Derby varsity baseball is looking to make states again this season

~ theraiderpress

By Kaelyn DiMartino ’25

Derby varsity baseball started the season off with a game against Torrington on March 30, 2024. Unfortunately, the game was not a great start for their season with a loss 3 – 28. Even though it was a tough loss, the boys were able to secure a win against Crosby on Monday, April 1, 2024 winning 10 – 0. Max Netto ‘24 was dominant on the mound as he gathered ten strikeouts. He gave up one hit, zero runs, and walked only two. Nicholas Sheridan ‘25 and Netto ‘24 hit in-the-park home runs, as Jayzair Barbera ‘25 and Vincent Nuzzo ‘27 doubled, scoring multiple runs each. It was a good hitting day for the boys and a great boost of energy that will hopefully carry them on for the rest of the season.

Photo by Anthony Mullin: Max Netto ‘24 pitching strikes to start off the game. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: Jayzair Barbera ‘25 hits a dinger, scoring multiple. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: Vincent Nuzzo ‘27 running the bases as fast as he can. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: Nicholas Sheridan ‘25 hits an in-the-park homerun. 

After the Crosby game, which was their first win, they moved on to play Gilbert which was their second win of the season. They traveled to Gilbert on Saturday, April 6th, 2024. They came into the game fired up and ready to win. Netto ‘24 pitched an incredible game yet again, striking out 13 as he gave up two hits, and zero runs over seven innings and only walked two. The boys played the game well, getting hits, getting walked, and stealing bases. Michael Slack ‘25, Isaac McNeill ‘26, and Jose Frias ‘26 each collected hits for the team which drove in runs. They beat Gilbert 5 – 0. 

Photo by Anthony Mullin: The boys counting it out before heading to the field. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: Michael Slack ‘25 up to bat to help his team and get a hit. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: Isaac McNeill ‘26 talking to Coach Sal before going up to bat. 
Photo by Anthony Mullin: The boys celebrating together after some great hits.
Photo by Anthony Mullin: A great team picture after the amazing win. 

The boys had two great wins in a row, but they had tough games ahead of them after that. They took on Wolcott 0 – 8, Watertown 1 – 19, Holy Cross 0 – 10, Oxford 0 – 3, Kennedy 2 – 6, and St Paul Catholic 0 – 14, unfortunately losing all six of those games. Things started to brighten up as they managed to secure three more wins, leaving them with a record of  5 – 7 right now. The baseball team did some exciting things during the season so far including lots of fundraising. They had a pancake breakfast, a gear locker, McDonalds fundraiser, and Super Bowl bash. Captains Max Netto ‘24 and Michael Slack ‘25 stated, “Season’s off to a great start, we’ve made a bunch of growth as a team and everyone has improved since day one. We’re excited for what the rest of the season has in store and we’re very happy with how hard we’ve worked up until now. We know we can work harder than we already are and we know that everyone will want to.” With hard work and determination, the baseball team can have a chance at states again!

Team Roster: Max Netto ’24, Kobe Marroquin ’24, Jhanovys Ortiz ’24, Ryhiem Brown ’24, Joel Young ’24, Michael Slack ’25, Nicholas Sheridan ’25, Matthew Marroquin ’25, Jayzair Barbera ’25, Aydan Martinez ’25, Kevin Ferreira ’25, Dominic Gorner ’26, Nikolas Kotucek ’26, Brooklyn Fernandez ’26, Jose Frias ’26, Isaac McNeill ’26, Derick Mullin ’26, Daniel Caba ’26, Vincent Nuzzo ’27, Yuri Seabrook ’27, Cameron Rivera ’27, Ryan Lebel ’27, Jayden Cooper ’27, Luke Camara ’27, Royale Brown ’27.