UMass Lowell Players in Summer League Action

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With the college baseball season in the rearview mirror, players are getting the opportunity to continue playing in summer leagues across the country. The UMass Lowell River Hawks have players playing summer ball in two New England summer leagues. The Futures League and the New England Collegiate Baseball league are two such organizations where you will find members of the River Hawks playing. Both have been in action for the better part of six weeks, so let’s take a peek at how they are doing.

First baseman Cedric Rose is playing for the North Adams SteepleCats. Rose has seen time at both corner positions in the infield this summer. While playing mostly first base this spring in Lowell, he has spent time at third base during his freshman year with the River Hawks. Cedric is hitting .242 (16-for-68) with two HR, eight RBI, and three doubles. He has hit safely in six of his last ten games with two 2-hit games to his credit. He has been pulling the ball with North Adams while showing a little speed on the bases with three stolen bases so far.

The Samford Mainers have two members of the River Hawks with them. First, there is pitcher Zachary Rogers. The RHP has appeared in five games total, making one start. His record is 0-1 with a 5.14 ERA. in seven innings, Rodgers has given up five hits and four earned runs. He has struck out five while walking three. Zachary has not thrown more than two innings in any appearances with Samford and has allowed runs in three of his five outings. After a terrific freshman season in which he was second in the country in stolen bases, Jacob Humphrey was scheduled to join this team and play some summer ball. As of this writing, Humphrey has not made an appearance for the team.

The Vermont Mountaineers is where you will find Gerry Siracusa. The fine season he had with UMass Lowell has continued into the summer with Vermont. He is hitting .385 (30-78) with one home run and 16 RBI. Over his last ten games, Siracusa has 14 hits with five of them being multiple-hit games. Gerry has scored 10 runs in those games while driving in 11 runs. Siracusa has shown he can put wood bats to baseball as he has only struck out nine times in 78 at-bats.

In the Futures League, the Brockton Rox have three players on the team. Two of them did not play for the River Hawks this past spring. Nick DiRito is a RHP who is part of the plans in the future in Lowell. He is from Plymouth, MA. He has pitched very well so far for Brockton. He has made three appearances, with one start, and one closing chance. His record is 1-0 with a 1.97 ERA, one complete game, and one save. In 13.2 IP, Nick has allowed 11 hits, three earned runs, walked four, and struck out 10. His complete game came on July 3 in which he went seven, gave up seven hits, three runs, two earned, two walks, and five punchouts. The 6-2 RHP is making a case for mound time next spring in Lowell.

Another who did not see the hill is Brian Foley out of Milton, Ma. The RHP has struggled with Brockton, with no record and an ERA of 10.12. In 5.1 innings he has given up six runs, all earned. All of the runs were allowed in his first outing vs New Britain. His last two have been scoreless with no hits allowed in 2.1 innings. He too should be a part of the River Hawks rotation in the future. Catcher Jake Fitzgibbons has appeared in 12 games hitting .167 (4-24) with a home run and four runs batted in. Jake has scored three runs in those 12 games.

In Pittsfield, two members of this spring’s pitching staff are getting some work in. LHP Zack Fortuna has a 1-0 record with an 8.52 ERA. In six innings, Zack has allowed six hits, and six earned runs. four walks with eight strikeouts. His last outing was his worst so far. He went 0.2 innings vs Vermont and gave up five earned runs on two hits, and three walks, facing seven batters. In his four previous times on the bump, Fortuna went 5.2 IP, with four hits and zero runs. Drew Haight is also on this staff. The RHP has been good so far. A 3-0 record with a 2.79 ERA, 10 games, one save, and nine hits in 9.2 IP. His seven walks are a little high with four strikeouts. Eight of his ten outings have been scoreless, including seven in a row.

The Worcester Bravehearts pitching staff has Mike Simes. The RHP did not see any mound time this spring for Umass Lowell but is making up for it this summer. In seven innings, Mike has no record with a 3.85 ERA giving up seven hits in six innings, eight K’s, and four walks. After allowing three runs in his first time on the mound for Worcester, Mike has not allowed anything in his last three. The Holden, MA. native has made one start.

There are three members of the UMass Lowell River Hawks that are not playing summer ball in New England. Instead, they are in upstate New York. Frank Wayman is spending his summer playing in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League for the Elmira Pioneers. He has a .272 batting average in 27 games, with eight RBI and 13 runs scored. Over his last ten games, Frank has picked it up at the plate with four multiple-hit games.

The other member of the River Hawks playing in upstate New York in this league is Alex Luccini. He is also playing in Elmira and through 10 games is hitting .333 with three RBI and four runs scored. Over his last ten games, the left-handed-hitting outfielder has two three-hit games to his credit. July 10 vs Batavia and July 15 vs Newark.

Brandon Fish is with the Saugerties Stallions. In 27 games, Fish is hitting .333 with two home runs, 21 RBI, and 17 runs scored. Brandon has shown a little speed by stealing nine bases in those 27 games. Along with the home runs, Fish also has six doubles on the season.

There is a look at how the UMass Lowell River Hawks are spending their summer.