Andy Mendlowitz
MyCentralJersey.com
2. Colonia (5-0) – preseason No. 3: The Patriots bump up a spot after their undefeated start fueled by a 2-1 win against Metuchen in the season opener on March 31. They’ve been dominant with White Division sweeps against J.F. Kennedy and Sayreville. That includes a team 1.09 ERA with 27 combined hits and walks allowed in 32 innings. That’s winning baseball.
3. Monroe (5-1) – preseason No. 9: We didn’t mean to disrespect Monroe in the preseason poll. Just, the Falcons had some questions after a 9-13 season. Well, they’ve been answered quickly and Monroe has impressive sweeps over East Brunswick and St. Jospeh and a split with No. 1 Edison. Simply, Ben Faigin and Andre Love are two of the best pitchers in the GMC and when they’re on, Monroe can beat anyone. Justin Mangano is hitting .500 (10-for-20).
4. Middlesex (5-1) – preseason No. 2: Maybe it’s not fair to drop Middlesex two spots to No. 4 with a 5-1 start. Don’t be mad Blue Jays fans, it’s not so much a demotion but more of rewarding Monroe for its strong play. Middlesex’s only blemish was a 3-2, 12-inning loss to fledgling South Brunswick. The Blue Jays then got the White Division split with a 6-2 win over them on Saturday, April 11. Otherwise, they’ve played as advertised with sweeps over Spotswood and Perth Amboy.
5. South Plainfield (4-3) – preseason No. 6: Maybe it was inevitable, but the Tigers enter the Top 5 following Red Division sweeps over St. Joseph and Woodbridge. South Plainfield dropped the series against No. 1 Edison and lost to nonconference power Cranford. All in all, solid play as South Plainfield is once again battling for the pennant.
6. Old Bridge (3-3) – preseason No. 7: Getting Red Division sweeps have been hard to come by in recent years. The Knights earned one with the two-game sweep over Woodbridge giving them a nice boost in the division race. They also split with St. Thomas Aquinas and look to be just fine after some key graduations.
7. St. Joseph (2-5) – preseason No. 5: This is where the early parity begins and the back end of the top 10 gets a bit confusing to sort out. The Falcons claim the No. 7 spot with a sweep over East Brunswick. Despite starting 0-5, St. Joseph has been right there, dropping a pair of one-run games. The team had key graduation losses and seems to be the kind of squad that will get better as the season goes on.
8. East Brunswick (2-4) – preseason No. 10: The Bears swept then-No. 8 St. Thomas Aquinas and clawed into its spot in the rankings. Jordan Rudolph has emerged into an up-and-coming ace after his two-hit, 12-strikeout game against STA. EB’s offense is off to a slow start but one figures that will turn around soon with its talented bats.
9. St. Thomas Aquinas (2-4) – preseason No. 8: The Trojans dropped the series to East Brunswick, but came back with a split against No. 6 Old Bridge in a pair of one-run games. They also split with Woodbridge to open the season. St. Thomas Aquinas, up from the White Division, looks to be in just about every division game
10 (tie): Metuchen (4-1) – preseason No. 10: We don’t like doing ties but both Metuchen and South Brunswick deserve to get in the rankings. Heck, Metuchen could make a case to jump a few spots. This week will tell a lot as the Bulldogs play Colonia, have a series with Middlesex and have the first game of the series against South Brunswick.
South Brunswick (4-2) – preseason unranked: The Vikings turned heads with their 3-2 win over Middlesex in 12 innings in a series split with the Blue Jays. They also split with Sayreville and swept Perth Amboy. South Brunswick will climb even higher if it could sweep Colonia and beat Metuchen in the first game of the series this week.
Pena on fireNorth Brunswick’s Willy Pena had a great sophomore season, in which he hit .424 with four home runs, 18 RBIs and 15 runs. He’s been ever better this spring in a short sample size. The junior is hitting .562 with three long balls, 10 RBIs and 11 runs. He’s also walked seven times and has five stolen bases.
Intriguing Blue race
Intriguing Blue race
The Blue Division appeared to be wide-open with a number of teams likely making cases. Well, two weeks in and buckle up, it should be a fun race down the stretch. Carteret and Piscataway are both 5-1 in the division and have a two-game series slated for this week. South River (4-2) and J.P. Stevens (3-3) and North Brunswick (3-3) are also looming.
Piscataway Magnet’s sizzling start
Piscataway Magnet’s sizzling start
The Raiders returned just about everyone from a 10-12 team, which went 6-6 in the Gold Division. That experience has been on display with a 7-0 start, including six wins in the division. How about these eye-popping stats — Piscataway Magnet has team batting average of .429 and have scored 106 runs to go along with a team 1.22 ERA. Nine players with double digit at-bats are hitting over. 300. Leading the way are Trey Lyerly (.571, 12-for-21) and Vincent Canavan and Kyle Malchiodi are each hitting .522 (12-for-23).
