Baseball
By: Jim Green
The Lawrence American Legion Post 414 baseball team registered its first win Monday, but suffered a substantial loss in the process.
Post 414 came through with a dramatic performance to top Trenton Post 93 3-2 at Eggerts Crossing Fields. However, Lawrence lost starting shortstop Mike Graziano and starting center fielder Tim Larkin to shoulder injuries during the first five innings of the contest.
"It’s always nice to get the first win out of the way," Lawrence manager Dan Klim said. "But not at the expense of two players."
Lawrence snapped a season-opening five-game losing streak with the win over Trenton. But Lawrence’s improved play was somewhat overshadowed by injuries to two of the team’s better players.
Graziano, coming off a fine performance for the Mercer County All-Stars in the Carpenter Cup, was the first to go down. Post 414’s No. 3 hitter dug his shoulder into the ground while laying out for a grounder three batters into the bottom of the first inning.
The injury to Graziano left Post 414 without its most potent bat and one of its best infield gloves.
"Hopefully, we’ll have him (Graziano) back in a week," Klim said.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, with Lawrence leading 3-2, Larkin injured his shoulder while sliding headfirst on a steal of second. It was the second steal of the game for the speedy Larkin, who also scored a run earlier in the contest.
Klim did not expect Larkin to be out of action long.
"He (Larkin) thought he heard his shoulder pop," Klim said. "He’s day-to-day."
While Lawrence undoubtedly would suffer from losing Graziano for any length of time, Klim is choosing to look at the glass half full.
"It would hurt to have him (Graziano) out for an extended period of time," Klim said. "But it would give young guys an opportunity to prove themselves, if they can do a formidable job."
Graziano had gotten off to a slow start for Lawrence. While he put on a fine display with the bat at the Carpenter Cup, he only went 1-for-11 in four games for Post 414. Dan Martin replaced Graziano in the lineup Monday and went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI to help Lawrence grab the win.
"Dan Martin started swinging the bat a little bit better (against Trenton)," Klim said. "He stepped up and was swinging the bat better than he did during the first four games. I think it was a wakeup call for him."
Martin entered the lineup in right field, and Dave Waseleski was shifted from right to shortstop following Graziano’s injury. While that move worked out against Trenton, Klim is undecided about his long-term plan for replacing Graziano.
"It’s to be determined," Klim said when asked who would take over as the starting shortstop. "I don’t know right now. I’m just trying to figure out a couple of solutions."
Martin was the catalyst for an improved approach by the entire Lawrence lineup, which plated three early runs on only seven hits. Catcher Joe DeRose went 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored, and second baseman Jared Smith went 1-for-3 with a triple, an RBI and a run scored.
Lawrence had been outscored 33-6 over its first five games, never scoring more than two runs in a contest.
"They (the Post 414 hitters) started swinging the bats a little bit better," Klim said. "The problem we’ve had the last five games is our run production.
"We’ve gotten good pitching and good defense, but our hitting hasn’t been timely. Yesterday, it was."
Left fielder Rich Carabelli again was the sparkplug, going 1-for-3 and carrying a .353 batting average into Tuesday’s game against Mitchell Davis Post 182.
"Rich Carabelli’s been doing the job, leading off and getting on base," Klim said.
Despite the improved offensive effort, the key for Lawrence continued to be the pitching of its top two hurlers, Vince Warren and Waseleski. Warren started and picked up the win, allowing one earned run on four hits and seven walks while striking out eight over 4 1/3 innings.
After Warren began to tire in the fifth, Klim decided to make a change. In came Waseleski, who closed the game with 2 2/3 shutout innings, striking out three and walking one while allowing one hit.
Waseleski was put to the test in the top of ninth, as Trenton put runners on first and third with no one out. The right-hander induced a pop fly from the third batter of the inning, keeping the tying run at third base. The trailing baserunner then stole second, putting the go-ahead run in scoring position for Post 93.
Klim then made a bold move, calling for an intentional walk that loaded the bases with one out. Waseleski responded by getting the next batter to hit a grounder back to the mound for a game-ending double play.
"It (the top of the ninth inning) was interesting," Klim said. "The kids showed a lot of poise, holding onto the lead and not bending under the pressure."
Although Waseleski successfully converted his first save of the year, Klim has no plans to make him a permanent closer.
"The thought behind bringing Waseleski in (against Trenton) was that we had to win the game," Klim said. "I hate doing it, but I had to bring him in right from his position without giving him any warm-up throws.
"He answered the call, and he was successful in picking up the save."
Post 414 received another strong pitching performance Tuesday. Charlie Park started and hurled four innings, allowing one run on two hits to lead Lawrence to an 11-1 win over Mitchell Davis Post 182 at Trenton High School. Post 414 improved to 2-5 with the five-inning victory.
Martin continued to pound the ball, going 2-for-3 with a double and five RBIs, while Park went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Carabelli was 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and two runs scored as Lawrence knocked around Post 182 pitching for 12 hits. Waseleski again played shortstop in place of Graziano and scored two runs.
If Lawrence is to extend its budding winning streak, it will need its hitters to continue producing like they did Tuesday. Considering the depth of the Post 414 lineup, the runs should keep coming even if Graziano is out for an extended period of time.
"I think we’ve been struggling because of the way we’ve been going about our at bats," Klim said. "It’s not about the quality. There are some young guys in the lineup that haven’t seen enough good pitching."
Post 414’s young players will continue to gain experience at 5:45 p.m. today, when they face Broad Street Park Post 313 at Mercer County Park. Lawrence finishes the week by visiting Ewing Post 314 at 7:30 p.m. Friday.