Weekly RoundUp: Week 4
6/20/2022by Corey LeBlanc
Weekly RoundUp: Week 4
Weekly RoundUp: Week 4

Welcome, everyone, to another rousing edition of Weekly RoundUp – the once-a-week blog that puts the hack in back in Daddy Hacks. Happy belated Father’s Day to all the A+ dads in the NDBA.

 

This week, we’re going to school and learning about where every team stands through the first quarter of the season. We’ve got a long way to go, thanks to some bad weather and some slight… illumination problems.

 

We’ll touch on every team’s strength and weakness on the main fronts, plus I’ll highlight players making a difference for every team. It’s a dig-deep edition that you’ll want to study up on before midterms in July.

 

Now pull up a chair, class is in session.

 

SEVEN LESSONS

 

Rose City Thorns (7-1) 1st in NDBA

 

The Thorns are the pinnacle of Niagara senior baseball in 2022.

 

Building off a championship season, the Thorns’ main core of Tyler Wood, Matt Holman, Chris Peskett and Dave Knaus have all provided some big moments on offense during their 7-0 run to start the season.

 

They lead the league in several major categories including hits (57), doubles (17), runs against per game (2.62),

team ERA (2.00), and strikeouts against (77).

 

Their pitching staff, which features the likes of Tyler Rose, Matt Porkolab and got a huge bolster with rookies, Riley Gray and Alex Davy, has been bar none the best the league has seen in the past three seasons.

 

With a loss to the Expos their only blemish thus far, it’ll be interesting to see how the Thorns fare down the stretch. Being this good means you’ll need to face every team’s best every night. So is the role of the juggernaut.

 

The Thorns are your math test. Perhaps your hardest challenge, you’ll need to study hard and bring your A-game.

 

Fort Erie Cannons (3-1) T-2nd in NDBA

 

The Cannons have been able to play to their strengths in their first four games of the season. They won’t overwhelm you with offense down the lineup, but their big guns come through when they need them.

 

In a sample size, the everyday guys such as Randy Kraneyk, Pat Giampaolo, Gary Moreas and Jeff Bruneau have put the Cannons in the conversation for best in a few offensive categories. Those include runs per game (5.75; 3rd in NDBA), extra-base hits per game (2.5; 1st in NDBA) and we’ll keep the asterisks around their league-leading notch in homeruns (3), though they ARE still hitting homeruns. It’s worthy of note.

 

On the mound, Josh Kuderian seems to be the go-to guy once again and why not? Cam Hall has returned from injury and looked dominant as always in his one and only appearance thus far. The support staff of Kraneyk, Blair McNeill and rookie reliever, Mike Tibollo still make for a deeper pen than we saw from them last year – though I still wonder how far they can ride it out in a tournament-style playoff format.

 

Essentially, this is the same bunch you’re used to seeing in gold and green along with a few young faces to grow for the future. However, if not for a sudden downpour at the end of their 8-7 loss to Merritton, the Cannons could still be undefeated headed into Monday night’s game against the Welland Senior Baseball Team. They won’t have time to look back as the schedule coming up gets more difficult.

 

The Cannons are your history test. Every freshman’s nightmare. Only the true buffs can ace this one.

 

Merritton Alliance (4-2) T-2nd in NDBA

 

Now a perennial front runner in the NDBA, the Merritton Alliance made perhaps the most meaningful additions of any other team in the offseason.

 

Their lineup, one through nine, is on par with the best in Ontario and I’m willing to wager on that. It would be easier for me to list the offensive categories the Alliance don’t lead the league in than the ones they do. I could gush for days about the untapped potential this lineup has yet to reach.

 

Mark Fusco has been the catalyst, but the supporting cast with a list too long to name them all has been stellar and led them to a lead-lead in team average (.306)

 

Now for the underlier, mainly, the Alliance cannot seem to keep opponents at bay when pitchers not named Cam McKnight are on the mound. Brady has faired alright but has also been hit hard. Kyle Parris has been lukewarm, Ian Hamilton-Arvisais has not lived up to the pre-season hype thus far. The going has gotten tough at times for

the Alliance pen.

