The Baseball Observer Feb 2015 vol 1 | Page 59

Cumberland County College a Strong No. 2 Ranking in NJCAA DIII Baseball Coaches Assoc. Poll Vineland, NJ. – Cumberland County (49-10) fell just short in the 2014 NJCAA Division III Baseball National Title Game to current No. 1 ranked Tyler Junior College finishing the season as National Runner-Ups. The 2014 season continued the remarkable turnaround for the program. Coach Keith Gorman enters his fourth season as the head coach of the Dukes baseball program. In just 3 seasons, Gorman has compiled a record of 106 wins and 42 loses. The turnaround is a remarkable one in that the baseball program had won a combined 46 games in the previous 7 seasons before Gorman’s arrival. We had a quick “Q&A” with Coach Gorman. Q: After making it to the title game last year, how are you going to continue the success? A: We have several guys returning who were in the battles last year. 2B Tyler Mixon, 3B/RHP Justin Geri, 1B/OF Arturo Ocasio, RHP Matt Ennis. We have two DI transfers in C/RHP Joe Zangi, and LHP Dalton Mayberry, two DII transfers in RHP Jon Wilkins and RHP Will Latcham. I feel we have a very strong freshman class with former U of Maine commit Justin Smith RHP, SS Raul Perez, JUCO Transfer OF Dan Pellinen (2014 40th Round Indians), JUCO transfer Jake Carr. I am leaving several guys out but I believe we are deeper and more talented than the 2014 team. That being said we are young and our success will depend on how quickly our young and talented players step up. The only way we know how to do that is make sure we practice faster than game speed and work to be fundamentally perfect in practice. Q: Who do you see as your key offensive player(s) this year? A: Joe Zanghi (UConn Transfer) has the ability to hit for average and power. He will most likely hit in our 4 hole. If he is consistent could be a top hitter in our region. Tyler Mixon 2B who was a key for us last year as a freshman. He was named the Region XIX tournament MVP after his impressive offensive and defensive performance in that regional tournament. Tyler finished at .381, 56 hits, 40 runs, 7 doubles, 2 triples, 37 RBI's. Jake Carr a transfer from DII East Stroudsberg and JUCO Delaware County in 20 games last year hit .416, 32 hits, 6 doubles, 4 triples and 16 RBI's. He had a tremendous fall offensively. Q: Who are your top pitcher(s) this year? A: We have an absolute dog fight for rotation spots. Returning pitchers Justin Geri and Matt Ennis will play crucial roles. Matt was hurt almost the entire season but pitched very well in the World Series. Justin Geri went 7-2 last year with a 2.59 ERA and the win in the Region 19 championship game. Freshman Justin Smith, Will Latcham, transfer Dalton Mayberry, transfer Joe Zanghi will all fight for one of the top spots in the rotation. Zanghi throws consistently 90-92 with a good slider. Latcham and Smith are both upper 80's with good offspeed. Transfer Jon Wilkins 87-89 will also play a huge role as a starter or closer.