EMERSON, Ga. – The Northern Valley Hurricanes have advanced to the semifinal round of the 16u PG EvoShield Classic after a loud 12-0 win over Elite Baseball Club on Friday. Eleven hits and six walks helped the offense power through the Elite pitching, and starting pitcher Justin Pacheco – the No. 3 middle infielder in the state of New York for the class of 2018 – was filthy as he allowed only one hit in four scoreless innings. Pacheco’s changeup was his out pitch as the late fade to it helped him rack up seven strikeouts in only four innings.
“I was staying confident on the mound knowing that everything was working,” said Pacheco after the game. “My changeup was on too, I got a lot of outs with that.”
The offense has been the strength of the Hurricanes and they showed it off again on Friday. The lineup is a mix of power and speed which helps with the amount of gap shots they hit. Stretching singles into doubles and doubles into triples helps to put more runs on the board at the end of the day.
“I know last game we came into that hitting .389 and after this game we’re outscoring opponents 44-5,” said manager Frank Salvano. “So pitching has been working and the key to our game is our speed, pitching, and defense. The hitting comes and goes but it’s been really good this tournament. We have scored a lot of runs and we usually win games on pitching and defense but the hitting has been a plus.”
“We’ve been hitting good all week,” added Steven Yelin. “We had batting practice before the game and we just felt good.”
The Hurricanes are self-described as a small ball focused team on offense. They haven’t been able to showcase that ability as most of their hits have resulted in clearing the bases and not just moving runners over.
“In the second game we faced two guys throwing 85-86 and we’ve just hit,” said Salvano of their success at the plate. “We’ve been together since these guys were nine or 10-years-old so I know these guys can hit. I know that my guys one through 10 in the lineup, at some point, will come through for us. We’re confident, we know how to play small ball, but lately we’ve just been barreling up pitches. We work the count, jump on fastballs, and start hacking. We hit a homerun yesterday and have had probably ten doubles so it’s been going well.”
Team chemistry is one of the team’s biggest assets. Having played together since they were nine-years-old helps to build a strong bond between the players. They are all so familiar with each other that it translates to winning ball games, but also it is yet another example of how the sport can build lasting relationships.
“We have a lot of team chemistry, we’ve been playing together since we were eight,” said Correl Caddle.
After Friday’s victory, the Hurricanes will move on to face the Astros TECB in the semifinals on Saturday and they are familiar with East Cobb. The Hurricanes faced an East Cobb team two years ago and lost. After a strong tournament showing thus far, the Hurricanes are looking to flip the script.
“We’ve been working really hard for this all summer,” said Evan Bergman, the No. 8 outfielder in the state of New Jersey for the class of 2018.
Northern teams aren’t normally assumed to be baseball powerhouses due to much of the winter and early spring being lost to snow. The Hurricanes are based out of New Jersey but have brought a distinct northern flair to the PG EvoShield Classic. The No. 1 seed in the tournament, the Hurricanes have been showing just how talented northern teams can be.
“We’re from the northeast so we don’t get to be on the field until March,” said Salvano. “It’s nice to come down and have a cold-weather team beat up on the southern boys. They probably don’t think much of the Jersey boys but we get out there and jump on teams in the first inning. We have the no. 1 seed in this tournament so that woke up some people and the last two playoff games have been strong against two southern teams.”
Pitching will be the key for the Hurricanes as they look to capture the title. They have only allowed four runs this tournament and have been very efficient on the mound. Pitching and defense have carried them this far and Salvano and his staff will look for the pitching and defense to lead them the rest of the way.
“We know that we’re definitely playing one of the East Cobb teams,” said Salvano. “We played them two years ago and they beat us, they’re good. I threw my two best arms less than 60 pitches so they could come back (and throw again). We had one guy throw today and the other will be throwing tomorrow, so we’ll have a good chance. We know they can play, it’s going to be a war.
“If we keep hitting like we’re hitting I don’t know how they can keep up but they’re good too so I’m sure they’ll have a guy who can throw as well. Hopefully our guys can hold them down and we can score enough to win.”