by Josh McMullen – Mohawk Valley Diamond Dawgs
LITTLE FALLS, NY – The Mohawk Valley Diamond Dawgs kicked off their 2022 campaign in grand fashion, taking advantage of timely hitting and several untimely walks to beat the Capital City Reds, 10-4 in an exhibition matchup.
Pete Durocher (Emerson, NJ/Manhattan) kicked off the scoring in the home half of the first inning, looping a ball to left field that scored Zach Brush (New York Mills, NY/LeMoyne) and Garrett Musey (Millville, NJ/Goldey-Beacom). Alfredo Delgado (Bronx, NY/Manhattan) would also come home on an RBI single by Evan Berta (Yorktown Heights, NY/Fairfield).
Berta extended the lead in the fourth on a passed ball before Brush, the home-grown Diamond Dawg, ripped an RBI single into left field. That single would score Ty Sallie (Mount Tabor, NJ/NJIT).
Three straight hit batsmen by Bo Buckley (Petrolia, Ontario, Canada/Fairfield) loaded up the bases for the Reds in the fifth. Capital City’s first baseman Kayne McGee (West Liberty) made Buckley pay for all of those bruises on his teammates by looping a 2-RBI single into right field. That hit by McGee would score Pat Mulligan (Cloud CCC) and Marc Guerin. Another throwing error by the Diamond Dawgs would also bring home Keenan O’Brien (Corben).
Two singles by Delgado and Berta, sandwiching a Durocher walk, loaded up the bases for Mohawk Valley in the bottom of the fifth. However, the Reds were able to get Ernesto Polanco (West New York, New Jersey/Coastal Carolina) to ground out to end the inning with no damage done.
Mohawk Valley would extend the lead back to three on a sacrifice fly by Marshall Awtry (Hockessin, DE/Goldey Beacom) that scored pinch-hitter Ethan Valdez (Tampa, FL/Wagner). Polanco would add another run for the Diamond Dawgs in the seventh, scoring Berta on an RBI double to left field.
Capital City pulled the score to within three once again in the eighth, on an RBI single to right field by Drew McEvoy (uncommitted) that scored Aleks Koppel (Estonian National Team). Once more, though, the Diamond Dawgs would pull away. This time, it was a long RBI double by Awtry into left field that scored Noah Lucier (Sandown, NH/Fairfield) and Demetrius Johnson (Glassboro, NJ/Goldey Beacom), followed by an RBI double for Durocher that scored Awtry.
Jed Boyle (Syracuse, NY/ LeMoyne) came on in the ninth and only allowed one batter to reach base to shut the door on the victory for the Diamond Dawgs.
Tyler Babel (Fairless Hills, PA/Manhattan) was credited with the win for Mohawk Valley.
The Diamond Dawgs will start their Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League season on Friday night at Veteran’s Memorial Park, hosting the Oneonta Outlaws