Manhattan Travels To The Jersey Shore For Three Games

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West Long Branch, NJ - Manhattan (20-20; 9-3 MAAC) returns to the road at Monmouth (16-20; 6-6 MAAC) for a crucial league series beginning on Saturday, April 28 with a 12:00 pm doubleheader at the MU Baseball Field.
 
Schedule:
Game 1 - Saturday, April 28 - 12:00 pm
Jr. RHP Marc Galvan (4-3; 3.35 ERA; 48.1 IP; 33 K; 18 BB; .251 opp. BA) vs. Sr. RHP Ricky Dennis (4-5; 3.98 ERA; 52.0 IP; 37 K; 22 BB; .286 opp. BA) 
Game 2 - Saturday, April 28- 3:00 pm
GS RHP Matt Simonetti (4-3; 3.38 ERA; 53.1 IP; 56 K; 16 BB; .259 opp. BA) vs. Fr. RHP Dan Klepchick (2-1; 4.58 ERA; 53.0 IP; 40K; 10 BB; .241)
Game 3 - Sunday, April 29 - 2:00 pm
TBA vs. TBA

BRINGING IT HOME
During MAAC play, Manhattan is batting .328 (42-of-128) with runners in scoring position while limiting the opposition to a .172 (17-of-99) mark.

CLOSING IT OUT
The Jaspers are 16-0 this year when leading after seven innings, including 16-1 when owning a lead after four innings of play.

THE LAST TIME ...
The teams met was at the 2016 MAAC Tournament with the Jaspers taking both match-ups.

EVEN STEVEN
Since Monmouth joined the MAAC for the 2014 season, the teams have split all 12 meetings with eight games being decided by two runs or less.

PADRE KEEPS PRODUCING
Freshman Matt Padre has been fire since the start of the MAAC play and did nothing to dispute that claim over the weekend, crushing the game-tying RBI triple in the series finale against Rider coming around to score the winning run. Over his last 20 games, the rookie paces Manhattan in batting (.353), hits (24), runs (16) and XBH (7) while reaching base safely 19 times. On the year, he is hitting .280, including a team-leading .340 during league play, with four doubles, two triples, two home runs and 17 RBI while reaching base at a .408 clip.

FROM FLEMINGTON WITH LOVE
Much like his fellow Flemington, NJ native Padre, senior Michael Pfenninger has been tearing the cover off the ball of late. Pfenninger is hitting .611 (11-of-18) over his last six games with six RBI while reaching base at a .680 clip during that time. On the year, he is batting .204 with 19 runs, seven doubles, one triple, one home run and 17 RBI.

RIDERS ON THE STORM
Pfenninger batted a blistering .600 (6-of-10) last weekend against Rider and has hit safely in all 10 career games against the Broncs en route to posting a 500 (16-of-32) average with seven runs, seven RBI and five doubles.

PERFECT 10
Senior Brendan Bisset has hit safely in each of his last 10 games, batting .381 (16-of-42) during that time with three doubles, a triple and four RBI while posting a .422 OBP. On the year, he is hitting .292 including .340 during MAAC play, with 45 hits (7th MAAC), 10 doubles, a triple, 19 RBI and 10 multi-hit games.
 
THE LEADERBOARD
Junior Fabian Pena ranks among the MAAC leaders in doubles (10-7th), home runs (5-5th) and RBI (29-5th) to go along with a .279 average.

NOT YOUR AVERAGE CLEAN-UP HITTER
Junior Richie Barrella is batting .315 while ranking sixth in the MAAC with 46 hitswith a team-leading 13 multi-hit games and six stolen bases, but has just three extra-base hits.

VALLS DOING WORK
Since being inserted into the starting line-up at the start of April, senior Brandon Valls is batting .289 (13-of-45) with 10 runs, two doubles and six RBI. 
 
FORLOW STANDS OUT
Graduate student Matt Forlow has established himself as one of the top power threats in the MAAC ranking second in the league with 12 doubles and fourth with 33 RBI to go along with two triples and two home runs with a team-leading 10 multi-RBI games. Additionally, he has made just three errors in his first year as the primary shortstop.

SIMONETTI STEPS UP ... AGAIN
Simonetti saw his 28.0-inning scoreless streak snapped the last time out after going 3-1 over his previous four starts with 30 strikeouts, against just five walks, a 0.00 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP while holding opposing hitters to a .190 average.

ON THE YEAR ...
Simonetti's three complete games and 56 strikeouts are fourth in the MAAC while his 3.38 ERA is seventh to go along with a 4-3 record over 53.1 innings.
 
DYK??
Simonetti's four wins and 56 strikeouts match his career totals entering the year.

