“I had to tell him yes, but I didn’t know for sure,” Arnold…
By Joe Mollica
When a freak injury last October left Seth Auerbach’s promising career as a pitcher in jeopardy, the Forest Hills sophomore asked his father, Arnold, if he would ever play baseball again.
“I had to tell him yes, but I didn’t know for sure,” Arnold Auerbach said. “We didn’t know if he would be walking, let alone playing baseball.”
With broken bones in each of his legs, doctors inserted metal screws into Seth’s left knee. The surgery and subsequent therapy caused the 15-year-old to miss more than half of the school year, casting a serious cloud over his baseball future.
But just one month after having the screws in his left knee removed, it was Auerbach’s left arm that pacified any doubts about his health.
The 15-year-old trumpeted his dramatic recovery against Queens East A rival Bayside with four innings of no-hit dominance Friday afternoon as Forest Hills went on to drub the Commodores, 17-10, at Bayside Athletic Field.
Auerbach’s superiority was made that much more evident when Bayside’s offense suddenly came to life following his departure from the mound. Still, Forest Hills (5-4, 2-0) cruised for the majority of the game as Bayside dropped to 1-1 in the division, 5-2 overall.
“We’re nursing him along slowly,” Forest Hills coach Marty Finklestein said. “Fifty pitches today, next time a few more.”
With two pitchers in front of Auerbach in the Forest Hills rotation — senior ace Frank Russo, who played second base and went 3-for-5 on Friday, and sophomore shortstop Alex Demmers — the Rangers appear poised to make things interesting in their first year in the ‘A’ league.
Finklestein said that while his team can certainly compete with other league powers, Forest Hills will be facing “better athletes” and “more game experience on the field” over the course of a 19-game league season.
“But we’re going to wait and see until the end of the year. Let’s see what we do,” Finklestein said.
Auerbach, who moved to first base when he was pulled in the fourth inning, also contributed to the victory with his bat, finishing 2-for-2 with a walk and two runs scored.
“I’m just happy as a father to see him back on the mound again,” Arnold Auerbach said.
But it wasn’t so much the Commodores’ pitching that let them down as it was their porous defense. Several errors and misplayed fly balls in the first inning kept the bases loaded with Rangers before four consecutive singles cracked the game wide open.
Auerbach was given a 7-0 lead before he made a single pitch. Bayside did not muster a hit until the fifth inning, when Jason Espinal ripped an RBI double to make the score 9-2.
Espinal, Bayside’s standout shortstop, shined in the loss, finishing 3-for-4 with two doubles and four RBIs.
Bayside starter Alfredo Nunez was run from the game in the first inning, giving way to Todd Green, who pitched well on short notice. “I was ready to pitch anyway,” Green said.
John Adams 3, Long Island City 1. Papo Cabrera struck out five in a five-hitter for John Adams (2-1 Queens West A).
Cardozo 10, Flushing 0. Sean Smith tossed a one-hitter, striking out eight for Cardozo (6-2, 3-0 Queens East A).
Grover Cleveland 4, Aviation 3. David Tasakovic went 2-for-5 with two RBIs and drove in Bobby Manzolillo in the bottom of the 10th inning and Xavier Velasquez pitched six innings of scoreless relief for Grover Cleveland (7-4-1, 2-2 Queens West A).
Van Buren 3, Robert F. Kennedy 0. Craig Lalla struck out 11 and scattered four hits for Van Buren (5-2, 3-0 Queens South B).
Springfield Gardens 12, Arts & Business 7. Jimmy Delacruz went 4-for-4 with three RBIs for Springfield Gardens (1-2 Queens South B).
Franklin K. Lane 12, August Martin 8. Chris Caamano drove in four runs for Lane (6-6, 1-1 Queens B).
Cardozo 15, John Bowne 5. Glenn Smith had three hits, including a two-run home run, and allowed two earned runs with six strikeouts, Drew Schlesinger had three hits, and Sean Smith drove in four runs for the Judges.
Grover Cleveland 12, Newtown 10. Xavier Velasquez’s two-run double capped a comeback for Cleveland, which trailed 10-9 in the sixth inning. Matthew Bittner went 3-for-4 with five RBIs and hit a first-inning grand slam for the Tigers.
Bryant 9, Robert F. Wagner 2. James Aspenleiter struck out 11 in six innings, and Ricky Abreu went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs for Bryant (5-10, 2-1 Queens North B).
Robert F. Kennedy 14, Arts & Business 2. Thomas Wick had a pair of doubles, a triple and four RBIs, and Danny Watson had two doubles and four RBIs for RFK (7-1, 2-0 Queens Central B).
Van Buren 17, Springfield Gardens 1. Brian Thompson had four hits, James Ferreira belted a home run, and Chris Thomas had a pair of triples and four RBIs for Van Buren (3-2, 2-0 Queens South B).
Far Rockaway 12, August Martin 4. Raul Marreno went 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs, and Anthony Nimmons had a homer and three RBIs for Far Rockaway (1-1 Queens South B).
Queens Vocational 17, Hillcrest 5. John Carlos Rodriguez had a triple and four RBIs, Kendel Ortiz went 3-for-4 with four RBIs, and Alberto Astiazu struck out seven and scored four runs for Queens Vocational (3-1 Queens North B).
CHSAA
McClancy 16, Holy Cross 2. Vinny Johnson was a double shy of hitting for the cycle, belting a single, a triple, a home run and five RBIs for McClancy (4-5, 1-3 CHSAA) while Holy Cross falls to 1-3 in the league.
Xaverian 13, St. Francis Prep 1. Pedro Beato went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs for Xaverian (6-2, 3-0 CHSAA). St. Francis Prep falls to 5-1, 2-1.
St. Edmund 10, Molloy 9. Tommy Welsh went 3-for-4 and his grand slam capped a seven-run fifth inning for St. Edmund (8-1, 3-0 CHSAA). Molloy falls to 1-1 in the league.
St. Francis Prep 2, Christ the King 1. Trailing 1-0, Alex Pinto drove in the tying run in the fifth, and Robert Paccione put the Terriers ahead for good with a double in the sixth inning. Christ the King falls to 0-3 in the CHSAA.
St. Edmund 1, Holy Cross 0. Anthony Russo drove in John Garvey in the bottom of the seventh inning, and Mark Lussier went the distance, allowing seven hits and striking out three for St. Edmund (7-1, 2-0 CHSAA). Holy Cross falls to 1-2 in the league.
St. Edmund 10, Holy Cross 7. Garvey had three hits and four RBIs, Nunzio Franzese hit a home run, and Joe Romano pitched five scoreless innings with nine strikeouts for the Eagles.
