CT Storm 16U stars continue to battle through adversity

By DN WRITING STAFF | September 2, 2024

Will Howell rips a two-run triple down the left field line in the fourth inning for CT Smoke.

By Rich Bevensee

Jackson Demers is still feeling a twinge in his pitching elbow from an injury suffered last year. Will Howell is just now rounding into shape as a hitter after three different injuries in a three-month span this past winter.

One would never guess either of these two young ballplayers were still on the mend recently, judging by their performances on Sunday at Diamond Nation in Flemington.

Demers scattered five hits over five innings and Howell tripled, singled and drove in three runs to propel the Connecticut Smoke 16U squad to a 10-2 pool play victory over PPH Red in the Labor Day Blast. 

Demers, a rising sophomore at Nonnewaug High in Woodbury, Conn., was thrilled with his effort, especially considering his health comeback. He struck out four and walked two using primarily his fastball and curveball.

“I feel amazing. It was one of the better games I’ve had all summer,” said Demers, a 6-1, 170-pound righty. “I was pounding the zone, throwing as many strikes as I could, just trying to get my team out of jams, throwing outside and trying to make them roll over.”

Demers, whose fastball rose to 72 mph and hovered in the high 60s, said he fractured his pitching elbow a year ago and the injury still bothers him in extending outings. 

“I’ve recovered from it but I can’t really go far throwing too hard or it bothers me for a while,” Demers said. 

Former Major League Baseball All-Star and 1990 National League Championship Series MVP Rob Dibble, an assistant coach with the Smoke, was pleased with Jackson’s performance. 

“Jackson’s a three-quarter pitcher, which is rare these days,” Dibble said. “A lot of guys are throwing perfectly right from here (displaying a right angle with his right arm). Jackson is slinging it a little bit. He’s got a great sinker and a great curveball and he throws a lot of strikes. Jackson is fantastic, one of our most talented players.”

Howell led a balanced lineup in which 10 of 11 batters reached base, six scored at least one run and five provided an RBI.

“They do a good job hitting and staying balanced all the way through, so it’s a good lineup,” Smoke head coach Greg Lasser said. 

Howell dropped a bloop RBI single into right field to cap a four-run rally in the third inning, and he blasted a two-run triple down the left field line to fuel a three-run burst in the fourth.

“I’ve had a few injuries so it’s been a little rough getting back,” Howell said. 

That’s an understatement. Between December 2023 and February 2024, Howell suffered an avulsion fracture in his right elbow, he fractured a rib, and most recently he sprained his right ankle right before the high school season began this past spring.

“I’ve been working my way up for this,” Howell said. “This fall I’ve got a new stance, I feel way better in the box and I’m more confident, so I’ve been hitting pretty well.”

After the victory over PPH the Connecticut squad later lost to Northeast Pride 12-0. CT Smoke (2-1) has one pool game remaining, against NY Prospects on Monday.

PPH Red (1-2) also has one pool game left, against FS Prime on Monday.

After two scoreless innings to start the game, CT Smoke posted a four-run rally in the top of the third. Chris Ramirez had an RBI single and Demers scored on an ensuing throwing error. Deven Dodge and Howell added RBI singles.

Jake DiBona added a run for the Smoke in the fourth with a two-out shot to center for a 5-0 lead. PPH (Power Pitching and Hitting) countered with a run off Demers in the bottom of the fourth when pinch-runner Patrick Fogarty scored from third on a bases-loaded, double play grounder. 

In the fifth, Howell tripled down the left field line to drive in two runs and Jackson Geisweit added a sacrifice fly for a 7-1 Smoke lead. 

In the bottom of the fifth PPH got its second run when Dale Ziegler scored from third following an error on a ground ball.

Smoke padded two more runs in the sixth when Demers scored from second on an unsuccessful pickoff of DiBona, and Ramirez drove in DiBona with a single.

CT Smoke coach Rob Dibble counsels Ari Campbell as he leads off third base.

DIBBLE SOUNDS OFF

Connecticut Smoke assistant coach Rob Dibble pitched for three teams over an eight-year MLB career (1988-95) and he was a two-time All-Star and a key bullpen arm for the 1990 World Series champion Cincinnati Reds. He has spent the last 27 years as a baseball broadcaster on radio and television.

While on the topic of Demers and Howell coming back from injuries, Dibble shared some of his concerns about how teenage ballplayers train. 

“When I started out (coaching youth baseball) in California, I didn’t like what I saw – guys lifting heavy weights,” Dibble said. “During my broadcasting career I’ve spoken with the best orthopedic surgeons on the planet. There’s a rash of injuries going on, and a lot of it is because there are people training these kids who have no idea what they’re doing, and it scares me.

“No pitcher should be bench pressing, shouldn’t be taking 10-pound balls over their heads, stuff like that. When I played I was 6-4, 220, and you’d laugh because you’d see me in Gold’s Gym not lifting more than three-pound weights. When I played with the Reds, everything was about flexibility. Everything is about being loose and they’re trying to tighten these kids up.”

After undergoing two major shoulder surgeries and a major elbow survey during his career, Dibble is passionate about the kind of instruction young players receive, and the pressure to play year round in one sport. 

“I over-torqued my breaking ball and it’s because no one ever taught me how to throw it,” Dibble said. “(Justin) Verlander, (Max) Scherzer, guys who have been around a long time in Major League Baseball and still attack you with fastballs, those are the kind of guys I want my guys to look up to, and that’s why I’m coaching. 

“Why do they have to play year round? Why do kids come up to me and say I’m a PO, or a pitcher/first baseman? I tell my players, ‘No, you’re going to play every position and learn.’ Bryce Harper came up as a catcher and his first game as a professional was in the outfield. Same with Kyle Schwarber, and he was the 2015 Futures MVP as a catcher. 

“I grew up with (MLB Hall of Famer) Jeff Bagwell, and we played soccer, football, basketball and baseball. I don’t want my kids to think they can only do one thing. I want them to do everything.”

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