June 8, 2011
HS notebook: Maine's Heath has been dominant
by Roger Brown/
There isn’t a high school pitcher in the state of Maine who had a better regular season than Westbrook’s Scott Heath.
Heath, a senior, posted a 5-0 record and a 0.00 ERA for the Blue Blazes, who will enter the Western Maine Class A tournament as the No. 2 seed with a 14-2 record. He struck out 41 batters in 32 innings, and hit .390 with 18 RBI.
Heath’s outstanding season was recognized Wednesday, when he was named the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year.
"Heath is just one of those special players," Bonny Eagle coach Mark Sawyer said. "He´s very intelligent. He throws in the high 80s and he can bust off an above-average curveball. He´s a very competitive kid and he also swings the bat very well."
Heath, who throws left-handed, has committed to play baseball at the University of Maine. He plays in the outfield when he’s not pitching.
He also had a 0.00 ERA as a junior, when he was 6-0 and pitched 40 innings.
Recent winners of the Gatorade Player-of-the-Year Award are Matt Verrier of Oxford Hills (2010), Scarborough’s Chris Bernard (2009) and Gardiner’s Kyle Stilphen (2008).
Massachusetts
The Toronto Blue Jays selected Lawrence Academy right-handed pitcher Tyler Beede with the 21st overall pick Monday, the first day of the 2011 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
Beede became the first high school player from Massachusetts to be selected in the first round since the Florida Marlins took Peabody right-handed pitcher Jeff Allison with the 13th pick in the 2003 draft.
Beede must now choose between turning professional or playing college baseball. He has committed to Vanderbilt University.
New Hampshire
Top-seeded Portsmouth will carry an 81-game winning streak into Thursday’s Division II semifinal-round game against fourth-seeded Bedford. The Clippers beat the Bulldogs to win the state title last season.
The game could feature a pitching battle between two future teammates. Portsmouth’s Keegan Taylor and Bedford’s Joe Maher have both committed to play at Northeastern. Taylor got the win and Maher the loss when Portsmouth beat Bedford 6-3 during the regular season.
Portsmouth, which broke the national record for consecutive wins earlier this season, is seeking its fourth consecutive state championship.
Rhode Island
Freshman Dom Grillo pitched a complete game three-hitter to help North Kingstown defeat Cranston West, 5-3, in Game 1 of the Division I baseball finals at McCoy Stadium on Monday night.
Game 2 in the best-of-three series is scheduled to be played Tuesday night (6).
Grillo struck out seven and retired the final nine Cranston West hitters in order. Austin Barry drove in three of the five North Kingstown runs.
Vermont
Davis Mikell’s two-run single with two outs in the 13th inning gave eighth-seeded Champlain Valley Union a 3-1 victory over top-seeded Colchester in the Division I quarterfinals Saturday.
Mikell’s single scored Brendan Davitt and Tucker Kohlasch. CVU extended its winning streak to nine games and improved to 13-4 overall. The loss ended Colchester’s 14-game winning streak.
CVU is scheduled to face Rice in Tuesday’s semifinals.
Connecticut
Tuesday’s semifinal matchups in each of Connecticut’s four classes:
Class LL
(at Municipal Stadium, Waterbury)
No. 17 Newington vs. No. 4 Amity, 3:30 p.m.; No. 7 Southington vs. No. 6 New Britain, 7 p.m.
Class L
(at Nolan Field, Ansonia)
No. 16 Farmington vs. No. 13 New Canaan, 3:30; No. 15 Notre Dame-West Haven vs. No. 6 Foran, 7 p.m.
Class M
(at Palmer Field, Middletown)
No. 24 Stonington vs. No. 20 Montville, 3:30; No. 7 Wolcott vs. No. 22 Seymour, 7 p.m.
Class S
(Muzzy Field, Bristol)
No. 2 East Hampton (18-4) vs. No. 3 Windsor Locks, 3:30; No. 1 East Catholic vs. No. 4 Wamogo 7 p.m.
