After 17 games in the New York Collegiate Baseball League, a wood-bat summer baseball league, the 2009 Glens Falls Golden Eagles (13-4) now rank No. 22, up three spots from last week, in the recent weekly rankings produced by Perfect Game Cross Checker.

The East Division-leading Golden Eagles play a four-game home stand starting Sunday, June 28 when they host the last place Albany Dutchmen. In the two teams’ four games this season, Glens Falls has defeated the Dutchmen in every one, outscoring them 28-14 in total runs.

Today’s game starts at 4 p.m.

For the second time this season, the Golden Eagles will play a doubleheader, when they host the thrid place Watertown Wizards on Monday, June 29. The first game is scheduled to start promptly at 5 p.m., with the second to follow approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game one.

The Wizards handed the Golden Eagles their only road loss this season in a 9-8 extra inning affair. The two teams were supposed to play each other last week, but a brief rain shower and a power outage forced team ownership to call the game.

Tickets from that rainout will be honored for either game of the June 29th doubleheader. Monday’s doubleheader will also be free ice cream night, sponsored by Stewart’s.

Glens Falls’ closes out the first month of the 2009 summer season with a showdown against the Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs on Tuesday, June 30. Tickets cost just $1 for the game as it is “Break the Attendance Night”. The Golden Eagles defeated the DiamondDawgs 7-1 on Saturday up in Mohawk Valley and have swept all four games against them this season.

by Eric Rushia

Two former Glens Falls Golden Eagles from the 2008 team, which went 31-10, were chosen by the Milwaukee Brewers in the first 10 rounds of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft.

Starting pitcher Eric Arnett (Indiana) went in the first round at No. 26, while outfielder Chad Stang (Midland College) went in the eighth round at No. 256. Three other 2008 Golden Eagles—Benjamin Carlson (Missouri State), Jonathan White (Vanderbilit), and Anthony Giansanti (Siena)—were taken in the 2009 MLB Draft.

Stang, the British Columbian native, played 53 games for the Midland College Chaparrals this season, batted .370 with 64 hits, a .623 slugging percentage, 12 doubles, six homeruns, 43 RBI, and led the team with five triples.

After waking up early and listening to Day Two of the MLB Draft, Stang said he felt relieved once he heard his name called. he was thinking he’d be drafted a little higher.

“It was a nerve-racking experience at first, but when I heard my name called I was shocked. I actually thought I’d be taken a little higher.” Stang said. “We’re in contract negotiations now, but with a fair deal, I’ll be signing for sure.”

Of course, if things don’t turn out the way Stang anticipates, he’ll be heading to the Louisiana State University Tigers as he signed a letter of intent to play outfield for the perennial men’s college baseball powerhouse.

“I’ll have an opportunity to start in center for sure,” Stang said. “Nothing will he given to me and I’ll have to work hard for a starting spot, but I’m definitely ready to play Division-I college baseball if that’s what happens.”

“He’s a ‘tools’ type player who runs extremely well, has a good baseball body, and is a super kid but still very raw,” Glens Falls Golden Eagles head coach John Mayotte said. “I hope he plays at least one year at LSU before he turns pro.”

Stang credits some his success at Midland and his draft stock status to Chaps head coach David Coleman and his constant constructive criticism.

“He pushed me the right way,” Stang said. ” At times he was really hard on me, but I knew why he was doing it and by the end of the year I got to a point where I needed to be as a player.”

In his first year with the Chaps, they finished .500 and in sixth place in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference, which isn’t something Stang or his teammates wanted to experience again.

Though, in his second season with the Chaps, Stang and company finished 16 games over .500 but ran into a streaking Howard Bison team, who ended the Chaps 2009 postseason run sooner than Stang and his teammates expected.

“I’ve never been on a team that had the chemistry, drive, and talent our team had this season,” Stang said.

During the 2008 playoffs, Stang, played in all eight Golden Eagles postseason games, batted .273, led the team with three doubles, and scored the second most runs for the team with five.

