West Deptford Baseball Preview: Surrounding Jakubowski With Hitters

When you put up the type of stats that senior first baseman Tom Jakubowski did last spring, people are going to take notice. After all, a batting average above .500 and an absurd 51 RBIs don’t exactly go unnoticed.

Every team that competes against will have a strategy on how to handle Jakubowski, and that strategy will be relayed to the respective pitcher who will be tasked with executing it. It won’t be surprising if the message being relayed to the opposing pitcher is a simple raise of four fingers, suggesting the tall lefty simply be given first base.

It’s a situation that West Deptford head coach Mike Rucci has talked to Jakubowski about, preparing him for what could be a season that results in an even higher on-base percentage, but also increased frustration at not being able to swing the bat.

“We’ve definitely talked about it,” Rucci said. “I told him he’s going to have to be extremely selective, but when he gets that pitch to hit, it might only be once or twice a game, and he has to be ready for it. He’s a smart player and he understands the situation. He has already walked eight or 10 times during the preseason.”

The way to force pitchers to come at Jakubowski is much more obvious than it is easy. The batters hitting in front and behind Jakubowski need to become serious offensive threats. It’s much harder to walk someone when the bases are full in front of him or an offensive force is ready to hit behind him.

It's up to Rucci to find the hitters who can deliver.

Sophomore Ty Castellano is likely to hit in front of Jakubowski, but Rucci hasn’t set anything in stone regarding who will hit after him. He sees a host of options including junior Harry Sturgis and freshman Tyler Garrison.

Equally as important as finding protection for Jakubowski will be finding pitchers for the top of the rotation. The team graduated staff ace Tony Urban and No. 2 pitcher Jason Fox. Castellano figures to be slotted in as the team’s top pitcher, with a group of talented but inexperienced arms behind him.

“Losing Tony and Fox is definitely going to be something where we are going to need to buckle down on and find a guy, or a group of guys, that will be able to fill the role they had," Rucci said. "Obviously Castellano will be one of those guys.”

Rucci will be counting on returning varsity players Tim Krott and Brendon Glass, as well as first-year varsity players Anthony Dilks and Isiah Easterling to provide quality innings.

Even with the questions surrounding the rotation, the Eagles are expecting big things a year after winning a Group 2 title. Expecting anything less would be a disservice to the team, according to Rucci.

“We set (our goals) high,” he said. “I don’t think I would be doing our guys justice if we were not setting our goals to win state championships and win the conference. We have to get our guys to work like that and practice like that to get us there. I tell the guys ‘we may lose guys, but our goals stay the same. We continue to get better and if we play the game the right way we may end up in a situation to win a title.’

“We don’t shoot for mediocrity—we shoot to be the best.”

BASEBALL:

Coach: Mike Rucci

Last year: 17-11

Returning letterwinners: Tom Jakubowski (sr.); Joe Pinto (sr., OF); Brendon Glass (sr., OF/P); Chris Dellaquilla (sr.); Zach Moran (sr., P); Tim Krott (sr., P/OF); Tyler Strano (jr., C); Harry Sturgis (jr., DH); Ty Castellano (so., P/IF).

Promising newcomers: Jim Sousa (jr.); Isiah Easterling (fr.); Putter Angert (sr.); Tyler Garrison (fr.); Tyler Meher (jr.); Anthony Dilks (fr.).

Team to beat: Haddonfield, Haddon Heights.

Outlook: The pitching staff lost a lot from last year, but the offense looks poised to carry the team. Expect the Eagles to once again be in contention for a division title and make a deep run in the Group 2 playoffs. 

Three storylines to follow:

–More small ball. The Eagles lost a lot of power to graduation, so Rucci said the team must execute more bunts and hit-and-runs than they did a year ago. “We can’t just expect back-to-back doubles this year,” the coach said. “We have to do the little things and get guys in motion. As a coaching staff, we have to pick the right time to do these things.

–Impact of a tough preseason schedule. In an effort to get his younger players ready for the season, Rucci had the Eagles take on the likes of Gloucester Catholic, Eastern, Cherokee and Williamstown. The results of those scrimmages weren’t as important as the impact it had on the first-year varsity players, according to Rucci. His hope is that the young players grow up faster than they would have had the team played a softer preseason schedule.

–Impact of Tyler Garrison. Although just a freshman, Garrison has shown enough in the preseason to be in the mix for a spot in the middle of the Eagles’ batting order. Rucci said it has been fun to watch the youngster hit this season and envisions him serving as a DH while also providing depth at first and third base.