Consider it a case of the opening night jitters.
Playing their first Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League home game at Bob Bellizzi Field, the Albany Dutchmen committed eight errors in a 5-3 loss to the Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs last Friday.
Our pitchers battled well, said Albany manager Nick Davey. `We gave up five unearned runs, so our pitchers did their job. We just need to do the little things better.`
The on-field result was secondary to the off-field effect that moving from Bleecker Stadium ` the Dutchmen’s home in 2009 and 2010 ` to Bellizzi Field had for the club. The stands were full of fans curious to see the new crop of collegiate players on Albany’s roster in a new, high-quality facility at the end of Interstate 787.
`It’s great. We’re excited about the new facility. It’s a great field,` said Dutchmen general manager Jason Brinkman.
`I feel like we’ll get a better crowd just because of the location,` added Guilderland native and Siena College pitcher C.J. Sohl, one of four holdovers from last year’s team.
What the fans saw was a combination of good and bad. The bad came in the form of a four-error sixth inning that allowed Mohawk Valley to build a 4-0 lead. The good came in the form of a three-run rally in the bottom of the seventh that helped the Dutchmen (1-2) close the gap before the DiamondDawgs sealed the victory with a run in the top of the ninth inning.
`They responded [after the sixth inning], but we’ve got to do the little things,` said Davey.
Catcher Dain McNabb had two hits including an RBI single to start the three-run rally in the seventh inning, and designated hitter Ryan Welke added a two-run single for Albany. Jake Saylor drove in two runs with one of Mohawk Valley’s five hits.
Davey and Brinkman said that they expect Albany to be more competitive this year than the previous two seasons, when the Dutchmen were playing in the New York Collegiate Baseball League.
`Once we start playing consistent baseball and put the team we want out there, it will be a fun experience for the fans,` said Davey, Albany’s second-year manager.
`Only time will tell,` said Brinkman. `We think we have a pretty good roster.`
The Dutchmen’s roster includes more NCAA Division I talent than the past two seasons ` a result of the relationship between the club and Perfect Game, a baseball scouting service that helped stock all eight PGCBL teams.
`They’ve been able to open some tremendous doors for us,` said Brinkman. `They have great relationships with coaches of those [Division I] programs.`
`Perfect Game is the best scouting service in the nation, and they provide us with a better-caliber baseball player,` said Davey.
Albany’s pitching has been strong through the first three games, allowing only three earned runs and 14 hits. The offense has cooled off since last Thursday’s 6-2 road win against Amsterdam, though. The Dutchmen managed only 10 hits in their home losses to Mohawk Valley Friday and Amsterdam (a 1-0 decision) Sunday after posting 11 hits in their only victory.
Davey said the Dutchmen will get better as the season goes on, especially once they get used to swinging wooden bats after playing with aluminum bats at the collegiate level.
`No matter what level [of college ball] they play, they play college baseball for a reason. They all know how to make adjustments,` said Davey. `They all have to make adjustments in order to be successful.`
After a day off Monday, the Dutchmen hosted Newark Tuesday. They travel to Watertown Wednesday and Glens Falls Friday before hosting Mohawk Valley Saturday and Glens Falls Sunday. All games start at 7:05 p.m. at Bellizzi Field.“