Stang’s sacrifice RBI in the second game of the League Finals against the Brockport Riverbats in 2008, put the Glens Falls on top 1-0, before Brockport took the lead in the sixth and eventually won the league title.

“Coach Mayotte showed me the type of player I could become hitting with a wood bat,” Stang said. “He had the trust in me that I could do the job even though I was a freshman from a Junior College playing with all those Division-1 guys.”

In the 2008 regular season, Stang finished with the team’s second best batting average (.315), leading the team in hits (45), doubles (7), triples (3) and walks (22). Toward the end of the regular season and on into postseason play, Stang managed a 20-game hit streak.

Starting in the outfield for nearly every game during the 2008 season and leading-off in most of them, Stang can’t thank Coach Mayotte and his staff enough for the faith they had in him and how the harder he worked the more his game would improve.

“He has a great upside, however, capable of being a superb all-around player and contributing in a variety of ways, Mayotte said.

The second week of the NYCBL kicks off on Monday with three scheduled games, including a doubleheader between the second place 3-1 Watertown Wizards and the third place 2-2 Saratoga Phillies, in addition to an exhibition game between the Geneva Red Wings and the Elmira Pioneers.

Having played both the Phillies and the Wizards already this season, losing two pitching duels to Saratoga and defeating the Wizards with their biggest offensive output of the immature season, the Glens Falls Golden Eagles find themselves tied with the Phillies for third place in the NYCBL East Division.

Official league games start for the West Division on Tuesday when the Pioneers travel to Webster for a showdown with the Yankees and the Brockport Riverbats go on the road to play the Allegany County Nitros.

The Golden Eagles next play the Amsterdam Mohawks at Shuttleworth Park on Tuesday, June 9. Last season, the Mohawks finished second in the East Division behind the Golden Eagles and currently sit in first place with a perfect 3-0 win-loss record. Glens Falls handed Watertown their first lost of the season on Saturday night, erupting for 19 hits in a 12-7 win over the Wizards.

The last time the Golden Eagles played Amsterdam away from East Field, in the 2008 playoffs, they lost 5-2 in game two of the conference championships. Behind the right arm of sophomore Jamie Storey (Midland College) the Golden Eagles trailed 3-0 after the first and never quite recovered. Game two; however, was a different story as the Golden Eagles hung on to a 6-5 win over the Mohawks and tied the playoff series at one game a piece. Sophomore reliever/outfielder Anthony Giansanti (Siena) picked up his second save of the 2008 postseason, both in the Amsterdam series, striking out three in one and two-thirds innings in the deciding game.

Both Giansanti and Storey return to the 2009 Glens Falls Golden Eagles roster. Expect Storey to make his first appearance on Tuesday in a start against the Mohawks and the everyday player Giansanti to spend time roaming the outfield.

Down the stretch and in the 2008 playoffs Giansanti proved virtually un-hittable, allowing zero runs in over seven innings, saving three games, striking out nine batters, and holding opponents batting average to .087. Of the 23 hitters he faced during the playoffs, two knocked base hits and none walked. During the 2008 season, Giansanti appeared in eight and two-thirds innings, allowed one earned run and one walk in six games. With an ERA just above one, Giansanti struck out 12 hitters and notched one save.

As a batter in the box, Giansanti managed five runs scored, five stolen bases, and 12 hits in 56 at-bats. He played in the second fewest games, starting in the outfield for 13 of his 18 games.

Despite impressive regular season stats, Storey struggled slightly in the post season. He allowed nearly one hit per inning to push his ERA to the high six’s. Opposing hitters batted .217 against Storey during the season, and in the playoffs, opposing hitters batted .243. Storey finished with a 0-1 record in the playoffs, which includes a seven-inning start in game two against the Mohawks, in more than nine total innings-pitched with eight strikeouts and three walks
In his four starts during the regular season, Storey led the NYCBL with three complete games and ranked second on the team with a 1.47 ERA, five wins, seven earned runs. In 43 innings-pitched during the season, Storey struck out 39 hitters, and walked 19.

