Pitchers Getting into Groove

Schwartz Tosses One-Hitter as Dolphins Mercy Hamilton for Seventh Straight Win

The stage was set for a letdown when the Palisades High varsity baseball team carried a six-game winning streak to Hamilton for Monday’s Western League game. Instead of letting up, however, the Dolphins poured it on, winning by mercy rule after building a 10-0 lead over the first five innings. The victory not only extended Pali’s win streak, it also sent a strong message to league opponents that the Dolphins are the team to beat this season. Playing well in all phases of the game, Pali rode the arm of Geoff Schwartz and the bats of Manny Perez and Kevin Seto to a quick 6-0 lead in the first two innings and never looked back. “It’s always nice to start off the game with a big lead like that,” said Schwartz, who pitched a one-hitter with nine strikeouts and one walk. “I can relax a little more on the mound knowing I have a little margin for error. Also, the guys are playing great defense behind me and that’s huge. Defense wins championships.” Schwartz (1-1) was flawless over the final two innings, allowing only two base runners (both on fielding errors) and freezing Hamilton catcher Danny Almonte for a called strike three to end the game. It was the Dolphins’ second shutout in three games. Steve Nirenberg pitched a two-hitter with four strikeouts in a 5-0 victory over Fairfax in the league opener last Tuesday and starter Andrew Strassner combined with reliever David Bromberg to throw a four-hitter in Thursday’s 4-2 win over the Lions. “Pitching has really been it,” Pali co-coach Ton Seyler said. “We’ve gotten three good games from those guys and that’s the strength of this team. They’re getting ahead of the hitters and when you do that, you make your job a lot easier.” Hamilton had beaten defending league champion Venice in its previous game, but Palisades (7-2 overall, 3-0 in league) never gave the host Yankees hope. Before the game was 10 minutes old, Alex Thompson singled to score Turhan Folse and Adam Franks and the Dolphins led, 2-0. Manny Perez singled and stole second to lead off the top of the second inning, then scored on Matt Skolnik’s single. Seto followed with a single and an error scored Skolnik and Seto. Another error scored Folse and the Dolphins’ lead grew to 7-0. Skolnik singled to scored Perez in the third inning and scored himself when Monte Hickok stole second base. Seto then singled to score Hickok with Pali’s ninth run. Nirenberg singled with one out in the fifth inning and eventually scored the all-important 10th run on a base hit by Hickok. “It was very important to close it out after we had them down,” Nirenberg said. “If they score a run and the game continues, you never know what can happen. Winning gives you confidence and that’s big for any team. When you have confidence, you feel you are capable of beating anybody.” In the bottom of the fifth inning, all that stood between Pali and a mercy win was the heart of the Yankees’ batting order, but Schwartz struck out the side. In 14 innings this season, Schwartz has allowed 12 hits, two earned runs, six walks and has struck out 16 batters. Strassner has allowed eight hits with 10 strikeouts in 14 innings. “We’re figuring out what positions we need to play and how individual guys can best help the team,” Schwartz said. “I’m proud of the way we’ve gone out and handled our business.” A key element to the Dolphins’ surge has been timely hitting, an aspect of the game Pali struggled with throughout the preseason and in its first two games. Hickok and Skolnik pace the squad with nine hits apiece and Seto leads in batting average (.385) heading into today’s game against Hamilton at George Robert Field. “We’ve gone back to the basics with our hitting,” Seyler said. “We have good speed, so we’ve been working on just making contact, hitting ground balls and forcing the other team to make plays. Bunting has been a big key, too. We’ve been able to lay a few down at critical times to move runners over or score.”