DO EVERYTHING T.J.
Sophomore RHP T.J. Stuart has established himself as arguably the finest pitcher in the MAAC, ranking among the league leaders in ERA (1.96-1st), saves (7-1st), WHIP (0.94-2nd) and wins (5-4th). Last weekend, he fired 5.0 innings of relief in earning the series-clinching victory over Rider after notching a save and a win in Manhattan's series victory over Fairfield.

LUCKY NUMBER 14
In each of the last 14 games Stuart has pitched in, the Jaspers have emerged victorious. Additionally, Stuart has directly had a hand in 60.0 percent of Manhattan's 20 victories (7 saves, 5 wins).

GALVAN COMING UP CLUTCH
Over his last two games, Galvan has earned series-opening victories over Fairfield and RIder while yielding just two runs with a 1.50 ERA and nine strikeouts over 12.0 innings. On the year, he is 4-3 with 33 strikeouts over 48.1 innings while ranking sixth in the MAAC with a 3.35 ERA.

THE 'NIZ'
Junior RHP Joe DiNizio fired 3.0 scoreless innings in the series-clinching win over Rider and over his last three outings has yielded just one run with 11 strikeouts, against two walks, over 10.0 innings. 

FIRST TIME, LONG TIME
Graduate student LHP Joe Jacques earned his first save since the 2015 season with a scoreless frame in Manhattan's series-clinching victory over Rider. On the year, he is 1-1 with a 1.64 ERA and 25 strikeouts over 22.0 innings.

HOME SWEET HOME
After playing 32 games on the road to start the season, Manhattan will play 14 of its final 21 games at Dutchess Stadium.

THE ROAD
The Jaspers are tied for fourth in the nation with 16 road victories.
  
HOW YOU DOING?
With the series victory over Fairfield, Head Coach Mike Cole has now faced all three of his former mentors. Cole was swept by nationally-regarded Stetson and Steve Trimper before dropping two-of-three to Fordham and Kevin Leighton.
 
TROCH OUT FOR THE YEAR
Freshman Will Trochiano had been arguably the top rookie in the MAAC before a fluke injury ended his rookie campaign. He was hitting .333 (31-of-93) with seven doubles, a home run and 12 RBI while reaching base safely in 21-straight games to start his career.

TROCH FEATURED IN THE ASBURY PARK PRESS
Trochiano was recently featured in an article entitled "Trochiano Brothers Beat The Odds With Manhattan, Monmouth." Click HERE for the full article.
 
COSGROVE EARNS HIS FIRST WIN
Tom Cosgrove, who was a 12th Round selection of the San Diego Padres earned his first win of the year with Fort Wayne of the Midwest League on Thursday, striking out six over 6.0 scoreless innings. Click HERE for his player page.

CAREER NUMBERS AGAINST MONMOUTH ...
- Jacques is 2-1 with one save and a 0.97 ERA over 24.2 innings of action, highlighted by firing a complete game victory against the Hawks in an elimination game at the 2016 MAAC Tournament.
- Barrella is hitting .400 (8-of-20) with four runs and three RBI while Pena is batting .292 (7-of-24) with a double and four RBI.

SCOUTING MONMOUTH
Buffalo transfer junior Kyle Norman is hitting a team-lelading .319 with 10 d oubles, two triples, one home run and 32 RBI while fifth-year senior Shaine Hughes checks in with a 2.85 average, six doubles, four home runs and 32 RBI. On the mound, Dennis (4-5, 3.98 ERA, 37 K, 52.0 IP) and Klepchick (2-1, 4.58 ERA, 40 K, 53.0 IP) pace the rotation while senior RHP Austin Counsellor (2-2, 124 ERA, 25 K, 29.0 IP, 2 SV) serves as the closer.

BARRELLA, TROCHIANO REPEAT
Barrella garnered MAAC Player of the Week accolades for the second-straight week while Trochiano also repeated in claiming his third weekly rookie citation in helping Manhattan open league play with a three-game sweep of Saint Peter's.
- Trochiano continued his torrid start to the season, hitting .444 (8-of-18) in helping the Jaspers to a perfect week.
- Barrella hit .562 (9-of-16) with four runs, a triple, nine RBI, two stolen bases and a walk while reaching base safely at least twice in all four games.

BREAK OUT THE BROOMS
Manhattan swept the weekly MAAC awards with Barrella (Player), Stuart (Pitcher) and Trochiano (Rookie) taking home top honors on March 20 after the Jaspers won three-of-four, including a pair of games at La Salle and Villanova.
- Barrella batted .571 (8-of-14) with a double, four runs, four walks, a HBP and two stolen bases while hitting safely in all four games en route to posting a .643 slugging percentage and a .684 OBP.
- Stuart notched saves in all three Manhattan wins last week, striking out four while yielding just one hit and one walk over 5.0 scoreless frames while limiting opposing hitters to a .063 average.
- Trochiano earned his second MAAC Rookie of the Week honor after hitting safely in all four games en route to batting .316 (6-of-19) with five runs, two doubles, two RBI and one stolen base.