As a sophomore for the Midland College Chaps, Storey posted a 2-2 record in five games started in 2009. Totalling 40 strikeouts in 27.1 innings, Storey led the Chaps with 13 strikeouts per nine innings. Siena junior pitcher/outfielder/third basemen Giansanti has emerged as a productive offensive weapon for the Saints this season, leading them in several offensive categories, including slugging percentage, homeruns, doubles, triples, and stolen bases—just to name a few.

Following their three-game road trip, with games Wednesday against the Little Falls Miners and Thursday against Saratoga, the Glens Falls Golden Eagles return to host the Miners on Friday, June 12 for Boy Scouts Day and $1 Hot Dog Night.

by Eric Rushia

With the season starting tonight at 7 p.m. at East Field, let’s take look at the upcoming team matchups for the defending 2008 East Division Champions—The Glens Falls Golden Eagles.

Glens Falls opens the 2009 summer season at home against the Saratoga Phillies, a team they didn’t lose to once last season. Beating the Phillies in all 10 games and outscoring them 32-10 in total runs, the Phillies finished 2008 with the worst record in the NYCBL, as Glens Falls finished first in the East Division. The Golden Eagles also dominated at East Field  last season, winning 16-of-19 games. The Phillies lost 8-of-13 games on the road.

Glens Falls hosts Saratoga at East Field on June 4

Despite the Phillies struggles last season when they lost 17-of-21 in July and closed out the 2008 regular season on a six-game skid, Saratoga finished the 2007 season with the second most wins (25) in franchise history. That same year, the Golden Eagles tied the NYCBL record for most regular season wins in a single season with 34.

The Phillies did, however, hand the 2007 Glens Falls team their one lone road defeat in 20 games. When the two eventually played in the 2007 postseason, the Golden Eagles dropped the first of two divisional games in East Field but eventually  rebounded to win the next two and celebrate on the Phillies home ballpark.

With six losses in 42 scheduled games, the 2007 Golden Eagles’ .850 winning percentage eclipses the 2005 Hornell Dodgers’ record mark of 34 wins and and 13 defeats. Still, players play to win games and the 2005 Dodgers won the title, while the Golden Eagles were swept by the Elmira Pioneers in the championship finale.

Returning to the team from last year’s 10-loss team, southpaw hurler Jamie Storey (Midland College) and the dual-threat outfielder/pitcher Anthony Gianzanti (Montville CT) will both be counted on to ensure the starting pitching and bullpen relief remain the best in the entire league.

Last season, like 2007, the Golden Eagles led the league in five key pitching categories that usually translates into success on the diamond. With a 2.90 ERA, eight shutouts, seven complete games, 111 earned runs, and an opponents’ batting average stagnant at .218, bullpen coach Dan Kelley (Troy State) and pitching coach Brett Merritt (N.M. Military Institute), who are both entering their third seasons with the team, will be looking for both Giansanti and Storey to assume more a leadership role on the young, emerging pitching staff.

by Eric Rushia

Though he struggled in his previous two collegiate season, the junior pitcher blazed a trial through the Big Ten this season, helping to lead Indiana to their first Big Ten Championship since 1996 and a No. 4 seed in the Louisville Regional. The Hoosiers next play the No. 1 Cardinals in the opening round on Friday, May 29.

Eric Arnett expected to be first-round draft selection in 2009.

Before arm stiffness shelved former Golden Eagles pitcher Eric Arnett (Indiana) in the middle of the 2008 summer season, he started three games with five walks and 14 strikeouts in over 19 innings pitched.

After being named Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Year for 2009, the College Baseball Foundation named Arnett a finalist for National Pitcher of the Year and a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award.

