COURTESY PHOTO | NORTH SHORE NAVIGATORS
Playing his second season with the Navs wasn’t exactly in Keith Linnane’s plans, but he’s glad to be back.
By JOSHUA KUMMINS
LYNN — There was quite a bit of moving and shaking on the North Shore Navigators roster during the first week or so of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League season, but things finally began to settle down a bit once the middle of June passed.
Three position players and four pitchers who were on the roster earlier in the season are no longer active with the club, but some of manager John Zizzo’s later reinforcements have played key roles.
North Reading’s Keith Linnane got the call when Zizzo needed to add some depth behind the plate after the first week of the season. The Northern Essex Community College product is in his second year as a Navigator.
“I was mostly going to focus on working out and I had some classes to take care of, so it was kind of spur of the moment,” Linnane said. “But I was excited to get the call and I’m happy to be back.”
Linnane helped Northern Essex to its fifth straight appearance in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) World Series, hitting .248 with 27 RBI this spring.
Despite the veteran catcher’s success, there is work to be done before Linnane continues his career at the University of Massachusetts in the fall.
Linnane, who was named a NJCAA Gold Glove winner at the conclusion of the World Series, is focusing on the offensive side of his game most.
“Probably my approach at the plate, having better at-bats and hitting the ball hard,” Linnane said when asked which areas of his game he wanted to better this summer.
Peabody native Bobby Tramondozzi joined the team last Tuesday and made a great first impression on the mound. The rising sophomore at UMass Boston pitched 6 ⅔ innings of one-run ball as the Navs beat the Rox, 8-1, en route to sweeping a doubleheader.
Tramondozzi enjoyed a brief stint in the Intercity League before the Navs called for his services. He did not disappoint, striking out five Rox batters and walking just one in what was the longest outing this summer by a North Shore starting pitcher before Cam Lanzilli matched him in Sunday’s 5-2 win over Torrington.
Not bad considering he was used almost exclusively out of the bullpen during his first collegiate season for the Beacons.
“Coming in, I honestly never thought I would get a start since I only started once in college,” Tramondozzi said. “Being local and having everyone see I’m doing well has been fun. It felt good coming out here and helping the team get another W.”
Rising Siena College freshman Alex Brickman was on the roster right from the start, but the two-way player who recently graduated from Worcester Academy has had the opportunity to show off his talents at the plate, at first base and on the pitcher’s mound.
“He’s definitely been a pleasant surprise,” Zizzo said of Brickman, who had two hits and earned the win on the mound in the Navs’ first win of the season June 12 in Pittsfield. “I didn’t expect what he’s done on either side and he’s doing real well for himself right now.”
Brickman, the Navs’ cleanup hitter more often than not, finished the weekend with a .256 average through 12 games. However, it is his 11 strikeouts in 8.2 innings of work on the mound that may be most surprising.
Adjusting to the college level can be challenging for any player, but Brickman has put his work in and made the adjustment quickly.
“I kind of knew I’d be doing a two-way role, and I’m going to be doing that at Siena too,” Brickman said. “I didn’t think I’d be doing as well (at this point), but it just goes to show that you don’t have to throw 95-plus. You just have to hit your spots and keep them off balance.”
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Names and Notes
- Despite a 4-12 record, the Navs are now just one game behind Martha’s Vineyard for fourth place in the FCBL’s East Division. The Sharks are on a six-game losing streak and visit Fraser Field for games on both Thursday and Friday.
- Catcher Mike D’Acunti (Southeastern) was named FCBL Player of the Week on Monday. He hit .448 and drove in eight runs on the week. Seven of his 13 hits went for extra bases, including his first homer of the season in Nashua last Tuesday.
- Mercyhurst’s Drew Delsignore tied a franchise record with five RBI in the Navs’ 12-1 win in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader at Brockton. Hitting eighth and playing right field, Delsignore rocked the third grand slam in franchise history over left field as part of a six-run ninth inning.
- Swampscott native Brian Burke (Curry) earned his first win to begin Saturday, tossing five innings out of the bullpen without allowing an earned run. All three runs Burke allowed over nine frames of work last week were unearned, and he struck out nine in that stretch.
- Third baseman Nick DiBenedetto (Trinity) also had an impressive Saturday, going a combined 7-for-10 with two runs scored and five RBI in the doubleheader. He went 5-for-5 in the nightcap, a feat achieved just once before in Navs history.
- DiBenedetto now ranks fourth in the FCBL with a .357 average after going 10-for-22 this week, while Jake Dexter (Southern Maine) and Cam Lanzilli (UMass Lowell) boast two of the ten best ERAs in the league. Dexter’s 1.39 mark ranks second.
- Lanzilli earned his first win of the season Sunday. The Stoneham native’s 23 strikeouts are tied with Nashua’s Jeremy Roberts (Stonehill) for the FCBL lead.
Joshua Kummins can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKummins.
