Times Chronicle & Public Spirit
Goodz leads Warminster-Centennial to first win of the summer
WARMINSTER » No matter which Rake Baseball Academy pitcher CJ Goodz faced Thursday night, good things happened for him.
The Warminster-Centennial outfielder had an extremely productive night at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a walk, run and RBI as the Braves picked up their first win of the Pendel season. Warminster-Centennial struck early then stuck it out against a variety of different looks from Rake.
With Goodz leading the way, the Braves secured a 5-1 victory at Munro Park.
“I’m so grateful for this league,” Goodz, a rising senior at Jefferson University said. “It’s a way to get some at-bats and come back a little more fresh for the fall. The guys really brought the bats tonight and we had great pitching out there, we only gave up one run and when you do that, you should win the ball game.”
Goodz, a 2017 graduate of William Tennent, had been off to a good start at Jefferson in the spring batting .409 with four doubles, five RBIs and two runs in his six games before COVID-19 halted the season. He had been off to a slow start in Pendel play but like his team, picked things up on Thursday.
The Braves (1-4) got a leadoff double from Mason Fisher, but picked up two quick outs before cleanup hitter Jabari Cox stepped to the plate. Cox, who has been off to a scorching start, laced the first pitch he saw up the middle for an RBI single to kick off a big inning.
Charles Longshore followed with a single to bring up Goodz, who belted a double to left field that plated Cox for a 2-0 lead. Longshore and Goodz would then score on KJ Hallgren’s single and the Braves had all the advantage they would need at 4-0.
“We had close games and so many new guys still learning to play together,” Goodz said. “The chemistry is coming together and now I think so will the wins.”
Goodz added a single in the third, drew a walk in the fifth and singled in the seventh inning with each result coming off a different Rake Academy (1-3) pitcher.
“I found some grass in some lucky ways,” Goodz said. “I’d say I had a lucky night and had the baseball gods up there watching. I just hustled out and had a couple fly balls that are usually outs drop so just chalk it up to playing hard.”
Rake pulled a run back in the bottom of the third after Colin Costello drew a walk and moved all the way around to third on an infield error the following batter. Felix Galarza then drove Costello in with a sac fly to left field but Rake wasn’t able to capitalize on its other chances.
The squad is a new addition to the Pendel League this summer and is composed entirely of college players with most of them coming from Bucks County Community College. Rake manager Steve Sable, a Pendel League veteran, is an assistant coach at Bucks Community College and an instructor at the Feasterville-based Rake Academy.
With most of his players not getting much in the way of a college season, Sable is trying to balance development with competition in the 15-game Pendel regular season.
“We had 21 guys here today, we’re looking to get everybody time, some at-bats and improve, that’s what it’s all about,” Sable said. “Guys sitting around doing nothing, they aren’t getting better so now they have a chance to get on the field, develop and get ready for heading back to college.”
On Thursday, 17 different players got a plate appearance while six different pitchers tossed at least an inning of work on the mound for Rake. Rake will face Upper Moreland, another roster heavy with college players, in a doubleheader Sunday at Masons Mill Park.
“For me, summer ball is about developing especially with these younger guys,” Sable said. “If this was a more seasoned team and we had a smaller roster, it’d be easier to have a starting nine and go out there and play. Sitting the bench and not doing anything, you’re not getting any better.”
Warminster-Centennial will clash with Southampton on Sunday in a doubleheader at Munro Park.
“We’ve been building every game,” Goodz said. “The guys are putting work and I’m excited to see how we build on it Sunday. We have a bunch of great guys, they all work jobs during the day so it’s tough to get up for it sometimes but when you have a group like this, it makes it worth it.”