Everyone knows about March Madness. But I’d like to introduce you to May Mania.
Or, in other words, the first round of the PSAL Class A baseball playoffs. Four seeds 21 or lower picked up wins. Seven games were decided in the last at-bat. Defending champion Norman Thomas was nearly eliminated. Ditto for No. 8 Lehman.
So much for the city being so top-heavy.
I was covering the NYSAISAA title game, won by Collegiate, 9-2, at Manhattanville College in Westchester, yet my mind was fixated on the PSAL. My phone wouldn’t stop buzzing with PSAL updates from coaches, parents, and PSAL commissioner Bob Pertsas, who seemed to know results before some coaches who were at games.
It was wild. All three teams (No. 4 James Madison, No. 22 Midwood, and No. 23 Brooklyn Tech) from Brooklyn A East – supposedly the weakest division in the city – moved on. The Strong Bronx lost two clubs, No. 19 DeWitt Clinton and No. 20 Gompers. Manhattan A West, which wasn’t excepted to do much damage, went 2-1, with No. 21 Stuyvesant and No. 14 Beacon putting forth near-flawless performances in shutout victories over No. 12 Telecommunications and No. Clinton, respectively. No. 24 Environmental Studies nearly upset eighth-seeded Lehman.
“This was a memorable first day to the playoffs because of the upsets,” Pertsas said. “It provides confidence and enthusiasm for teams that were lower-seeded, and it’s good to have competition. … I can’t remember a first round like this.”
— After five lifeless innings, No. 6 Morris rallied for five sixth-inning runs, the big blow Raiky Ortiz’s two-run triple. The real drama followed. Closer Jose Quelix, who was so brilliant in taking over from Jose Manuel Ortiz in the third, lost control, walking the first four hitters. The next batter lined a pitch to centerfield. Earlier, the Eagles dumped in a bunch of bloop hits, so Morris coach Rich Corbo advised his outfielders to play shallow, the only reason Yoan Delarosa was able to pick off the low liner. He gunned down the runner from third at the plate, and Quelix threw out the runner from second at third when Environmental Studies thought it had caught him sleeping.
“I still have some hair left,” Corbo joked.
— Defending champion and fifth seed Norman Thomas was within three outs of elimination. Jorge Perez had his high-80s fastball working, but ran out of gas. Eugenio Mesa and Alex Triunful started the seventh with singles and Miguel Reyes drove them in with a hit. Two batters later, Javoni Thomas plated Reyes with the winning run.
“As close as we could be to being done,” Norman Thomas coach Nerva Jean Pierre said. “Based on the attitude of the team, it was an eye-opener. We had a great practice today.”
— And how about No. 22 Midwood, which beat up on No. 12 Fort Hamilton ace Franciel Campusano, who threw two no-hitters during the regular season, in a 4-3 victory, the Brooklyn school’s first playoff victory since 2003. The Hornets banged out six against Campusano – right fielder Jonathan Gonzalez led the charge with two RBIs – and ace Matt Caspi was brilliant, going the distance, despite lacking his best stuff.
“We felt we were due after the last two years,” Midwood coach Charlie Barbieri said. “I’m doing fantastic. Hopefully we’ll shock the world again.”
— There was No. 15 Francis Lewis rallying for three runs in the seventh inning to upend 18th-seeded Long Island City, winning on a walk-off hit by pitch; No. 24 South Bronx pulling off the biggest upset, ending No. 9 McKee/Staten Island Tech’s productive season; and No. 8 Lehman getting a two-run, game-winning double from star senior Tyler Gurman to eliminate No. 24 Environmental Studies.
On paper, the second-round matchups aren’t overly enticing, a result of so many upsets. Of course, who could’ve seen that coming? Wednesday could just be the start to a wacky postseason.
