Pitching, the ‘great equalizer,’ will be king as Berks playoffs begin

By Mike Drago Last updated May 15, 2022

After nearly sweeping through the regular season without a loss and earning the top seed in the Berks Baseball League Tournament it would seem Gov. Mifflin should be the overwhelming favorite to bring home a second straight championship.

History would suggest otherwise.

Over the past 10 years (and nine tournaments), the No. 1 seed has won just twice; only three No. 1’s have reached the championship game. Exeter, in 2013, didn’t even get out of the first round — in fact, the Eagles didn’t get a hit. Kutztown’s Andrew Gernert beat them 4-0 in a quarterfinal no-hitter.

	Run differential	Winning margin
Gov. Mifflin	+116	5.8
Exeter	+77	4.0
Kutztown	+54	3.0
Muhlenberg	+49	2.7
Twin Valley	+47	2.6
Wilson	+43	2.5
Hamburg	+33	1.8
Oley Valley	+22	1.2

Pitching rules in baseball and even the best teams can be stopped on a given day.

“A stud pitcher can change everything,” said Mifflin coach Chris Hole. “That can be the great equalizer.”

The tournament opens Thursday, with doubleheaders at Owls Field in West Wyomissing and Muhlenberg’s Gochnauer Field, each starting at 4.

The Mustangs (19-1), of course, have a strong and deep pitching staff, with Alexander Velez (7-0, 1.04), Tyler Minick (4-0, 0.93) and Ethan Grim (6-0, 0.85).

In a single-elimination tournament all it takes is one strong pitcher to knock you out, and every team in the eight-team tournament can boast of an ace — or two.

Hamburg’s Tristan Baer is 7-1 with an 0.72 ERA. Kutztown’s Grant Fitzgerald is 5-0 with a 1.13 ERA. Exeter’s Deven Sheerin is 4-1 with a 2.01 ERA. Twin Valley’s Kannon Zdimal has a 1.55 ERA and 50 strikeouts over 40 2/3 innings. Oley Valley’s Luke Macdonald enters with 27 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings over his last five appearances.

“Every team’s in the field is capable of winning a game,” said Hamburg coach Nick Evangelista. “I don’t think there’s anyone I can look at and say, if that pitcher’s on his game they can’t win that game.”

With the semifinals not being played until Monday, at FirstEnergy Stadium, it will be possible for teams to bring their No. 1 starters back for the semifinals.

Fifth-seeded Wilson is the only team in the field with a losing record but still could win it all because of its pitching depth. Cole Leaman, who will pitch at Lehigh next season, has a 1.84 ERA and 47 strikeouts over 26 2/3 innings. Ruben Livingston, who will play at Kent State next season, has a 1.40 ERA and 42 strikeouts over 25 innings. Matt VanOstenbridge has the best ERA on the staff, at 1.06.

Wilson has a young team and enters not knowing if its season ends with a loss; it might not qualify for the District 3 Tournament. Still, the Bulldogs have been very competitive. Five of their nine losses have come by one run; they lost 3-1 at Mifflin.

The Bulldogs (8-9) open against No. 4 Twin Valley (12-6) in the second game of a doubleheaders at Muhlenberg; Mifflin plays eighth-seeded Oley Valley (11-7) in the first game.

Gov. Mifflin’s Alexander Velez. (Philmarphoto)

At Owls Field, No. 3 Exeter (14-5) faces No. 6 Hamburg (13-5) in the opener; No. 7 Kutztown (13-5) follows against No. 2 Muhlenberg (16-2).

The Mustangs have been the league’s most dominant team, winning by an average of 5.8 run per game; Exeter is next at 4.0.

Those are also the two highest-scoring teams in the league: The Mustangs are averaging 8.6 runs, the Eagles 7.9. Muhlenberg, the Berks II champ, is third at 7.2.

The only rematch from the regular season is Wilson vs. Twin Valley; the Bulldogs won 5-2 at Twin Valley April 25 as Livingston homered, doubled and drove in four runs and VanOstenbridge struck out nine over five innings.

One of the most intriguing match-ups has Berks III champ Hamburg going against Exeter, the Berks I runner-up. Baer has been overpowering, with 75 strikeouts over 48 innings. Then again, he hasn’t faced a lineup as strong as Exeter’s.

Eagles shortstop Luke Weller is batting .500 with 27 RBIs and 17 runs scored in 19 games. He has a .557 on-base average and a .775 slugging average. Second baseman Brady Hannahoe is batting .415 with 22 runs scored and a 1.116 OPS. Center fielder Alex Kelsey has a .479 on-base average, 18 stolen bases and 26 runs scored.

“They’re extremely hot right now,” said Evangelista of the Eagles, who have won seven of their last eight. “I could make a case that they’re the hottest team in the county right now, with what they did last week: They beat Wilson (3-2), (Daniel) Boone (3-0) and Mifflin (16-10) in the span of four days. That’s pretty good. They’re playing their best baseball coming in. We have our work cut out for us.”

Muhlenberg won its first 10 games before running into Mifflin. The Berks II champs have a top pitcher in Brad Coley, who has a 2.10 ERA and 55 strikeouts over 30 innings, and a lineup of hitters as deep as any in the league.

Muhls center fielder Luis Beato is batting .443 with 21 runs scored and a .754 slugging percentage. First baseman Sam Martinez is batting .442 with a team-high 23 RBIs and a .574 on-base average. As a team, the Muhls are batting .319 with a .454 on-base percentage.

“Obviously Gov. Mifflin and Muhlenberg are really good,” Evangelista said, “but I think every team is capable of winning a game. I don’t think anything will be an absolute shock.”

Mifflin has won three of the last six championships and has six titles since 2008; only Wilson, with two, has multiple titles in that span.

“In a playoff situation, anybody can beat anybody,” said Hole, “so we’ve gotta make sure that we’re coming out with our best effort.”

Here are the quarterfinal match-ups:

1	Gov. Mifflin	vs.	8	Oley Valley	At Muhlenberg, Thursday, 4:00
4	Twin Valley	vs.	5	Wilson	At Muhlenberg, Thursday, to follow
3	Exeter	vs.	6	Hamburg	At Owls Field, Thursday, 4
2	Muhlenberg	vs.	7	Kutztown	At Owls Field, Thursday, to follow

Recent Berks League champs

Year	Champion	Runner-up
2021	Gov. Mifflin	Wilson
2020	No tournament
2019	Wilson	Hamburg
2018	Muhlenberg	Fleetwood
2017	Wilson	Twin Valley
2016	Gov. Mifflin	Exeter
2015	Gov. Mifflin	Daniel Boone
2014	Reading High	Berks Catholic
2013	Oley Valley	Kutztown
2012	Fleetwood	Gov. Mifflin
2011	Gov. Mifflin	Twin Valley
2010	Conrad Weiser	Twin Valley