By Jimmy Allinder
There’s always been an emphasis on pitching depth in high school baseball, and a rule change that goes into effect this spring makes it more important than ever.
For that reason, it remains to be seen if East Brunswick High School can duplicate what it did in 2016, even with the return of Tyler Burnham, who is arguably the top hurler in the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) and is joined by a core that has played together for multiple seasons.
The Bears come off one of their best seasons in program history, finishing 21-3 and capturing the GMC Tournament and Red Division championships.
Burnham, who committed to Seton Hall University, will again be East Brunswick’s No. 1 hurler. The senior was a major reason for the Bears’ banner 2016 with a 9-1 win-loss record with 66 strikeouts in 66 innings, and he was personally responsible for the Bears’ GMC Tournament title when he pitched a shutout and singled in the only run in their victory over John. P. Stevens High School.
However, East Brunswick cannot expect to be a division contender and repeat what it did in the postseason if Burnham is the only effective pitcher.
Head coach Chris Kenney is confident junior Mike Falco (2-0), who threw important innings, will be a reliable No. 2. He is joined by seniors Evan Dekhayser and Ryan Flynn; junior newcomers James Schuld, Scott Dessel, Kevin Shulster and Brad Edwards; and sophomore Joe Petrocelli.
If pitching falters, the hope is the firepower in the lineup will take up the slack.
“We return three of last season’s top hitters (Burnham, .386; Flynn, .338; and junior David Bermudez, .341) and three more who saw significant time (seniors Matt Bartus, .273; Christian Shelley, .250; and Jay Marchese),” Kenney said.
Burnham plays first when he doesn’t pitch, Flynn is in center field and Bermudez starts at shortstop.
Kenney said the lineup should be fortified by players from last year’s junior varsity team, which won the conference sub-varsity tournament, including Falco (third base), Schuld (second base), Brad Edwards (catcher/outfield) and Brandon Rosenthal (outfield). Seniors Nick Martino (left field), David Paribello (outfield), Marchese (catcher) and Matt Nelson (second base) will also be likely starters.
“With the new pitching rule, we need to have at least four capable arms, and I’m confident our pitching staff can deliver that,” Kenney said. “Our goal every year is to win the Red Division and the GMC Tournament, and I believe we have a good chance at repeating. We have some holes to fill with the graduation of some great players (Daniel Ianarrone, Nick Clemente, Gerard Pepe, Chris Cap and Juan Ganzaroli), but we expect the new guys to come through.”
East Brunswick opens the season April 1 at Saint Joseph High School of Metuchen and hosts the Falcons two days later. On April 8, the Bears are home to Hillsborough High School.
