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Williamsport catcher Adam Aldenderfer long ago earned his pitchers' trust. And now a former standout pitcher and current Williamsport coach Kyle Schneider is showing his trust while giving Aldenderfer a big responsibility.
Aldenderfer is calling pitches this season and he is doing it quite well. The Millionaire pitching staff looks improved from a year ago and Aldenderfer's presence may play a key reason why. The junior catcher understands his game well, but may even understand his teammates better. That provides a level of comfort which has been evident during the team's 2-1 start.
Griffin Vollman and Owen Berry both threw well in Saturday's 6-3 win against St. Mary's, particularly coming up big in crucial spots. Kydreece Burks shined in a season-opening win against Bellefonte and Joey Signor dominated in relief against 2019 state champion Selinsgrove. Cayden Robertson and Caleb Fausnaught also have provided quality innings and Aldenderfer's fingerprints are all over that success.
"Being friends on and off the field and knowing each other no matter what we really do helps us," Berry said after throwing three shutout innings to earn the save against St. Mary's. "I can trust him no matter what he tells me to do and he knows what I want to do."
That chemistry has been apparent through three games. Aldenderfer and Vollman settled into a groove following a rough start against St. Mary's and Williamsport allowed just one run over the final six innings. Yes, it's still quite early but the pitching staff looks light years ahead of where it was at this time last year when the Millionaires where 0-3 and there is an obvious chemistry which Aldenderfer and the pitchers share.
The St. Mary's win shined a light on that growing relationship. Nearly every time, the pitchers were in trouble, they worked out of it. Vollman and Berry forced the Flying Dutchmen into going 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and stranded nine baserunners.
"I've been playing with him since I was 4-5 years old. I trust him with everything he does back there," Berry said. "He does a great job."
"We had an intrasquad scrimmage and I was umpiring and just watched him call pitches and I thought he was doing a good job. That's good for Adam and good for our pitchers," Schneider said. "They know what they are doing and Adam knows what they're doing a little better out there than I do from the dugout and I think he's doing a phenomenal job."
Aldenderfer also effectively blocked pitches against St. Mary's and kept runners from advancing. He was 1 for 2 with an RBI Saturday, twice reaching the base.
He has proven he is a good baseball player over the years and Aldenderfer is showing he is a smart one as well. He is not the only catcher calling the team's pitches but he is the exception, not the norm. An encouraging sign for Williamsport is that teams who have given free reign to their catchers in this area over the years often have had success, including current Maine catcher Cy Probst who helped Central Mountain reach last year's Class AAAAA state semifinals.
Time will tell how Williamsport progresses this season. The bottom line, however, is both the coaches and pitchers trust that Aldenderfer can help the staff flourish.
"They've played so much together that they know so much about each other. When you have that chemistry out there it's easier and it's stress free," Schneider said. "Adam knows these guys and I trust Adam and I like that. I like being able to have him back there to do that and it's good for the next level."
GETTING A JUMP: Some teams have not even played games yet because of inclement weather and/or rough field conditions. Muncy, though, already has played three games. Even better for the Indians, they won all three.
Muncy played three times in four days last week, downing Sugar Valley before recording consecutive quality wins over the weekend against last year's District 4 Class A finalists St. John Neumann and Cowanesque Valley. A year after coming within a run of reaching the District 4 Class AA semifinals, Muncy is gaining momentum and not putting itself in a potential precarious late-season situation when some teams might have to stretch pitching and try playing four and five games a week due to early-season postponements.
Muncy is one of only three District 4 teams, joining Hughesville and Southern Columbia, who already have three games in.
"Pitch counts makes it a little more challenging but I like the fact that we get to play and get these guys in some real game situations and they get to see live pitching instead of coaches pitching to them," Muncy coach Chris Persing said following a 9-1 win against Neumann. "To get that experience for the kids can really help us as the season continues."
It may already be helping. Neumann was playing its first game and CV for the first time in eight days when Muncy faced them. The Indians might have won those games anyway, but it did not hurt already have been settling into a routine in a sport where settling into a routine often is so vital.
"We already had that first game jitters and mistakes and things like that out of the way. I feel like we were at an advantage because we played already," Ross Eyer said after striking out 10 in four innings against Neumann. "The freshmen have played in games now and gotten at-bats. I think that's giving us a big advantage on teams that haven't played at all yet."
LATE START: Neumann comes from the opposite side of that spectrum. Because more than half the team was on the Class A state finalist basketball team, Neumann had no scrimmages and just three outdoor practices before playing Muncy. Still, the defending district champions showed plenty of promise against a quality opponent.
