Tag Archives: pitcher

Former Dunmore Pitcher Working on His Dream

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By Steve Svetovich

Former Dunmore High School All Region pitcher Josh Zilla has a dream—to pitch in the big leagues. And he’s spent most of this summer in Florida working on making that dream a reality.

Son of Robert and Donna Zilla, Dunmore, Josh will be entering his sophomore year later this month as an Information Technology major at Keystone College, where he is a pitcher on the baseball team.

Josh Zilla, a pitcher with a dream of playing in the major leagues, is currently playing at Keystone College.

Josh Zilla, a Dunmore pitcher with a dream of playing in the major leagues, is currently playing at Keystone College.

Josh spent most of this summer pitching in the South Florida Collegiate League. His team played a 32-game schedule while Josh worked on developing a third pitch—a splitter.

The sophomore hurler played three years of varsity baseball at Dunmore High School, where he played four total years of baseball and four years of football. He was an all-star football player as well as a baseball all-star as a junior. He was an All Regional pitcher as a senior when he was named the Lackawanna League Division III Player of the Year. Josh was 7-0 with a minuscule 0.52 earned run average (ERA) as a senior pitcher. He fired a no-hitter and threw 24 consecutive scoreless innings at one point in the season. He struck out 61 batters.

Zilla pitched 14 innings in his freshman season at Keystone. He had a 2-0 record and impressive 1.90 ERA. He has a 3.0 grade point average at Keystone.

His coach at Keystone, Jamie Shevchik, recommended he learn a third pitch, and that is when Josh made his decision to play in the South Florida Collegiate League.

“He wanted me to work on a new pitch, a splitter,” said Zilla. “I worked on getting movement, getting it down and throwing it for strikes. I had a nice experience there learning a new pitch.”

Josh said he learned a lot from Shevchik in his freshman season.

“He teaches me to stay competitive and remain focused on the mound. Keep my mind straight and be more fluent with my delivery.”

The righty pitcher said coach Mark Finan and his assistants also taught him a lot at Dunmore.

“Coach Finan and his assistants were always telling me to be focused and keep my head in the game,” said Zilla. “They kept my mind straight and focused.”

Josh has been playing baseball since age five right up to Legion and now collegiate baseball. He loves the game and is spending the final month of his summer pitching for the Dunmore entry in the Dunmore Freedom collegiate summer league (formerly CSBL). Home games are played at Dunmore’s Sherwood Park.

“I want to keep getting better as a pitcher. I want to work on my control and velocity. I want to pick my grades up and work on getting my Information Technology degree, but that is a backup plan,” said Zilla. “My ultimate goal is to get drafted and pitch in the MLB. I want to pitch in the big leagues.”

Top Pitching Prospect Gets Promotion to Yankees

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By Steve Svetovich

It was just a matter of time. But due to the first place New York Yankees unsettled starting pitching rotation, sooner came before later for 21-year-old top pitching prospect Luis Severino.

Severino

As of Friday, July 31, Luis Severino will now be playing for the New York Yankees.

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman announced the promotion of the Dominican born right hander from Scranton Wilkes-Barre to the parent club in time for a start against the Boston Red Sox in the first week of this month.

Severino was undefeated at 7-0 in a RailRiders uniform this season. He has a 1.91 ERA for the RailRiders and has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his a Triple A starts. He struck out a career high 10, allowing only one hit over six innings in his last start Wednesday against Lehigh Valley.

The Yankees placed righty Michael Pineda on the disabled list Thursday, July 30, with forearm tightness. Southpaw CC Sabathia suffered dehydration after starting for Pineda in hot Texas the next day.

The team was quiet on the trading front before the July 31 deadline as Cashman starts to turn towards youth from this point to the future. None of the Yankees major prospects were traded, a shift from past seasons.

Severino was signed as an international free agent for a $225,000 signing bonus in 2012. He made his professional debut with the Dominican Summer League Yankees I. He started 14 games and went 4-2 with a 1.68 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 64 and one-third innings pitched.

He started the 2013 season with the DSL Yankees I. He was 4-2 with a 2.45 ERA. He struck out 53 in 44 innings. He pitched in 10 games, including eight starts. Prior to the 2014 season, Baseball America ranked Severino as the ninth best Yankees prospect. He started with Charleston before being promoted to the Tampa Yankees of the Class A Advanced Florida State League. He pitched in the 2014 All-Star Future Games.

He was then promoted to the Trenton Thunder of the Class AA Eastern League. With the three teams in 2014, he was 6-5 in 24 starts. He shined with a 2.46 ERA and 127 strikeouts and only 27 walks in 113 and one-third innings.

He was ranked as the New York Yankees top prospect and 23rd best in the minor leagues prior to the start of this season. He began the season in Trenton before his promotion to Scranton Wilkes-Barre where he is a perfect 7-0.

Cashman announced Severino’s call up to the big leagues Friday, July 31, and it is a move anticipated all season for Yankee fans. Time will now tell if Severino is major league ready at 21, but do not count him out.

Holy Cross Pitcher Takes Talents to St. Bonaventure

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By Steve Svetovich

James Wetter had a knack of coming through as a pitcher in big games during his four year varsity baseball career at Holy Cross High School. And now Big Game James will be taking his talents to St. Bonaventure University in Olean, NY. He will attend on a four-year academic and baseball scholarship.

Son of Atty. James and Janine Wetter, Dunmore, James finished his Holy Cross academic career with a 3.85 GPA. His best subject is math. James will major in Finance at St. Bonaventure. He has aspirations to become a lawyer like his dad.

The scholar-athlete was the voice of boys’ basketball and football at Holy Cross. He was Vice President of Crusaders for Compassion, an Animals Rights club. He was a member of the Latin Club.

James pitched for the Crusaders during his entire four year varsity baseball career. He fashioned an impressive 1.75 ERA  last season and 2.50 ERA in his junior year as the staff ace.

He was asked about the highlight of his varsity baseball career. “That would have to be in my freshman season,” he said. “We started out the season 1-4. Then we won nine games in a row and went all the way to the district championship game. It was quite a thrill as a team.”

James said he learned a lot from Holy Cross baseball coach Sandy Menichetti. “Besides the on the field work, coach Menichetti taught us how to act off the field. On the field he taught us to keep our composure at all times. He taught us we could always come back and get going in games we were behind. He set us up to come back.”

The stalwart pitcher, humble and polite in nature, said he learned a lot from his parents. “My parents taught me how to treat people. They taught me that everyone is equal and to treat everyone fair.”

James said he likes listening to music in his spare time. He would like to see Taylor Swift in concert.

He talked about what it takes to succeed as a pitcher. “You need to keep your composure. Don’t get too high and don’t get too low. Always try to hit your spots.”

James, who struck out 44 batters in 38 innings in his senior year, is keeping busy this summer pitching for the Northeast Pride in the Hudson Valley Collegiate Summer Baseball League.

He was thrilled to receive the scholarship to St. Bonaventure and can’t wait to get started in August. “I was extremely excited when I got the scholarship and decided to attend. I will get to play at a high level of Division I baseball and get a great education. They have a great business program for finance. And it will be a very good preparation for law school. I can’t wait to play baseball there.”

Right now James is enjoying his summer, working and playing baseball. “I loved going to Holy Cross,” he said. “I made many friends. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot in school and really enjoyed my four years playing baseball there. It was just a great experience all around.”

And he’s not done yet. The future is bright athletically and academically for Big Game James.