 

Perhaps a reunion with their home field will help get them settled in. The lights at George Taylor, I’m told, are all systems go through the rest of the summer.

 

The Alliance are your science test. Sometimes your least forgiving test. But, when it’s your favourite branch it

seems to get easier, you’ll need to stay on your toes to get a passing grade.

 

Niagara Falls Expos (4-3) 4th in NDBA

 

Last year’s runner ups have themselves a four-game winning streak and are slowing climbing their way back up the standings.

 

One thing I’ll note from the Expos is they always maintain a pipeline of fresh talent to mesh with their vets. Every game someone new steps up and delivers, making for a well-rounded assault. You need to be weary of every batter on their roster.

 

They lead the league in runs (48) by a large margin, the closest to them being the Alliance and Thorns (35). For that, they can thank the combination of Josh Thorpe and rookie, Nick Lampman who both sit in the top-10 for hits with the former leading the league in RBI and the latter leading in runs. They’ve been a consistent 1-2 punch and have allowed the Expos to get on the board early in ballgames. Teams are 13-7 when they score first in games this season.

 

They use those runs to the fullest extent as the pitching staff hit and miss. Liam Jacques leads a team of (mostly) fresh faces who have faired well but gotten no help from the defense. It was a problem that cost them in the first three games, and they’ve managed to get a handle on over the course of their four-game heater.

 

Still, with their sights always locked on first prize, the Expos continue to shake out the cobwebs and now have their work cut out for them with 2.5 games to makeup in a short season.

 

The Expos are your Spanish test. You took this class as a copout but after picking up the basics, all of the sudden this is really hard, and you realise you probably should have taken woodshop or something…

 

Thorold Anchors (2-6) 5th in NDBA

 

The Anchors went out and got themselves a wealth of young talent in the offseason. So, it’s safe to say they’re still building for the future here.

 

Dylan Dempsey is one of the players who has been groomed to perform at a high level and he’s off to the best start of his NDBA career. Over the first eight games, he is tops among eligible batters (min. 10 AB) in hits (11), second in runs scored (7) and third in batting average (.478) through his first 29 plate appearances this season.

 

Aside from their 9-5 shellacking of the Niagara Falls Expos on May 17th, the Anchors have not shown a killer instinct on offense that leads to runs. They rank last in the NDBA in runs per game at 3.5 RPG.

 

On the bump, they’re getting better results from Kyle D’Angela and veteran Luke Edwards than they were one season ago. Call it a resurgence. Plus, newcomer, Rylie Gambell, has been a great addition and is fourth in the NDBA among eligible pitchers (min. 5 IP) in ERA (1.50).

 

Every year we write about the Anchors being on the cusp of something great. They hang in the tough games long enough to see themselves fumble a ball or make a mental mistake that ends up costing the whole thing. As the kids continue to become stars, the results will start to swing in their favour. ‘When?’ is the eternal question, we continue to ask.

 

The Anchors are your geography test. You don’t need to know where exactly on the map the capital is, if you nail the right province, you’ll pass the class.

 

Welland Senior Baseball Team (1-5) 6th in NDBA

 

In more ways than one, the Seniors are still trying to find their identity in 2022.

 

They’ve played the hardest schedule of any other team in the NDBA, having dropped games to the Thorns (x2), Alliance (x2) and the Expos. So, we’re taking this recap with a grain of salt.

 

First and foremost, the veteran trio of Frank Barber, Mark Jaroslawski and Scott Cole have all had big games in the first quarter, overshadowed by the fact that the team couldn’t bring an X-factor. Rookie outfielder, Chico Anderi has been a gamechanger and is currently tied for second in hits (7) along with Barber and a slew of others.

