It’s an entirely different St. Laurence roster these days.
No Mike Kornacker, who is at Purdue. No Zach Lewis (Wabash) and T.J. Marik (Austin Peay). And, yes, another no on brothers Brad (Purdue) and Kyle Wood (Northern Illinois).
Since 2008, those five players were three- or four-year fixtures on the varsity at the Burbank school — Vikings for life who contributed heavily to the baseball program’s recent success.
With the exception of Lewis, who was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 33rd round last year but chose to return to Wabash, each is competing in college at the Division I level.
This year, there isn’t a single player on St. Laurence’s roster who has committed to Division I.
At least not yet.
Truth of the matter, there are only a handful of players on the Vikings’ roster with varsity experience from last season. Such a void suggests lowered expectations.
Here’s the deal: the faces are different, but the results and ambitions are not.
St. Laurence has won the Catholic League Blue title three of the past four seasons, including the last two.
And if coach Pete Lotus and his relatively unknown but talented players have anything to say about it, residence of the Catholic Blue championship will remain at 5556 W. 77th Street after this season.
“The goals haven’t changed at all,” Lotus said. “We don’t have the familiarity with guys we’ve had up on varsity as freshmen, like Kornacker or Kyle Wood, or as sophomores, like Brad Wood or T.J. (Marik). As senior heavy as we were last season, we knew we would be a different team this year. But we still expect to compete for the Blue championship.”
In a 6-0 win Thursday over De La Salle, St. Laurence (10-3, 2-1) resembled a team in the Catholic Blue race for the long haul.
That’s even without their top player, pitcher/third baseman John Riordon, who broke his left hand during pregame batting practice in the season opener and likely will be out until mid-May. A St. Francis recruit, Riordon was projected to be the staff ace and one of the team’s top hitters.
His absence could have had a negative impact. Instead of folding, though, the Vikings are thriving.
“We were counting pretty heavily on John,” Lotus said. “He was one of the few guys who had some playing experience. It’s a tough loss, but we’ve had some other guys step up and do well.”
When Riordon returns, he should provide a major jolt down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs. But as has been the case, the Vikings will just continue to fill the void.
Frank Greco, also a St. Francis recruit, has done a nice job as the staff ace. He fired a two-hitter against De La Salle. When Greco’s not pitching, he starts at either second or third base and is hitting over .500.
Junior left-hander Anthony Robles has slipped into the No. 2 spot in the rotation and has pitched well. Sophomore lefty Jimmy Burnette has shown he belongs and has the makings of a future ace.
“You never know what you’re going to get from a sophomore, but Jimmy has been excellent,” Lotus said. “Frank has been pitching and hitting very good. Robles was the most successful pitcher we had on the lower levels the past two seasons. He’s been able to throw his off-speed pitches when needed and has kept hitters off-balance.”
The Vikings’ offense has done its part. Besides Greco, senior and St. Xavier recruit Anthony Chimera, junior Anthony Rios and sophomore Tom Farrell, who has ignited the offense batting leadoff, have been steady contributors. Rios has also provided excellent defense behind the plate.
“Anthony has done a great job,” Lotus said. “He’s one of the best defensive catchers around. He’s had to hit in the No. 4 spot with John being out.”
With St. Rita, Mount Carmel and Providence resembling state championship contenders, no question St. Laurence has its work cut out to defend its Catholic Blue title.
But I wouldn’t say “no” to the Vikings. History suggests as much.
Twitter: @disabato
