Luca Hendrickson slides home on a three-run double by Tiernan Gibson for the MC Oilers.
By Rich Bevensee
Domonic Brown may be known throughout Philadelphia as one of the hottest Phillies prospects to reach the major leagues in the last 20 years, but in the Chicco household, he’s known as a supportive hitting coach and a reliable mentor.
Joey Chicco said it was only a few years ago that he would sulk in the dugout after a sub-par inning on the mound and the pouting would affect his hitting. The family hired Brown, now retired after a six-year Major League career, as a hitting instructor and Chicco’s fortunes began to change immediately.
“When I was younger, like 12 or 13, I’d come in the dugout and throw my stuff,” Chicco said. “I used to get in my head a lot. After two years with him (Brown) as my hitting coach he got me out of that and I don’t think that way anymore. It’s all just mental strength now.”
Chicco displayed just how far he’s come with the mental challenge of juggling pitching and hitting on Sunday when his FTB Phillies DB9 16U ballclub took the field for a pool play doubleheader at Diamond Nation in Flemington.
In the first game of that twinbill, not only did Chicco pitch well for three innings, he helped himself with a single, a double and four RBI in the Phillies’ 10-5 victory over Monmouth County Oilers 2029 Scout in the Labor Day Blast at ‘The Nation.’
The Phillies completed a solid 3-1 weekend of pool play after beating 9ers Baseball 2029 National, 7-5, in the nightcap of their Sunday doubleheader.
Chicco, a 6-1 lefty and a junior at Perkiomen Valley in Collegeville, Pa., earned the win after yielding four runs in three innings on four hits and four walks with five strikeouts.
Chicco threw two shutout innings before he came to bat in the bottom of the second, when he singled in two runs to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead.
After a bumpy third inning in which he allowed four runs on three hits and three walks, Chicco came to bat again in the bottom of the frame and showed just how far he’s come in terms of being able to switch gears from pitching to hitting. Especially when the pitching hadn’t gone so smoothly.
Joey Chicco singled, doubled and drove in four runs for the Phillies.
His sharp, two-run double down the left field line capped a six-run rally and gave the Phils’ a 9-4 cushion.
The offensive outburst was a welcome change for Chicco, who went 0-for-4 in two games on Saturday.
Chicco, who joined the Phillies last fall, said that he knew he needed a change in his mental approach to prove to his new ballclub that he could be a valuable contributor on both offense and defense.
“It’s pretty hard to forget a bad inning, but I try to focus on my next at bat no matter what,” Chicco said. “I had to learn that because I would be thinking about my last half inning and then I’d come out and strike out. Dominic is really good with helping me deal with the mental side of things. He helped me stop thinking about everything else and think about just my swing.
“I am very proud of that change because I feel like I’m a different player now.”
Brown was drafted by Philadelphia in 2006 and was regarded by Baseball America as MLB’s top prospect in 2010. He made his Major League debut that same year and played with the Phillies through the 2015 season.
Once Chicco stepped aside on the mound, Vinnie Rizzo was terrific in relief, allowing one run in two innings on one hit, no walks and a hit batsman with two strikeouts.
Fortifying the Phillies attack was Sullivan Mastrangelo, who belted a solo homer in the first inning. Rizzo, Declan Hogan and Angel Santiago each had an RBI single. Ryan McGaughey added an RBI groundout, and both Aidan Gibbons and John Vukas (three walks) pushed runs across with bases loaded walks. Grayson doubled and walked twice.
“It’s been a couple weeks for them to see live pitching so they’re getting back into the swing of things,” Phillies coach Pat Dunne said. “We had a lot of deep counts, just guys grinding out at bats. It won’t be too long before those balls they’re fighting off become line drives.”
For the Oilers, which finished the week 0-4 in pool play, Tiernan Gibson went 2-for-3 with a three-run double. Anthony Kuis singled in a run and Luca Hunderson added an RBI groundout.