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WMass Baseball Top 20: New team takes top overall spot

MassLive released its fourth baseball rankings on Wednesday. Learn more about Western Mass. baseball teams by checking out the Super 7 nominations in the article.

Previous Rankings: March 31, April 9, April 16

  1. Pittsfield (7-1, No. 2)
  2. Pope Francis (7-2, No. 3)
  3. Westfield (7-2, No. 1)
  4. West Springfield (6-1, No. 8)
  5. Pioneer Valley (6-0, No. 6)
  6. Springfield Central (4-3, No. 5)
  7. Minnechaug (4-3, No. 9)
  8. Taconic (4-3, No. 4)
  9. Agawam (4-3, No. 18)
  10. Longmeadow (6-4, No. 7)
  11. Ware (7-0, No. 10)
  12. Hopkins Academy (7-2, No. 11)
  13. Greenfield (5-2, No. 14)
  14. Frontier (5-4, No. 12)
  15. Hampshire (4-3, No. 13)
  16. Drury (7-0, No. 16)
  17. Belchertown (3-4, No. 15)
  18. South Hadley (4-3, No. 17)
  19. Smith Voc. (7-0, No. 20)
  20. Athol (4-2, NR)

On Tuesday night, a new baseball team was crowned king in Western Massachusetts, as Pittsfield dethroned Westfield for the honor behind its 10-0 win.

Jason Codey (2-for-3) and Jackson Almeida (2-for-3) recorded four of the Generals’ eight hits and drove in seven of their 10 runs. Jack Reed (one) and Camden Zerbato (one) drove in two more runs.

Meanwhile, Codey only threw 66 pitches on the mound to earn the complete five-inning shutout against the Bombers. The junior allowed four hits, two walks, and struck out multiple batters to help Pittsfield earn its seventh win and second opposing scoreless game.

The Generals (.875) now maintain a slim percentage-point lead for first place in the Walley West Standings over West Springfield (.857), while Pope Francis (.778) and Westfield (.778) are tied for third place.

Minnechaug is another noteworthy team to mention.

Coming into last week, the Falcons had suffered three consecutive losses during the heart of their schedule against Westfield, Pope Francis, and Pittsfield. But Minnechaug has since defeated Chicopee and Longmeadow behind a combined score of 20-1 during its latest two-game winning streak.

Super 7 selection Ethan Purcell allowed five hits, one unearned run, one walk, and struck out seven in a seven-inning, complete-game effort to improve the Falcons’ record to 4-3.

Sam Przybyl (three) and Alexander Savlick (two) drove in five of their team’s seven runs in the outcome.

“(Longmeadow’s) a tough team, they have a lot of talent, and they do a lot of things really well, so it’s a great time for us to be able to pick up a win,” Minnechaug coach Mike Netkovick said. “We were able to do some things offensively early in the game and set our pitcher up… and we were able to control what we needed to control.”

The Falcons will look to make it three consecutive wins as they travel to face East Longmeadow on Thursday at 4 p.m., while Longmeadow aims for its third win in five games at home against Westfield on the same scheduled date and time.

Athol is the newest team to join the rankings, as they remain ahead of Franklin Tech for top honors in the Bi-County North Standings. The Bears won their opening two games to begin the spring but have since split their last four games between Drury, Gardner, Turners Falls, and Mount Everett.

After playing three consecutive games last week, Athol will compete in its first game in almost 10 days as they start a four-game homestand against Greenfield on Friday at 3 p.m.

Logan Cormier holds at least a portion of the team lead in doubles (two), home runs (two), and steals (five), while Ethan Heuer (10) and Oliver Johnson (10) have driven in 20 combined runs thus far. Cormier has totaled 18 of their team’s 38 strikeouts on the pitching side.

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There are multiple games to remember this week, as Ware looks to earn its 8th consecutive win once they travel to Hartford, Connecticut, to compete against Monson on Wednesday at Dunkin’ Park.

The first pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Drury, meanwhile, will look to earn its eighth consecutive win as they welcome Mount Everett to town on Thursday at 4 p.m., while Berkshire rivals Pittsfield and Taconic will play against each other on the same scheduled date and time.

Two more of the region’s premier teams will complete the weekend, as Minnechaug will welcome Westfield to Wilbraham on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

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