PGCBL Announces 2013 Schedule

. Above: East Field in Glens Falls. 2013 Schedule The Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League released their 2013 championship schedule this afternoon.  The regular season starts on Wednesday, June 5 and concludes on Wednesday, July 31.   The PGCBL will play a 48-game season, with ten teams aligned in two divisions.  The East Division will have the Albany Dutchmen, Amsterdam Mohawks, Cooperstown Hawkeyes, Glens Falls Golden Eagles and Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs.  The West Division will have the Adirondack Trail Blazers, Elmira Pioneers, Newark Pilots, Utica Brewers and Watertown Rams.   MORE

Left to right: Stefen Romero, Brian Moran

Former Glens Falls Golden Eagles Stefen Romero (2008) and Brian Moran (2007) are among 18 players that have been invited to Major League Spring Training by the Seattle Mariners. The announcement was made by the Mariners on Jan. 11.

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Nick Pivetta

New Mexico Junior College sophomore pitcher Nicholas Pivetta (Glens Falls 2012) has been tapped by Perfect Game USA as one of the top junior college prospects for the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. In a list recently compiled by Perfect Game USA’s Allan Simpson, Pivetta is ranked third. The full article can be found here.

According to Simpson, Pivetta “exploded on the scene this fall with a fastball at 95-97 mph after being just another arm at New Mexico JC as a freshman.”

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There are some exciting changes coming to the PGCBL in 2013.  The league is adding two teams that have decided to make the jump to the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League.  The Utica Brewers and the Adirondack Trail Blazers, both playoff eligible clubs in the NYCBL in 2012, look to step up the level of competition next season.

"Teams from upstate New York are gravitating to the high standards set on and off the field by the PGCBL." stated league President Jeff Kunion.  "It is a natural fit for these teams to join our league.  Both teams have been playing for quite some time.  First in the Eastern Collegiate Baseball League, then the NYCBL.  As they have improved their operations it only makes sense for these clubs to want to compete at the highest level within NY state."
 
The Brewers play at a former NYPL ballpark, Donovan Stadium at Murnane Field and led the NYCBL in attendance last season.  The Trail Blazers, who finished right behind Utica in attendance, play at the renovated Robert Smith Sports Complex.
 
The PGCBL is affiliated with Perfect Game USA, the largest independent scouting service in the country.  Last season more than 85% of all 2012 MLB draft selections had either worn the uniform of a PGCBL team or were alumni of a Perfect Game USA showcase event.

Photos courtesy Glens Falls Golden Eagles

John Mayotte, the manager of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League’s Glens Falls Golden Eagles has been inducted into the Capital District Baseball Hall of Fame. Mayotte was one of 25 men that made up the Hall of Fame Class of 2012. The induction ceremonies were held on Oct. 28 at the Hilton Hotel in Troy, N.Y.

Mayotte was also named the recipient of the 2012 Johnny Podres Lifetime Achievement Award. According to the Hall of Fame web site, the Johnny Podres Award is handed out for an individuals’ contribution to the game of baseball. The recipient could be a player, coach or executive. Mayotte is only the second man to win the Johnny Podres Lifetime Achievement Award from the Capital District Baseball Hall of Fame.

Later this month, Mayotte will join a second Hall of Fame. On Nov. 10, the Glens Falls skipper is set to be inducted into the Glens Falls Area Baseball Hall of Fame. The ceremony will take place at the Queensbury Hotel in Glens Falls. For more information, click here.

Mayotte recently completed his ninth season with the Glens Falls Golden Eagles. He is the only head coach in the history of the franchise. At the helm of the Golden Eagles, Mayotte has amassed a 241-146 (.623) record to go along with seven winning seasons and seven postseason appearances. The Eagles have produced four 30-win seasons and have finished over .500 six years in a row. Mayotte’s teams have also played for three league championships, most recently in 2012 when Glens Falls advanced to the PGCBL Championship Series against rival Amsterdam. The 2012 Golden Eagles team featured the PGCBL Player of the Year, Ross Kivett (Kansas State). Former Golden Eagle Stefen Romero, who played for Coach Mayotte in 2008, was named the Seattle Mariners Minor League Player of the Year.

Overall, John Mayotte has won over 1300 games as a manager. Prior to joining the Golden Eagles, Mayotte was a highly successful college head coach at Eckerd (Fla.) College and Troy (Ala.) University. Following a brief stint at the University of South Florida as an assistant coach, Mayotte took over at NCAA Division II Eckerd College in 1978. He guided the Tritons to 437 victories over 13 seasons. Eckerd won at least 28 games each season under Coach Mayotte and  produced 11 campaigns of 30 victories or more. Mayotte was a two-time Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year (1980, 1981).

The Hudson Falls, N.Y., native took over as the head coach of the Division II Troy State Trojans in 1991. Mayotte coached the Trojans for 12 seasons and oversaw the transition of the program from Division II to Division I. With Mayotte in the dugout, Troy earned 384 victories. The Trojans registered seven seasons with at least 30 victories

Mayotte also spent five seasons in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the highly-regarded Chatham A’s during the 1980s.

Before becoming a collegiate skipper, Mayotte spent nine years as the head varsity baseball coach of the Coxsackie-Athens High School. In his first professional coaching job, Mayotte accumulated a 135-27 (.833) record. Coxsackie-Athens set a Section II record with six straight sectional championships between 1969 and 1974.