As a starter for the Hoosiers in the 2009 season, Arnett boosts a 12-1 win-loss record and stands tied for Indiana’s single-season wins record.  With a mere 2.58 ERA and 103 strikeouts, just six shy of the all-time collegiate mark, and 35 walks in over 101 innings, Arnett ranks fourth in the nation in wins, 19th in K’s, and 21st in ERA.

Draft experts expect Arnett to come off the board somewhere in the first round of the 2009 MLB Draft, which would be Glen Falls’ highest team draft pick. Baseball America lists him No. 18 on its most recent top-100 prospects list.

At 6’5”, 225 pounds, the right-handed hurler, Arnett, overpowers hitters with a rising fastball and a sensational slider. Despite flashes of lower-90 speed, Arnett’s increased his velocity this season, especially in the later innings as he’s now averaging nearly eight innings per start. Arnett’s now up to the high 90s and keeps the ball low in the strike zone so opposing hitters struggle picking up his location.

According to Indiana assistant coach Ty Neal, Arnett’s been able to keep up his speed pitches in later innings and rarely relied on other pitches, such as a splitter or changeup, because no one hitter in the Big Ten has been able to catch up to his other two.

“He’s just gotten stronger, and he’s gotten better every year. Before, he was a 92 (mph) guy and the ball was flat in the zone. Now, he’s bigger and stronger, the slider’s a little better and he’s starting to miss bats and beat guys with his fastball,” Neal said.

Here’s what Baseball America had to say,

“Arnett will need to improve his changeup to remain a starter in pro ball, and some scouts think he lands too hard on his front leg in his delivery.  Others say his mechanics are fine, and enough teams like him that he should go in the second half of the first round.”

by Eric Rushia

Several former and current Glens Falls Golden Eagles all expect to be taken in this years MLB Draft. Historically, the Golden Eagles baseball team has had players selected no higher than the 15th round.

Former 2007 Golden Eagles third baseman, Kevin Mahoney (Canisius), who had been named 2009 MAAC Baseball Preseason Player of the Year, leads the team in homeruns (20), RBI (49), total bases (136), doubles (16), hits (58), runs scored (58), walks (36), stolen bases (15), and ranks third on the team in batting average (.331).

Prior to their loss to Fairfield on May 10, Canisius had been riding a seven-game win streak. In those seven games, Mahoney batted .405 with 15 RBI, 14 runs scored and six walks.

Mahoney started at third base for the Golden Eagles during their record-breaking 34-win season in 2007 and finished the season playing in all 40 games. Mahoney also led the team in runs scored (37), homeruns (7), RBI (44), total bases (85), and slugging percentage (.559). During the teams playoff run, Mahoney led the team with a .364 batting average, knocking 12 hits, one homerun, six RBI and 17 total bases.

In the weekend three-game series against Niagara, which the Griffins swept thus clinching the MAAC Championship, Mahoney batted .473 with seven runs scored and 14 RBI.  Canisius plays Marist on Thursday May 21 in the first round of the MAAC Tournament.

by Eric Rushia

The Chronicle sponsors opening night. Come show your support for the Glens Falls Golden Eagles when they play the Saratoga Phillies on June 4.

Welcome back Glens Falls Golden Eagles fans for another summer season of top-level collegiate wood-bat baseball right in your own backyard. As the New York Collegiate Baseball League enters its 31st season, the feel of minor league baseball all summer long returns to East Field for its sixth straight season.

Heading into their sixth season at East Field, the Golden Eagles still vie for championship gold. Over past two seasons, Head Coach John Mayotte and his teams have gone a combined 65-16 during the regular season, which is best among all teams in the New York Collegiate Baseball League (NYCBL).

The two-time reigning East Division champions now poised to make Summer 2009 the best year yet for college wood-bat baseball in Glens Falls. Despite back-to-back trips to the league championships, the Golden Eagles postseason win-loss record stands at 9-7 over those two years. Will this year different?

by Eric Rushia