Penn State Scranton Baseball Looks to take care of Unfinished Business in 202

By Ross Turetsky, Penn State Scranton Athletics

After getting the long awaited go ahead just a month ago that there would indeed be a 2021 spring sports season at Penn State Scranton, the baseball team will look to make the most of their special opportunity to play the game they love as they kick-off their campaign in earnest with a home single game, nine inning showdown on March 24^th at 3pm against Penn State Schuylkill. What makes this even more of a highly anticipated event, is this will be the first official sporting event on campus in over a year, after the devastating COVID-19 pandemic shutdown the baseball and softball spring competitive seasons with just days before they were to begin playing games, after working so hard for months practicing. Expect this year's baseball squad to be especially close knit and scrappy, as they have only ten members on their team to begin their scheduled 20-game season, that has 10-home and 10-road contests in total, all against fellow Penn State conference schools, which includes Penn State Schuylkill, Hazleton, York, and Brandywine.

In terms of the overall feeling the players and coaches have entering this season after such a long, arduous layoff, it can be best summed up with two simple, yet poignant words, excited and grateful. "It definitely feels great to be part of a team again. I can't wait to get out there with these kids. Last year we got cut off right before our season started, so I think it should be a fun time just to get a chance to go out there with my guys," said junior infielder and Scranton High School product Rob McAndrew.

"The energy in practice is really good, everyone is just so pumped to be out there and playing again. For our team goals this season, it's definitely to work together more because we are so small now and we all are going to have each other's backs. We would like to put a few wins on that board, especially after this team has struggled in the past, we would like to help turn that around. I'll play and do whatever this team needs me to do to help win," said McAndrew.

It will be a special family affair for fellow junior infielder and team captain, Carson Cacioppo, as he is thrilled to finally get the chance to play on the same team as his cousin, McAndrew. "That cousin duo in the infield is going to be something special, so look out for it. This is something we have dreamed about since we were kids, and going to different schools, I went to a different high school, he went to a different high school, we all played different little leagues, it's something we have always wanted to do, and last year we thought we finally were going to get the opportunity to do it before we got shutdown, but this year it looks like it's finally coming to fruition," said Cacioppo.

In terms of his goals for his squad this season, Cacioppo emphasized consistency throughout. "I'd like to see consistency, everyone buying in all season long. The wins that's nice to see, but if we are putting our all out there I'm sure everything will fall into place. It's honestly going to be speechless taken the field for the first time, I can tell you that for a fact. The itch of baseball, it's just been killing at me. It's been my favorite sport ever since I was a kid. Just scratching that itch after waiting a whole year and getting so close last year, finally getting to run out on that field is going to feel so amazing," said Cacioppo.

Another key player to watch out for this season will be again a fellow junior captain, right fielder/pitcher, Joe Talutto, who brings considerable power, hitting from the left-hand side of the plate. "It's the same as I wanted to do last year, I just want to go up to the plate and continue to dominate in the field and in the batter's box, because that's what my game is. When coach asks me to hit the ball, I'm going to deliver that hit. I'm just going to do everything I can to hit the ball, whatever it takes to get a run on the board and to win, because that's what we want to do, we want to win," said Talutto.

This 2021 campaign will finally see new head coach Vito Ruggiero, alongside his assistant coach, Ken Grundt, who is a former major league pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, get the chance to lead Penn State Scranton on the ball field for the very first time, as both coaches have already brought a refreshing, new found energy and team culture to the University. Coach Ruggiero will rely heavily on his trio of upperclassmen captains this year to help things run smoothly.

"Our three captains, all returning, local born players, McAndrew, Cacioppo, and Talutto, they know my philosophies, they've been around me long enough and they know what I'm thinking before I even verbalize it. They know what I expect when we go to practice and how we got to execute and get right to work. So those three leaders have to lead the other guys that we have here, even if it's only seven or eight other guys. You lead by example and these guys are true leaders for what I need them to do for this program and moving forward," said coach Ruggiero.

In terms of pitching, look for three solid performers to help toe the rubber this season. Coach Ruggiero has high hopes for sophomore and Mid Valley High School product Mark Longo, and the dynamic pitching duo coming from Scranton Prep in sophomore Domenick Giacobbe and freshman David Blake to make an immediate impact.

Finally, coach Ruggiero has some definite ideas of what will constitute as a successful 2021 baseball season for his young student-athletes and it is way more than mere wins and losses on the field. "My philosophy for this season being successful is obviously, academics comes first. Because in a few short years they'll be out there in the work force and they're going to have to provide, whether it's for themselves, their families, and they have to get into the mindset to be successful and not take no for an answer. But life is about not succeeding all the time. So our goal is of course to go and win everything, because I don't do anything to lose, I do everything and give a 110 percent. So if our guys go out there and give 110 percent and the other team beats us, you tip your hat to them. They have to move forward by adversity and with this small group of guys we have this year, it might not always be in our favor on the "W" side but if they give all their effort and execute, you say how can we build and what can we do better for the next time and it's the same thing in life. You get told no, you see how you can build and what could you do differently to change that outcome the next time," said the inspiring coach Ruggiero.