 

The pitching staff, when headlined by veteran, Matt Wintermute or complimented by second-year hurler, Abraham Baez has been among the best in the league. What the Seniors are finding right now is difficulty maintaining leads once they turn to the pen. Seniors have dropped leads in the fourth inning or later in four of their five losses.

 

To have your logo retired mid-season is one thing, it wounds a team’s spirit no doubt. To lose five straight against tough opponents to kick off the year is likely no better. We’ll know more about where this team truly stands when finish their stint of games against the Cannons, Anchors and Cobras.

 

The Senior Baseball Team is your English test. If you read the Wiki on Romeo & Juliet, you’ll miss the finer details and get a failing grade. Guess you should read the book instead?

 

St. Catharines Cobras (0-3) 7th in NDBA

 

We finish off these seven lessons with a brief talk on the Cobras.

 

It’s just too soon to tell for these guys. Last season they banded together and managed to get themselves to championship Sunday. It’s the same group this year, plus two utility guys in Serge Gervais and Llyod Tucler, added from the Cannons in the offseason.

 

In all three of their games this year, they’ve been tied headed into the bottom of the fifth inning before the seams come apart and the game falls into the opponent’s hands. Seems the trouble here isn’t production, it’s execution.

 

Something young teams can learn to overcome.

 

Bernardo Gongora has been their go-to guy on the mound so far. With appearances in all three games, the right hander has kept batters off edge with his off-speed stuff. With no clear No. 1 starter emerged on this team, it’s up to the supporting cast to nip away at innings and find a way to put close games away.

 

This team is too good to go winless for much longer.

 

The Cobras are your fitness test. You may not need your notebook, but you’re going to work hard to beat your best. Any little mistake on this test and you may not reach your goal.

 

SCORE RECAPS

 

We recap after every game! For more details on these games and more visit the 'News' tab above.

 

06/14/22 Alliance @ Anchors

 

 

06/15/22 Thorns @ Senior Baseball Team

 

 

06/15/22 Anchors @ Cannons

 

 

06/17/22 Thorns @ Expos

 

 

THREE STARS

 

It’s now time for the NDBA Three Stars of the Week. The segment where we hand pick the cream of the crop in the seven days that was in southern Ontario’s favourite senior men’s baseball league.

 

This week, an offensive clinic, a sight for sore eyes pitching performance and our first two-time player of the week for 2022 headline our list.

 

Think someone’s been snubbed? Start a dialogue @NDBAsenior on Twitter and we’ll fight like two dogs behind a chain-link fence.

 

Third Star – Matt Kerr (Merritton Alliance) 1GP - 2-for-2; 2B; 3R; 2RBI

 

Matt Kerr may not have had the either of the two big knocks his team hit in Tuesday night’s matchup at the shipyard, but he did have the most productive day at the dish in the Alliance’s 11-run drop on the Anchors. Kerr has been knocking at the door despite only playing in four of his team’s six games to start the season. This week he gets the benefit of a team win and an individual one, he is this week’s third star.

 

Second Star – Steven Erickson (Niagara Falls Expos) 1 GP - 2-for-4; 3 RBI / 3.0 IP; 0R; 1H; 4K

 

Erickson has only six games to his credit in the NDBA and two mentions on the three stars list. This week he channeled his inner Shohei and executed on both sides of the ball to help hand the Thorns their first loss of the season on Friday night. He’s made quite the name for himself already; Steven Erickson is this week’s second star.

 

First Star – Cam Hall (Fort Erie Cannons) 1GP – 5.0 IP; 0R 2H; 3BB; 8K

 

If you’re veteran in the NDBA you know the name. You probably wish you weren’t seeing it, but here it is. We’ve written a lot about Hall’s return from injury and how it would impact Fort Erie’s rotation. Though, I confess I did not expect the returns to be immediate. Hall came out tossing on Wednesday and got the win in dominant fashion. He’s your first star this week in the NDBA.