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It was clear and sunny on Staten Island on Wednesday except for about an inning-and-a-half at New Dorp High School, when the fog rolled in briefly.
And unfortunately for the hosts, that temporary atmospheric condition played a part in the Central Cougars dropping a 5-2 decision to Long Island City in the first round of the PSAL baseball playoffs.
The 20th-seeded Bulldogs had a 1-0 lead when New Dorp starter Justin Pedone recorded the first two outs in the third. Mikey Espinal lofted a high fly ball to centerfield, but Paul D’Agnese couldn’t see the ball in the fog so the ball dropped in harmlessly for a single.
Kewin Franco then connected for a single and LIC starting pitcher Cristian Guerrero followed with a run-scoring single to make it 2-0. Perone appeared to be out of the inning when Charles Mendes hit a ball to second base, but Michael Sadallah’s throw to first was errant allowing one run to score and when the ball trickled into the dugout, another run came home. Erison Valerio continued the rally with a RBI single to give the hosts a 5-0 lead.
“Just a freak of nature. You had the fog roll in at a bad time and our center fielder lost the ball. We had two outs at the time and that opened up the gates. And we had that crucial error,” said New Dorp head coach Ray Smith.
“Battling back from five runs is tough. Two runs, three runs is manageable. Battling back from a mental standpoint from five runs is tough. It takes a lot of pressure off the opposition as well,” the coach added.
That five-run cushion was more than enough for Guerrero as the righty limited No. 13 New Dorp to just four hits in five innings with seven strikeouts.
“I thought (Guerrero) pitched an excellent game. He really upset our timing at the plate,” said Smith. “He mixed in a fastball, curveball and a changeup and his changeup was very good. We were out front and had too many fly balls. We just didn’t square him up.”
The Central Cougars didn’t go quietly against the LIC bullpen as they loaded the bases with two outs in the sixth against reliever Mendes and capitalized when Joe Cascella delivered a two-run single. Albert Ramirez was summoned and ended the threat when he induced Jon Connors into an inning-ending pop up to first.
Long Island City failed to score in the seventh, but New Dorp had one last rally in the bottom of the frame.
After Ramirez recorded the first two outs, the righty walked Pedone and Cavitolo. Matthew Ricci then hit a ball to third base, but instead of Mendes just stepping on third for the force out, he threw over to first. The throw was in the dirt and the ball skipped away from first baseman Guerrero. Smith sent Pedone home on the miscue, but Guerrero recovered in time and threw home to catcher Erison Valerio who slapped on the tag for the final out.
“That was my fault. I thought the ball kicked away from the first baseman. I misread it. It was all on me. I told the kids that it was my mistake. I apologize for that,” said Smith.
