Joey Gratta scores for the CT Whalers on a single by Evan Clark.
By Sean Reilly
From the time he was nine years old, Joey Gratta has been the ultimate representative of the Connecticut Whalers program.
Gratta has grown as a player and person during his time with the organization, and his presence has had a similar effect for the various Whalers teams that he’s competed for over the years.
Those truths turned a routine early-morning game on Friday at Diamond Nation into something special.
When the Whalers played the Diamond Jacks 16U Gold at the Super 17 Garden State Invitational, it marked Gratta’s final appearance in a Whalers uniform before he heads off to play at the University of St. Joseph in West Hartford, Ct.
Gratta, the leadoff batter, went 2-for-3 with a walk, including a single in his final at-bat, as the Whalers gained a 7-1 victory in Flemington.
“I’ve been with this program for a long time,” he said. “It’s crazy, and unreal that I’m done and going off to college. This is my family, with the brotherhood that I’ve built. I’ll always cherish these memories and love these guys forever. I’ll miss coming out every day and going to work with them, grinding in the cages for hours and hours on end, having a toss with them, and just going out with them every day.”
Gratta was playing in center field in the bottom of the seventh inning when coach Zac Susi called time to replace him with his best friend, Jake Montana. Gratta then ran back to the dugout, where he was met with a standing ovation from his teammates as well as the Whalers parents and family members stationed along the third-base side of Field 1 at ‘The Nation.’
Trey Garutti is safe with an infield single for the Diamond Jacks 16U Gold.
“I can’t even describe that,” Gratta said. “I had no clue that was going to happen. That made me realize at that moment that it was really it. It meant so much for them to do that.”
Gratta and Susi have had a special bond the last few years.
Gratta was actually cut from his high school team in the spring of his sophomore year and was seriously thinking about giving up baseball. Susi coached and encouraged him to keep at it, and the reward for Gratta is now the opportunity to play the sport in college.
“I was cut from the team at the high school I was at back then,” Gratta said. “Coach motivated me every day, he told me to come to the facility and he worked with me, and I saw myself getting better and he showed me there was an opportunity. This is what I love to do, so I kept with it. It shows that you should never give up and that if you show up every day, consistency and hard work can beat talent.”
“Joey has meant everything to this organization,” Susi said. “He’s a kid who came to me as a sophomore in high school who was just cut and thinking about not playing any more. He worked for months and months and months just to prove to himself that he’d give it one last chance. He took off into an unbelievable player. It’s crazy to see how hard work can go a long way. It’s just a great story.”
In the game, the Diamond Jacks took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Luke Kawczenski was hit by a pitch with two out before scoring when Colin Ricciardi reached on an error.
The Whalers, who finished the tournament with a 2-1-1 record, scored six times in the third.
Joey Gratta excelled in his final game as a Connecticut Whaler before heading off to college.
After starting the inning with first-pitch singles by Jake Palombizio and Christian Steiner, a ground out moved them over to second and third for Gratta at the top of the order.
Gratta singled to second base to score the tying run, and Todd Butler, who finished 3-for-3 with a walk, hit an RBI single to left field for a 2-1 lead. Evan Clark followed with a single to left that scored Gratta.
Angel Rodriguez was up next, and he responded with a three-run home run over the fence in left field.
The other Whalers run came in the fourth. Zach Noyes led off with a single to right field, and an error allowed him to take second. After advancing to third on a ground out, he scored on a balk.
Kyle Martin worked the first four innings for the win. Montana pitched the fifth and sixth innings and Gabe Hinkson pitched the seventh. Each of the three allowed one hit.
The last act was for Montana to substitute in for his best friend during the final inning.
“Joey had no idea I was going to do that,” Susi said. “The two of them are inseparable. It was only fitting that I’d put Jake out there because he’s going to have one more year with us. For Joey, it’s been really special to have him as our center fielder for the last three seasons. I couldn’t pick a better center fielder to have.”