Adoni Francis slapped this pitch the other way to put Bonnie’s in front 2-1 with a fielder’s choice RBI.
Rich Bevensee
When middle infielders Wade Margolies and Adoni Francis took their turns throwing relief innings, they understood that pitching with a lead meant they could attack batters instead of picking at the corners of the plate.
That kind of baseball IQ, and the knowledge that he has a handful of versatile players who are capable of pitching in relief, is what allows Brooklyn Bonnies 16U coach John Avanzino to shuffle pitchers during games.
Margolies and Franics teamed up with Nicholas Donovan to pitch six innings of scoreless relief and lift the Bonnies to a 3-1 victory over the 2027 Boilermakers in Week 2 of the Super 17 Invitational on Friday at Diamond Nation in Flemington.
“We have position players anywhere in the infield who can go to the mound,” Avanzino said. “We’re fortunate we have three or four of those guys, and it really helps a coach look good that he’s got the versatility to be able to take any one of the four.”
Bonnie’s finished the week a very strong 3-1, having beaten Connecticut Baseball Club Scout, 4-1, and Valley Baseball, 12-3. They lost to CT Rangers Showcase, 3-2. The Bonnies, founded in 1949 by Al Bonnie and his sons Al, Jr. and Joe, is one of New York City’s oldest baseball organizations.
The Boilermakers, based in Warrington, Pennsylvania, suffered their first loss of the week. Earlier they knocked off CT Rangers Showcase, 7-1, and the Giac Squad, 8-4.
Margolies, a 5-6, 165-pound righty, is a native of Brooklyn who is a rising junior at the Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School in Rabun Gap, Georgia. Despite his short stature, he slammed on the accelerator to hit 83 mph on the radar gun and stymied hitters with his curveballs and changeups.
Margolies started at second base, went 2-for-3 and was the third Bonnies pitcher of the game when he entered in the top of the fourth inning with the game tied, 1-1. The Bonnies took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Luke Walsh, and Margolies said pitching with a lead in relief seems to be easier because the situation dictates the pitches.
The Boilermakers’ River Carangi dives back to first with Brooklyn’s Casper Samii holding the bag.
“I think you try to throw more fastballs and get ahead in the count,” said Margolies, who pitched two scoreless innings while allowing one hit and two walks and striking out two.
“You throw pitches that you can get balls in play,” Margolies said. “You want to keep the momentum of the game going. I threw curveballs when I was ahead in the count to get kids off stride, but I was mostly sticking with the fastball.”
Francis, the starting shortstop, took over for Margolies in the sixth after the Bonnies had built theri 3-1 lead thanks to a Margolies’ RBI single in the fifth.
Francis, a 5-11, 155-pound righty who graduated from Abraham Lincoln High in Brooklyn on Thursday, is headed for Division 1 Connors State in Warner, Oklahoma.
Francis is a terrific defender at shortstop with lots of range and a powerful arm. In the top of the second, Francis ranged to his right for an Eamon Ivory grounder in the hole, went to his knees to make a sliding stop and quickly hopped to his feet to make a frozen rope throw and retire Ivory.
When he reached the mound, he unleashed his low 80s fastball and mixed in an occasional slider to record two scoreless innings. He struck out four while permitting one hit and one walk.
The Boilermakers twice sent the tying run to the plate in the top of the seventh after Gavin Litten ripped a one-out double. But Francis preserved the win with two strikeouts looking, the first with his slider and the second with his fastball.
“When you come in as a reliever I feel like there’s a lot of expectations. You’re supposed to work harder,” Francis said. “But if you’re working with a lead it’s easier to keep your mind straight and just throw. When I don’t start and I have a lead, I just let it fly. I’m not really worried if a guy’s gonna hit the ball. I just don’t want to walk anyone, and I know I have a defense behind me.”
The Boilermakers grabbed the lead in their first at bat when Chase Moore drove in Nate Binkley with a one-out groundout.
The Bonnies didn’t break through against Boilermakers starter Ivory until the third when Francis slapped an outside pitch the opposite way to score Ian Remor from third on a fielder’s choice.
Walsh’s one-out sac fly in the fourth gave Brooklyn a 2-1 lead, and Margolies capped the Bonnies’ scoring with a two-out RBI single in the fourth.
Bonnies starter Christian Miller went two innings and gave up one run on one hit and three walks with one strikeout. Donovan was the first Brooklyn reliever and he pitched one scoreless inning while giving up one hit.
Just one batter after Francis’ web gem in the second, Bonnies right fielder Yerlin Feliz followed suit with another defensive highlight, fielding what should have been a Charlie Dyke base hit and firing to first to retire Dyke.
For the Boilermakers, Ivory lasted three innings and surrendered one run on one hit and one walk with two strikeouts. Myles Keenan pitched two innings and yielded two runs on four hits and one walk. Moore recorded a scoreless sixth inning and gave up just one walk.