ROLLIN’, ROLLIN’, ROLLIN’
Albany Athletics on the cusp of a special season
ALBANY, NY >> The Albany Athletics are on the verge of doing something that nobody’s ever done before, a perfect season in the Albany Twilight League.
“We’re not talking about it, but our goal in to finish the season with a perfect record,” said Athletics manager Joe Altieri. “We have three more games to go and we can make history in the Twilight League, winning every game that we play — nobody’s ever done that.”
Their game on Tuesday against the Albany Blue Jays was postponed due to rain, so their current record in the league stands at 22-0. Overall, their record this season is 292-1, with the remaining games having been played against teams in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League and the New York Collegiate Baseball League
“Those non-Twilight League games are very important to our schedule and our improvement along the way,” Altieri said. “Those are important games to prepare us for the postseason, they have very good pitching and it’s important for us to play on a regular basis, not just a couple times a week like the Twilight League does.”
The 22-game league win streak that the A’s are cur
rently on, is the second longest streak in league history, second only to themselves.
“We actually set the record in 2012 with 23 straight wins and nobody’s ever beat that record. We’re actually second right now with 22 straight wins.”
If Albany is able to get in their remaining three games on their schedule before the playoffs start they could break their record — if everything goes according to plan.
What is different about the Twilight League, compared to a collegiate league, is that along with many current college players, are former college players who still have a drive to compete at a high level.
“It’s a great group of guys,” said Tim Carroll, a recent graduate of Siena College. “They’re very competitive, which I love. They know how to win, know how to get the job done and they’ve done it before.”
Carroll spoke about longtime Athletic, Chris Salamida, who played in college, then in the minor leagues, including stint for the Tri-City ValleyCats.
“It’s crazy, he’s definitely a guy that I look up to. He’s been doing this for so long, he’s been very successful and he’s extremely important to this program. He’s just a great guy too.”
A new addition to the program is Saint Rose graduate, Andrew Pedone, who joins returners like Nate Novak, Zach Breen and Craig Mastroianni.
Breen though, isn’t around every game as he’s now the pitching coach for the Amsterdam Mohawks.
“Guys need rest, guys have commitments, but it’s next man up, just like tonight,” Altieri said of filling in spots. “We have guys in filling into different positions, but the guys want to win games no matter who’s in the lineup or where they have play.”
Aside from their win streak and potential undefeated season, the A’s next have the league championship tournament and the American Amateur Baseball Congress Tournament to look forward to.
“For us, it’s win or bust,” Carroll said. “We know what we’re capable of and how talented we are. If we show up and play our game, we feel like we have a really good chance.”
“The regular season champion in the Twilight League chooses to go to either the NABF or AABC Tournament. We chose to go to AABC, which is the Northeast World Series, in Boston,” Altieri explained. “Everyone knows that we have goals of something special that we’re trying to accomplish. It’s the camaraderie and chemistry right now that stands out. Guys are just happy to be here, they’re happy to be coming to the park to play baseball with each other. There’s a lot of joking around and lose play. For a team that’s got pretty high expectations, they’re not acting like they’re under pressure and that’s what makes it fun, not just for me, but for everyone on the team.”