SAUGERTIES — In order to be a successful coach and lead a winning baseball program, you need to know when to take a risk. Calculating every necessary aspect in the moment, there’s almost always an exact reason as to why something is called in the moment.
Sometimes, there doesn’t need to be a stat-backed reason, it just feels right.
Tied 3-3 going into the bottom of the seventh inning in the New York State Class A regional championship, a Marlboro program that already has had a spectacular, unforgettable run to get to that point had yet another memorable moment in the holster.
With the game-winning run standing on third base and one out on the board, coach John Morrissey just had a feeling that it was time to try and force the defense to make a play. Calling a squeeze bunt play, Cole Belcastro laid down a perfectly placed ball with Meyer Baker sliding under the ensuing tag, sending the Dukes to the state final four. Baker had tripled just before to get the winning run just 90 feet away
“Why not?” Morrissey said with a laugh when asked about what made him so confident to call the risky play with the game on the line. “Just roll the dice. We practice for these situations, getting a bunt down is important to us and these guys have really been putting in the time to get better at a craft … when they get into a game, they’re used to it.”
Marlboro has been no stranger to pressure, especially after the unforgettable run to secure a Section 9 championship and get to this point. It was just another day on the diamond for the Dukes.
Baker finished with two hits including the clutch triple. Jax Fernandez drilled an RBI single earlier in the contest while the hero of the sectional title, Liam Correa, continued his dominant playoff performance. The junior tossed another complete game, striking out seven batters while adding two hits in the box, one being a two-run triple.
Alongside the clutch, tough at-bats to help set up the win, it was another strong defensive showing from Marlboro in the field that helped keep Byram Hills off the scoreboard for most of the contest. After the sectional title win the week before, Morrissey admitted the team had gone through a real change defensively throughout the season. He noted the evolution and improvements in the field were vital.
With a few more impressive plays made throughout the field on Saturday, the belief that allowed that to happen showed through.
“We talked to each of these guys about what your mantra is when you’re out there. A lot of these guys said trust. Trust in your friends, trust in your teammates and do what you need to do in order to give it to the next guy,” Morrissey said. “Honestly, I think they believe that and they’re showing that they believe that because they’re really doing a great job of getting all that stuff together. I couldn’t ask for us to peak at a better time, but I couldn’t ask for them to believe in what we’re teaching them at a better time.”
Because of all of that, the Dukes still have just a little more time to peak.
Going up to play at Binghamton University, Marlboro will take on Plainedge in the state semifinals on June 12 with a current 7 p.m. estimated start time. If the Dukes win, the state title game will be played at Binghamton’s Mirabito Stadium one day later.
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Marlboro wins wild walk-off for regional title, advances to final four
Reporting by Eric Decker, Poughkeepsie Journal / Poughkeepsie Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Eric Decker, Poughkeepsie Journal | USA TODAY Network
