Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
District field comes down to final day
With the last day of the regular season upon us, and district playoffs beginning next Monday, I think it is time to see what can go right for the various area baseball teams and what can derail their championship aspirations. Many area teams will qualify for the expanded District 1 tournament with some teams still on the bubble.
In the Class 6A bracket, Ches-Mont National Division champion Downingtown West looks like the most complete team with two excellent starting pitchers in Drew Britt and Adam Grintz, plus a lineup, led by Nick Campana and Mike Mollenhauer, that is one of the best in the district. The Whippets also play airtight infield defense and J.J. Freeman is one of the best glove men in the district. What has bothered the Whippets this season is offspeed pitchers who feature a lot of junk balls, so the matchup will be key for the Whippets.
The other 6A area squads all have flaws as well as strengths, and Downingtown East is led by the starting pitching of Hutch Gagnon and Will Peiffer. The offense is potent and Connor Munnely and Tommy Hammett lead the way. Fielding the ball has, at times, been the Cougars’ undoing and they will have to clean that up to advance in the playoffs.
Both Avon Grove and Coatesville have gotten good starting pitching this season but both the Red Devils and Red Raiders have not consistently hit the baseball. If Coatesville gets into the playoffs, it will be a tough out with the mound duo of Adam Stauffer and Damon Nelson. Both squads field the ball pretty well, but they are going to have to find some more offense to advance.
In the 5A bracket, Bishop Shanahan, West Chester East and West Chester Henderson all have impressive pitching staffs. Shanahan has a deep mound staff with Nick O’Day, Dan Browne and Austin O’Dell. O’Day is also hitting over .400 and P.J. Heintz is one of the best catchers around. Shanahan, at times, has been done in by some shoddy fielding. West Chester East features the superlative pitching of Adam Smith. And the Vikings’ number two guy, Tom Luckier, brings a nice change of pace from the hard-throwing Smith.
The Vikings also need to score more. West Chester East has lost many one-run, low-scoring games and the time to get hot is now if they hope to advance. Henderson is the hottest Ches-Mont League team right now, having won four in a row going into today’s game against Shanahan. Pitching has led Hendersopn with underrated junior Brady Bash and Evan Spano leading the way. Henderson will have to hit more to advance and get Zach Roberts and Jackson Ritthamel to help out Thomas Caulfield at the plate.
West Chester Rustin has the best pitcher in the Ches-Mont, if not all of District 1, in Chris McMahon. The Golden Knights have the luxury of always being the favorite in a game no matter the opposition, at least when McMahon is on the hill. The senior righthander will pitch Monday against Octorara and the Golden Knights can hit the ball also. Jake Geisser is hitting over .400 and if the Golden Knights can clean up some defensive errors, they will be a tough out in the 5A bracket.
Octorara is one of the four Class 4A squads in the field, and the Braves have had a turnaround season led by the pitching of Aaron Feld and the offense and catching abilities of Tim Lubrano. But the Braves have not hit the ball consistently this season, and despite Feld, that will have to change for Octorara to advance.
*** So, there it is. The area has many teams that have a legitimate shot to win a district title or just as good a shot to be eliminated in the first round. It all comes down to who is hot right now and who can play solid, fundamental baseball and put the ball in play and force its opponent to make the plays. That is what high school baseball is all about, not striking out and putting pressure on the opposing teams defense.
It all begins a week from today and the area will be well represented and the playoffs, as always, should be a lot of fun for players and fans alike.