tough Scotch Plains team. "Bob" quietly approached Coach R upon arrival and said he was available to pitch in relief if the game got tight.