2006 All-Long Island Baseball

BY GREGG SARRA | Newsday Staff Writer
June 18, 2006
A look at Long Island's best baseball players for the 2006 season.

Glenn Gibson
Suffolk Player of the Year
Center Moriches, Pitcher, Senior
The winner of the 2006 Carl Yastrzemski Award. The 6-4, 200-pound Suffolk League VIII MVP compiled an 8-1 pitching record and struck out a Long-Island best 145 batters. He mixed a nasty breaking ball with an 88 mph fastball and fired two no-hitters, walked 11 and allowed 11 hits in 61 innings.

Joe Cesarini
Nassau Player of the Year
Garden City, Pitcher, Senior
Led Garden City to the Nassau Class A title and earned the Diamond Award as Nassau's best pitcher. He compiled a 20-0 record with 10 shutouts and 130 strikeouts in 126.3 innings pitched during his career. He was the Conference A-I MVP after he recorded a 9-0 mark over 52.2 innings pitched and a 0.13 ERA.

Mike Appell
Clarke, First Base, Senior
The 6-foot 1, 220-pound senior first baseman had 37 hits, including eight home runs, 49 runs batted in and 29 runs scored. His home run and RBI totals were single season records at Clarke. The four-year starter is the school's all-time leader in home runs with 17 and RBI's with 123. he earned the Diamond Award presented to Nassau's top position player this year.

Mike Belfiore
Commack, P/1B, Senior
He was presented the Paul Gibson Award as the top pitcher in Suffolk. He posted an 8-0 record with 78 strikeouts and only 7 walks in 62.6 innings. He had an 0.67 ERA and earned the Suffolk League II MVP award for hitting .483 with 3 home runs and 18 RBI.

Vin Block
Chaminade, Outfield, Senior
The speedy outfielder earned the Nassau-Suffolk Catholic High School Athletic Association most valuable player award. Block led the Catholic League, which switched to wood bats only this season, in hitting with a .391 average.

Pete Bregartner
East Islip, Pitcher, Junior
No one was hotter come playoff time than this underclassmen. He batted .640 in East Islip's post-season run with five extra base hits and eight RBI. He batted .470 with five home runs, 32 RBI and 28 runs scored and compiled a 7-3 pitching record with a 2.20 ERA.

Greg Gilroy
Smithtown West, C/P, Senior
The catcher converted to pitcher keyed the Bulls run to Suffolk's League III title. He earned the League III MVP after he hit .410 with 22 RBI and 17 runs scored. He also helped on the hill with an 8-0 record over 62 innings pitched for a 1.11 ERA.

Scott Gussaroff
Cold Spring Harbor, IF/P, Senior
The two-time All-Nassau selection led the Seahawks to the Class B crown with a .493 batting average, 7 home runs, 6 triples, 37 RBI and 31 runs scored. He was named the Conference BC-I MVP and added an 8-2 pitching record with 107 strikeouts in 65 innings and a 0.97 ERA.

Brett Hammond
Babylon, 3B/P, Senior
The two-time All-Suffolk righthander led Babylon to the Long Island Class B championship. His three-hit, seven-strikeout effort broke Hastings-on-Hudson 28-game win streak and helped Babylon take a 4-1 victory in the state semifinals propelled the Panthers into the championship. He had a 8-1 record and a 1.13 ERA.

Bobby Haney
Kings Park, Shortstop, Senior
The two-time All-Suffolk selection earned the League V MVP after he batted .488 with six home runs, 31 RBI and 34 runs scored. He was also presented with the Gold Glove award at his position.

Tom Maloney
Massapequa, Outfield, Senior
The sweet swinging Maloney batted .494 with 7 home runs, 42 RBI, 45 runs scored and had a .965 slugging percentage. The All-Nassau pick was also a sure-handed defensive player with a rifle for an arm.

Matt Petiton
Garden City, 1B/P, Senior
The three-time All-Nassau selection batted .391 with 24 RBI and 33 runs scored. The North Carolina-bound lefthander was 7-2 with 97 strikeouts in 60 innings of work. He had a 1.86 ERA.

Matt Prokopowicz
Massapequa, 3B/P, Senior
He was a two-time All-Nassau selection earned the Conference AA-I MVP after hitting .500 with four homers, 29 RBI and 37 runs scored. He was 2-0 with three saves for the unbeaten Chiefs. In his career, the Hofstra-bound Prokopowicz had 19 homers and 101 RBI.

Greg Smith
Eastport/South Manor, 3B/P, Junior
The hard-throwing righty won Suffolk League VI MVP honors after a stellar season on the mound. He compiled a 10-2 record with 103 strikeouts in 83 innings for a 1.01 ERA. He led Eastport/South Manor with a .393 batting average, 10 RBI, 36 runs scored and 16 stolen bases.

Rob Throo
East Islip, Shortstop, Senior
The four-year starter started and ended his career with Suffolk titles. The slick fielding shortstop hit .438 with five home runs, 32 RBI, 30 runs scored and 17 stolen bases.

Tom Sheedy
Nassau Coach of the Year
Massapequa (29-0)
In his third year as the head coach, 52, Sheedy led the Chiefs to a perfect 29-0 season and their first state title. Massapequa was the first undefeated varsity baseball team on Long Island in 10 years.

Sal Ciampi
Suffolk Coach of the Year
East Islip (20-9)
The second year coach, 29, led the Redmen to the Suffolk Class AA title after East Islip was picked to finish fourth in Suffolk's League III. Ciampi is the first person to win Suffolk baseball titles as a player, assistant coach, and head coach at the same school. He molded a young team that overcame injuries to key players to win the county title.

Copyright © 2008, Newsday Inc.

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