PENA NAMED MAAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- Pena hit a blistering .438 (7-for-16) with two doubles, two home runs, seven runs, eight RBI and two walks over four games last week while slugging at a .938 clip en route to being named MAAC Player of the Week on March 13.
- After singling against Stony Brook, Pena went 3-for-4 in the opener at UNC Asheville with two home runs, five runs and five RBI while reaching base safely five times.
- Pena capped the doubleheader sweep with two more hits, three RBI and a run in the nightcap.
- The Miami native put the finishing touches on his big performance with a double and a run in the finale.

TROCHIANO CLAIMS FIRST MAAC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONOR
The Garden State native hit .385 (5-of-13) at CSUN with a home run, two runs and three RBI while reaching base a .429 clip.

PENA NAMED TO JOHNNY BENCH WATCH LIST
Pena has been named to the official watch list for the 2018 Johnny Bench Award presented by BaseballSavings.com as announced by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. 

THE RETURNERS
The Jaspers return 25 letterwinners, including seven starting position players, for the second-straight season. Click HERE for the entire prospectus.

PENA GARNERS PRESEASON HONORS
Pena was tabbed as the top MAAC pro prospect by both Baseball America (BA) and D1Baseball.Com.

PENA PACES THE OFFENSE
One of the top players in the Northeast since he set foot on campus as a freshman, Pena has hit .324 (183-of-564) with 56 doubles, 17 home runs and 115 RBI while starting all 148 Manhattan games during his time in Riverdale.

PENA PROFILED BY THE RIVERDALE PRESS
Pena was highlighted in the local paper in an article entitled 'Pena Looking To Be MLB's Next Big Hit ... Click HERE for the entire article.

JACQUES LAUDED
Jacques was tabbed as the No. 10 prospect in the MAAC by BA and No. 11 by D1.Baseball.Com.

TOP TWO IN 2019 ...
Stuart was lauded as the No. 5 pro prospect from the MAAC in 2019 while sophomore RHP Nick Massa was tabbed as No. 9. Both players made an immediate impact as rookies a year ago and will figure prominently this season.

FROM THE BRONX TO THE PROS
Cosgrove decided to forgo his final year of eligibility after being drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 12th round of the 2017 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft while Jose Carrera inked a professional deal with the New York Yankees. Additionally, signee Tai Tiedemann was selected by the Texas Rangers in the eighth round of the 2016 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

DUTCHESS STADIUM
Manhattan will call Duchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, NY home for the fourth-straight season, playing 14 games at the home of the Short-A Hudson Valley Renegades (Tampa Bay Rays).
 
MAAC PRESEASON POLL
The Jaspers were tabbed to finish 10th out of 11 teams.

THE STAFF
Former Manhattan great and 2017 Athletic Hall of Famer Chris Cody and Vincent Redmond complete Cole's first staff.

MAAC MAGIC
The Jaspers will be attempting to qualify for their third-straight MAAC Tournament and the fourth in five years after earning the sixth spot on the final day of the 2017 season.

SEE YOU IN STATEN ISLAND
The 2018 MAAC Baseball Championship will be held at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in Staten Island, NY from May 23-26. The 2019 and 2020 championships will also be held at the home of the Single-A Staten Island Yankees.

WHAT'S A JASPER?
The unique nickname of Manhattan College's athletic teams, the Jaspers, comes from one of the College's most memorable figures, Brother Jasper of Mary, F.S.C., who served as the College's athletic director in the late 19th century. One of the greatest achievements of Brother Jasper was that he brought the then little-known sport of baseball to Manhattan College and became the team's first coach. Since Brother Jasper was also the Prefect of Discipline, he supervised the student fans at Manhattan baseball games while also directing the team itself. During one particularly warm and humid day when the college was playing a semi-pro baseball team called the Metropolitans, Brother Jasper noticed the Manhattan students were becoming restless and edgy with the team coming to bat in the seventh inning of a close game. To relieve the tension, Brother Jasper called timeout and told the students to stand up and stretch for a few minutes until the game resumed. Since the College annually played the New York Giants in the late 1880's and into the 1890's at the old Polo Grounds, the Manhattan College practice of the "seventh inning stretch" spread into the major leagues, where it has now become a time-honored custom practiced by millions of fans annually.

UP NEXT
Manhattan will host UAlbany on Wednesday, May 2 at 5:00 pm.