A Turf Debut in Center Moriches

Vinny Alversa, East Hampton High’s varsity baseball coach, said Monday he wished his team were heading south on Tuesday for the Tampa Bay Spring Training complex in St. Petersburg, given the uncertain weather here, but he could be thankful at the same time that the Bonackers got in a scrimmage over the weekend in Moriches — a scrimmage with Hampton Bays that went very well.

Alversa, whose team is young, was nevertheless favorably impressed by his pitchers — Kurt Matthews, a junior, and Elian Abreu, a sophomore, in particular — and by the team’s baserunning and fielding — credit in that regard, he said, should go to the junior varsity coach, Andrew Rodriguez — and with some of his hitters.

With the Hampton Bays and East Hampton fields unplayable, the scrimmage was held at the four-turf-field Moriches Sports Complex (where Alversa’s off-season teams play).

It was football weather, though the sun was out. This writer left in the middle of the fifth inning, by which time the Bonackers were cruising along at 11-0.

Matthews, an all-league player last season, started, and looked good, running through the Baymen’s lineup in one-two-three fashion over the course of  the first three innings.

Abreu, who came on in the fourth, was also impressive, striking out the first two batters to face him in the bottom of the fourth before giving up a walk and retiring the side on a flyout to Ryan Lynch in center field.

“Our goal is to throw strikes, not to walk anyone this year, so I was extremely happy with our pitching,” Alversa said during Monday’s conversation. “We only had one walk over all. It makes a big difference if you throw strikes.”

At the plate East Hampton did well too. Tucker Genovesi led off with a single in the top of the first, and after Abreu grounded into a force and advanced to second on an errant throw, Matthews doubled to the snowline at the foot of the fence in left center, scoring Abreu.

East Hampton scored five more runs in the second. Lynch, batting fifth, and Austin Brown drew back-to-back walks. Lynch stole second, then third, and came home on an overthrow before Zach Barzilay, the starting catcher, drove in Brown with a base hit for 3-0.

After Drew Salamy struck out, James Foster, last year’s starting catcher, who had shoulder surgery in November, singled. Zack Minskoff, the 10th hitter in the lineup that day, drew a walk, loading the bases. Genovesi struck out, but Abreu came through with a long three-run double to the snow. 

Matthews then hit a hot ground ball to third, but Abreu ran into the tag, a baserunning lapse that he heard about from Henry Meyer, Alversa’s assistant, before returning to his position in left field.

The Bonackers tacked on another run in their third, didn’t score in the fourth, leaving runners at second and third, but, thanks to two bases-loaded walks, a wild pitch, and a run-scoring single by Barzilay, increased their lead to 11-0 in the top of the fifth.

Foster, who said his shoulder was coming along well, will just be hitting in the coming weeks, not fielding or catching. Meanwhile, with Barzilay, Seth Kappel, and a freshman, Luke Campbell, Alversa and Meyer have three others vying to start behind the plate.

Earlier in the week, during an indoor practice session, Alversa said he was worried that because of the periodic wretched weather he wouldn’t be able to get any scrimmages in. It appeared likely, however, that the team would get a second scrimmage in with Pierson, in Sag Harbor, on Monday, and possibly a third, at Hampton Bays, on Tuesday. 

The team is to leave on April 1 for Florida, where it is to play six games in seven days.