Madison Dodgers baseball is stepping back up to the plate for the 2024 spring season! The team opens up against Mountain Lakes on April 2nd, and hopes to start off with a win despite losing to Mountain Lakes the past few seasons. After a promising first scrimmage against Millburn, a top team in the state, the Dodgers are already setting the tone for the rest of their season and proving just how dangerous they will be this year.
After graduating 13 seniors, there are only five returning varsity players this year, only two of which are starters. Head coach, Brian Weingart, is looking towards the sophomore class to fill in the many empty spots left behind. Senior captain and starting left fielder, Kyle Piechnik, mentioned that the new sophomores “Carter Ferris, Andrew Haviland, Luke McGuire, and Patrick Layng, are all stepping into big roles this season.”
While adjusting to some new varsity faces, the team is also adjusting to new coaching staff. The Dodgers lost two assistant coaches from last season and have replaced them with Coach Izsa and Coach Schriner. Izsa has spent the past few years as a freshman coach for Madison, and Schriner previously played for head coach Weingart.
Amidst all these new changes, two familiar faces are leading the team as captains this year. Seniors Kyle Piechnik and Jack McGuire have been a part of Madison’s baseball program since freshman year, and get to finish their Madison athletic careers as co-captains. After losing two committed captains, Tyler Shannon and Carmine Toto, Piechnik and McGuire have some big shoes to fill.
Kyle Piechnik leads the team in more ways than one, as he led the team in many stats last year. He was the team’s leader in hits, batting average, and RBI’s for the 2023 season, and he is looking to put up similar stats this time around. Another standout for the season is Sam Berk, who has been a key player for Madison since his freshman year. “He’s a very versatile player” says captain Kyle Piechnik, “he will be expected to play both the infield and outfield this year.” Berk, only a junior, has another season to look forward to, and is expected to take on a leadership role when the time comes.
As for McGuire, he is stepping up to fill the second basemen role that was previously occupied by Colin Melvin. As a senior who has a long history with the program, Coach Weingart is looking to Jack to lead the teams to many victories this year.
The Dodgers face some tough competition this year, including Hanover Park, Pequannock, and Chatham, and they have been putting in the work during pre-season to prepare themselves for it. They are a young, but very promising team, and are looking towards a very successful season.