JerVal Weeks-Shuler dominated in relief, striking out nine in four innings, and three different players produced hits. Neumann stayed upbeat the entire game, unveiled a potential weapon in freshman Chase Wright and look like a team capable of building off last year's historic run once they gain more experience.
"Eyer is one of the best small school pitchers in the tate and he's only going to get better. To come out here and battle with them just showed that we're ready to still play hard and have fun," Neumann coach Cory Burkholder said. "They rallied around each other and around our freshman pitcher (in the seventh inning). That's a huge thing. That's a positive for us. When all is said and done Chase Wright is going to be one of the best freshmen this program has had in a long time. We're really looking forward to his growth and maturation."
BREAKING THROUGH: Warrior Run never gave up against Millville last Friday, overcoming a four-run, seventh-inning deficit and winning 8-7 in eight innings. The Defenders snapped a 28-game losing streak and showed their promise. Carter Marr drove in three runs, Austin Lewis delivered two hits and Mason Sheesley kept Warrior Run in the game with 6 1/3 gutsy innings.
Dr. Masse's Top Five
1. Central Mountain (1-0): Chase Brush and Cru Stover played crucial roles on a pitching staff which helped Central Mountain win a third straight district championship last year and picked up where they left off last Wednesday, combining on a five-hitter in a 4-1 win against Montoursville. They were both essentially No. 2 pitchers behind ace and current West Virginia pitcher Aidan Major and now Brush and Stover look like they may be co-aces. Brush threw four shutout innings in relief and Stover scattered two hits in three innings while Cayde McCloskey's two-run single put Central Mountain ahead to stay against its fellow HAC-I title contender.
2. South Williamsport (1-0): The Mounties wasted little time revealing their potential, rallying from a two-run, fifth-inning deficit and defeating defending District 4 Class AA champion Sayre. Landon Lorson and Makai Day combined for 15 strikeouts against a dangerous offense which has most of last year's starters back. Lorson fanned nine and hit a 3-run home run, while Day threw four strong innings in relief to earn the win. Kaden Shay developed into one of the area's top leadoff hitters as a freshman last year and resumed his duties, going 2 for 4 with a run. Alex Neidig also had two hits following a good sophomore campaign. Being an independent allows South to construct a challenging schedule and it continues Wednesday against defending HAC-I champion Shikellamy.
3. Hughesville (3-0): It has played far from its best baseball, but Hughesville is 3-0 and winning when not at one's best often is the sign of a strong team. Hughesville rallied from a slow start against Warrior Run and overcame some sloppiness against Milton to start 3-0 for a second straight season. Dylan Farnsworth and Carter Cowburn each had three hits and combined for four RBIs against Milton with Farnsworth hitting a triple. Cowburn struck out eight in 4 1/3 innings in that game and Farnsworth fanned five in two innings against Warrior Run. Catcher Tyler Wetzel has been part of a balanced offense and drove in four runs at Warrior Run, while Gage Thomas went 4 for 4 in his first two games.
4. Loyalsock (0-0): A late start to the season has Loyalsock going into a tough week with games against defending District 4 Class AAAA champion Midd-West, Bloomsburg and Hughesville. Call it a trial by fire for the defending District 4 Class AAA champions who feature some big hitters but who must replace last year's top three pitchers.
5. Montoursville (0-1): AJ Llorente threw four strong innings against Central Mountain, an encouraging sign as the Warriors try navigating through the challenging HAC-I. Montoursville plays its home opener this afternoon against Danville. Coach Jeremy Eck was not pleased with the lack of intensity his team showed against Central Mountain, but today offers a new opportunity against another quality opponent.
Players of the Week
Karson Dominick and Alex Davis, North Penn-Mansfield: Youth was served Friday when North Penn-Mansfield downed Northeast Bradford, 18-8. Dominick, a sophomore, earned the win and went 3 for 5 with five runs. Davis, a freshman, was 3 for 4 with five RBIs and four runs. Those two have helped the Tigers start 2-0 with Dominick going 5 for 7 and Davis 5 for 8 with an area-high seven RBIs.
Game of the Week
Loyalsock at Hughesville: Long-time rivals collide Friday at Bodine Park. Hughesville was five outs from playing Loyalsock in last year's district final and these two have played some outstanding games over the years. The season is young, but expect a big crowd and a playoff-type atmosphere for this one.
--Masse may be reached at cmasse@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @docmasse