Blues running by opponents on the diamond
Blues gain top-seeding for Region tourney
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer

CHRIS KELLY staff Brookdale's Joe Armino stretches to record a putout during the Jersey Blues' win over Ocean County College on Friday in Lincroft.

Teams have been competing against a different Brookdale Community College baseball team this spring, with all too familiar results for the Jersey Blues, wins.

Coach Johnny Johnson doesn't have the heavy lumber that can punish teams like he has had in previous years, but that hasn't kept the Jersey Blues from going 32-8, having locked up the No. 1 for the Regional XIX tournament and having the No. 8 ranking in the country among Division II junior colleges.

"One through nine [in the lineup], every guy can run," said Johnson. "Every ground ball is an adventure."

Instead of battering teams, the Blues have been slicing them up piece by piece with their speed. They turn walks into doubles, score from first on a double and run every ground ball out as if it were the last out of a game. This isn't a team sitting back waiting for the big inning, it is aggressive. The Blues force defenses to make plays, and under pressure those defenses have been cracking.

"The teams we've played are making a lot of errors with our speed," Johnson remarked. "We put pressure on them. As they say, speed kills."

Speed has also been slaying potential base hits. The outfield, led by Damian Walcott in center field, runs down everything in the gaps. They are a pitcher's best friend.

"The outfield is the fastest I've ever had," said Johnson.

The left side of the infield has been a fortress. Pedro Nieves at shortstop and third baseman Paddy Mattera have been vacuum cleaners, picking everything up.

Brookdale's defense gets part of the credit for the team's overall earned run average of just two runs a game. Brookdale pitchers, Johnson pointed out, throw strikes and let the defense take care of the rest.

"They don't walk batters," he said. "When you do that, you win a lot of games. Our pitching has been outstanding."

Sophomore Ryan Beard has become the team's No. 1 starter. He's 7-0 with a 1.12 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 47 innings.

"He's really stepped up and risen to the top spot," said Johnson.

Other veterans, Kevin Rickert, Nick Riker and Billy Lawson, round out the rotation that has been chewing up innings.

"Our top four guys go seven to eight innings each game," said Johnson. "Ryan has seven complete games."

Freshman Jason Wilson is the closer.

"He can pitch every day," noted Johnson.

With his starters going deep into games, when Johnson looks ahead to the Region XIX tournament that begins this weekend, he knows that he'll have a lot of fresh arms in an elimination situation that calls for all hands on deck. It's his team's depth, from the starting rotation to the arms in the bullpen, that Johnson believes separates his team from the others.

With their 12-3 win over Mercer on Thursday, Brookdale nailed down the No. 1 seed for the Region tourney that gets under way this week. The Blues pounded out 21 hits, led by Carlos Guzman, who went 4-for-6 with two RBIs and a pair of runs scored. Rickert improved to 5-1 by giving up just one earned run in eight innings of work. Brookdale finished with a 10-2 record in region play.

As the top seed, Brookdale will get a first round bye and won't have to play until the tournament comes to Lincroft on May 5-7. There will be only four teams standing at that time and they will compete in a double-elimination format.

Johnson also believes that offensively his team is better prepared for the postseason than the team that won the Region crown last spring and advanced to the World Series.

"Last year we counted on two or three guys to drive in the runs for us," he explained. "If you stopped them, you stopped our offense. This year, one through nine can all drive in runs."

Walcott leads the aggressive offense in stolen bases with 25. Leadoff batter Nieves (.369) also brings speed into the equation.

Jim Principie has been the team's hottest hitter as of late, raising his average to .406. He has nine triples and three home runs. Joe Arminio (.376), Mattera (.338), Carlos Guzman (.310), Joe Schiettino (.314) and Jordan Marsch (.353) are all having good seasons with the bat.

250 wins for Johnson

Earlier this year, the Blues won Johnson's 250th game at Brookdale (310 overall). The BCC graduate had unenviable task of replacing a legend in Hall of Famer Paul MacLaughlin, the man who is still synonymous with Brookdale baseball.

"It's still Paul's program," said Johnson. "It [250] means we're making our mark here, but it will always be his program.

"It's hard work maintaining it," he added.

Brookdale baseball may always be MacLaughlin's, but Johnson has done himself and the program proud by maintaining the team's standard of excellence. It's safe to say the BCC is in good hands with Johnson at the reins, and he is leaving his own imprint on the program.