Forget the mashing Tottenville Pirates of the last few years. They’re gone. Meet the new Tottenville Pirates, full of pitching, defensively sound and reliant on small ball.
“We’ll have to get strong pitching and good defense to win games,” Tottenville coach Tom Tierney Jr. said.
With senior co-aces Michael Sullivan and Vin Aiello, that shouldn’t be a problem. Tottenville has the arms to make up for the losses of weapons like Tom Kain, Kevin Krause, Gil Mendoza and George Kantzian. Aiello, who thrived as the team’s closer and has committed to Rider, will follow Sullivan in the rotation.
The hard-throwing lefty with the riding fastball in the high 80s was brilliant as a junior, pitching Tottenville to the PSAL Class A finals by winning three times in the postseason and allowing four runs in 21 playoff innings. He’s only improved in the last year and has drawn interest from Rutgers and St. John’s.
“I think we have the best co-aces in the city in Vincenzo and Sullivan,” center fielder Joe Sessa said.
Tierney is confident in seniors Tommy Scarangello and Matt Tanzi at the back-end of the rotation. While they may lack the stuff of Aiello and Sullivan, the two mix their pitches well, live on the corners and have plenty of varsity experience.
While Tierney knows he can’t replace last year’s potent senior class, he thinks the lineup has potential. Sessa and FDU-bound catcher John Giakas will be the 3-4 and have shown promise. Giakas hardly played last spring, but that’s because he was behind Krause and Kantzian. Sessa saw more playing time, but after a standout sophomore season, he slumped with the bat as a junior.
“Me and John go hitting every day, after practice or a game,” Sessa said. “We know we have a big spot this year.”
Said Tierney: “It’s not the first time we’ve had guys not play a lot as juniors sitting behind guys who are really good. Last year was a tough year [for Sessa]; it was up and down, it was also a learning experience. He’s ready to play and Giakas the same thing.”
The defense will get a big lift from shortstop Stephen Notaro, who missed much of last spring after Tommy John surgery. He’ll also be a quality bat, along with returning left fielder Anthony Capo, the Pirates’ speedy leadoff man who hit .350 a year ago and scored 22 runs. Sullivan will also be a fixture in the lineup, spending time at designated hitter and first base when he’s not on the mound.
“Our hitting is not as good as it used to be the last few years, but I think we have a good core,” the Iona College-bound Sessa said. “We have a real good team. We have consistency one through nine [in our lineup]. We don’t have the power; we have to play small ball. We just have to relax, don’t tense up.”
Tottenville, the 27-time defending PSAL Staten Island A champion, has impressed in the preseason, beating top foes such as Poly Prep, Moore Catholic and St. Joseph by the Sea in scrimmages.
Expectations, Tierney said, aren’t any different in Huguenot. After winning it all two years ago and falling short in the final last June to George Washington, Tottenville still feels it’s right there with the best teams in the city. It just won’t be battering opposing pitchers as much. It’s pitchers, however, may be the ones doing the battering.