like the defending New York state champion Archbishop Molloy Stanners, pictured here — are
facing the best competition against teams from Long Island. (Photo: Courtesy of the CHSAA)
The MLB season is in full swing this time of year, which also means that our CHSAA baseball league is gearing up for the playoffs.
The local Catholic baseball league has a somewhat new structure, in that the varsity and junior varsity teams from the Diocese of Brooklyn are also squaring off against the Diocese of Rockville Centre, Long Island, in games that count toward the league record.
Just as the pros adopted interleague play in the mid-1990s, this new structure allows diocesan teams to consistently face the toughest competition.
This past regular season marked the fourth year of the merger. In what is now a 19-game schedule, each ‘AA’ Division team from the diocese plays two games during the week against a team from their own diocese and then a single weekend game against a team from the neighboring diocese.
For Brooklyn/Queens, the expanded league includes seven teams: Xaverian H.S. (Bay Ridge), Archbishop Molloy H.S. (Briarwood), Msgr. McClancy H.S. (East Elmhurst), Holy Cross H.S. (Flushing), St. Francis Prep (Fresh Meadows), and two newcomers this year — St. John’s Prep (Astoria) and St. Edmund Prep H.S. (Sheepshead Bay).
These teams face off against the seven Long Island schools: Chaminade H.S. (Mineola), Kellenberg H.S. (Uniondale), St. Anthony’s H.S. (South Huntington), St. John the Baptist H.S. (West Islip), Holy Trinity H.S. (Hicksville), St. Mary’s H.S. (Manhasset), and St. Dominic’s H.S. (Oyster Bay).
Between the competition and the travel, the interleague play has helped prepare student-athletes who are set to play at the next level in college. Though the schools across both dioceses vary in size, having a formidable core on the baseball diamond allows any team to compete.
“In baseball, if you have 12 really good players, you’re going to be as competitive as any team,” said Chris Hardardt, chairman of the Rockville Centre baseball league and athletic director at Holy Trinity. “The competition is so good among all of our schools… Why not take advantage of it?”
Several years ago, the Archdiocese of New York decided to realign its baseball league due to the large number of teams across Manhattan, Staten Island, the Bronx, and Westchester. As a result, the Brooklyn/Queens association needed more games to fill its schedule.
At the same time, Long Island was also looking to add more games, so the two dioceses met to discuss the possibility of joining forces.
“We have tried for several years to realign baseball citywide,” said Ray Nash, president of the Brooklyn/Queens CHSAA. “We are going to need each other down the line for all sports, so baseball seemed to be a natural beginning.”
Many of the players on opposing teams play summer travel baseball together as teammates, adding another layer of intrigue to the revamped league. The feedback has been positive, and league administrators are keeping the lines of communication open to see how things may evolve further.
“This has been good, competitive baseball,” said Brooklyn/Queens baseball chairman Pete Goyco. “The Long Island teams are really good, so it gives our teams some competitive play, and it helps our teams play playoff-caliber baseball. It’s good for both associations to measure up where they will be for their own postseason play.”
In the first few years, the Long Island schools dominated interleague play, but the Brooklyn/Queens schools turned in some big-time wins this season. In fact, some coaches have altered their pitching rotation to save their best pitchers for the game against the opposing diocese.
“There’s a lot of strategy to it,” said Ralph Dalton, Rockville Centre CHSAA president and athletic director at St. John the Baptist. “Do you use your best pitcher to win a game against the other diocese, or do you save him for your conference? The teams are good, and you’re going to see them in the state tournament. The competition’s been really good too, and going to different facilities has been awesome.”
Brooklyn/Queens and Rockville Centre are each hosting their own diocesan championship tournament, with the winners advancing to the CHSAA New York state tournament — a four-team contest that includes diocesan winners from the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Buffalo. The state tournament is set to be played June 13–14 at St. John’s University, Jamaica.
This will be the fourth time a Catholic state championship has been played. There will also be a city championship tournament, with the top two Brooklyn/Queens schools joining six representatives from the Archdiocese of New York.
The eventual goal is to loop the Archdiocese of New York into regular-season play, with all three dioceses rotating their schedules each season for even more spirited competition among these area teams.
We may get there eventually. But for now, Brooklyn/Queens and Long Island have enjoyed this unique format — and just in time for the playoffs.
Contact Jim Mancari via email at jmmanc@gmail.com.