Three Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs received honors this week when the New York Collegiate Baseball League released its 2010 postseason awards.
Outfielder Jason Simone, the NYCBL batting champion, earned a slot as a first-team all-star while fellow outfielder Kyle Richardson and first baseman Payden Yarmer were picked for the second team.
Allegany County Nitro Tyler Fisher and Amsterdam Mohawk Kyle Hunter claimed the league’s top individual awards.
Fisher, the runner-up to Simone in the batting race, was named Player of the Year after hitting .366 with five home runs, 25 runs batted in, 30 runs scored and 15 doubles.
Dartmouth College’s Hunter helped the Mohawks repeat as league champions by winning all five of his decisions and posting a 0.68 ERA while striking out 33 batters and walking 10 in 39 2/3 innings. The Pitcher of the Year also came within one out of a no-hitter July 15 when Richardson spoiled his bid in the ninth inning at Veterans Memorial Park. He did not allow a run in 14 innings in two postseason starts.
Manager of the Year Dan Schwam guided Elmira’s Pioneers to the Western Division’s regular season title, a spot in the championship series and a runner-up finish to the Mohawks. Schwam, who managed the Mohawk Valley Landsharks during their one season in Little Falls (1995), was a first-year NYCBL skipper after a lengthy career managing independent minor league teams.
Simone, who will play his senior season at Division II Mount Olive College in North Carolina after helping SUNY-Cortland reach the finals of the Division III College World Series in 2010, batted .372 with 17 runs batted in, 24 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 18 tries with the DiamondDawgs. He did not commit an error in the outfield and held off Fisher and Richardson on the final day of the regular season, going 2-for-4 in a 5-2 win over the Glens Falls Golden Eagles to claim the batting crown. Simone hails from Utica and played on two state championship teams in high school, one at Notre Dame and another at Proctor.
Rome’s Richardson was neck-and-neck with Simone in the batting race for most of the latter part of the season and finished a fraction of a point behind Fisher in third place at .366. He drove in 16 runs, shared Mohawk Valley’s team lead with two home runs, scored a team-high 28 runs and went 15-for-17 stealing bases. Richardson, the DiamondDawgs’ starting center fielder, was called on to start on the mound July 9 and pitched seven innings without allowing an earned run in a 7-4 victory over the Albany Dutchmen. After two seasons at Mohawk Valley Community College, Richardson will continue his studies and baseball career at St. John’s University.
Yarmer, a late arrival in Little Falls after Paradise Valley Community College’s run to the NJCAA’s Division II World Series, batted .289 with two home runs and 19 runs batted in over the summer. He will continue his playing career at Rogers State University after two years with DiamondDawgs manager Troy Gerlach at Paradise Valley.
The Mohawks were richly rewarded for their on-the-field success as a team, placing Hunter, catcher Matt Colantonio, third baseman Jon Schwind, starting pitcher Dan Zlotnick and reliever Abram Williams on the first team. Playoff MVP Cody Kulp was a second-team choice, along with starting pitcher Sean Bouthilette who threw a no-hitter against Watertown.
Listed below are the league’s award winners. All-Stars include their school during the 2009-10 academic year.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Tyler Fisher, Allegany County
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Kyle Hunter, Amsterdam
MANAGER OF THE YEAR
Dan Shwam, Elmira
FIRST TEAM
Catcher — Matt Colantonio, Amsterdam (Brown)
First Baseman — Marshall McDonald, Niagara (Catawba Valley CC)
Second Baseman — Vincent Mejia, Glens Falls (Texas Pan-American)
Shortstop — Jake Rickenbach, Elmira (Utah Valley)
Third Baseman — Jon Schwind, Amsterdam (Marist)
Outfielders — Jason Simone, Mohawk Valley (SUNY-Cortland), Tyler Fisher, Allegany County (Georgetown, Ky.); John Snyder, Elmira (Marietta)
Designated Hitter — Ryan Ferguson, Elmira (Temple)
Utility — Sam McGill, Allegany County (Ouachita Baptist)
Starting Pitchers — Kyle Hunter, Amsterdam (Dartmouth); Dan Zlotnick, Amsterdam (Marist); Isaac Hicks, Allegany County (Nova Southeastern); Whit Mayberry, Oneonta (Virginia); Justin James, Allegany County (Ave Maria)
Relief Pitchers — John Colella, Elmira (Holy Cross); Abram Williams, Amsterdam (Radford)
SECOND TEAM
Catcher — Bryan Lucas, Alfred (The Masters College)
First Baseman — Payden Yarmer, Mohawk Valley (Paradise Valley CC)
Second Baseman — Derrick Glenn, Niagara (Southern Nazarene)
Shortstops — Matt Boulter, Webster (Southern New Hampshire); Derrick Osteen, Oneonta (William & Mary); Alex Todd, Cooperstown (Centenary)
Third Baseman — Jake Rowell, Allegany County (Arkansas-Little Rock)
Outfielders — Adam McFarland, Hornell (Gardner-Webb); Kyle Richardson, Mohawk Valley (Mohawk Valley CC); Cody Kulp, Amsterdam (Shippensburg); Dan Gliot, Geneva (Oakland); Ryan Avery, Cooperstown (Ashland)
Designated Hiter — Jordan Stouffer, Albany (Metro State)
Utility — Tony Micklon, Hornell (Presbyterian)
Starting Pitchers — Beau Martin, Allegany County (Ouachita Baptist); Sean Bouthilette, Amsterdam (Kentucky); Kyle Sumple, Glens Falls (Siena); Andrew Foushee, Elmira (Presbyterian); Bryant Guilmette, Webster (UMass-Lowell)
Relief Pitchers — Shae Simmons, Watertown (Southeast Missouri State); Kevin Dickey, Oneonta (California-Riverside); Ryan Kassab, Geneva (Belhaven)
Compiled From Times Staff Reports
