Despite a young roster short on experience, a division title was a goal the Kearny baseball team felt was obtainable heading into this season.
“It was definitely something that was on our radar,” head coach Dave Smart said. “We went into this season just really thinking, alright, we got some first year guys playing varsity. Let’s see how far we could take this.”
The answer proved to be something the program hasn’t achieved in more than two decades – a division title. Wednesday’s 10-0 victory over Snyder clinched the HCIAL National Division crown for the Kardinals, who followed it up two days later to improve their record to a perfect 11-0 within the division.
Overall, the Kardinals stand 13-5 heading into this week’s seeding meet for the Hudson County Tournament where they will likely earn its highest seed in years.
“We just started getting on a roll and things started working out for us,” said Smart, who also credited the work of assistants Jeff Caputo, Doug Gogal and Armando Diaz. “The pitching started working out for us and the team came together. The boys were excited about these conference games and they really went after it.”
Leading the way for Kearny has been ace pitcher William McChesney, who is delivering one of the most dominant seasons by a Kardinals hurler in recent memory. The senior, committed to pitch at NJCU, has a microscopic 0.89 ERA with 63 strikeouts in 31.1 innings.
“He’s really grown and we know with him on the mound, we have a shot of beating anybody,” Smart said. “We know that he can come out there and he can give us anywhere from 80 to 100 strong pitches. He’s got command of his pitches and he’s a competitor.”
While McChesney’s rise was anticipated, the quick rise of No. 2 starter Julian Butler was less so. The freshman, however, has posted a solid 3.75 ERA with 28 strikeouts to nine walks in 28 innings.
“He’s got this confidence. He really does,” Smart said. “He believes in himself, he goes out there and he’s a competition. He’s a little bulldog. He goes out there and brings the fight to you.
“I’m really impressed with him. I think he’s going to be a great asset for us in the future and I can’t wait to see him on the mound more and see him at the shortstop position.”
Junior Jayden Diaz (30 strikeouts in 21.1 innings) is the third starter and senior Anderson De Jesus Melo has emerged as the Kardinals’ top reliever, striking out 14 with a 1.31 ERA in 10.2 innings. Freshmen Brendan More and Alex Santos among others, have provided additional innings and depth.
Senior catcher Joel Jimenez has been one of Kearny’s most clutch hitters as he’s tied for the team lead in RBI with 16. Victor Hanson serves as the backup catcher and super-utility man. Regardless of position, the senior has hit since his return from injury, batting .429 with eight RBI.
Junior Jonah Menendez (14 runs, 11 RBI, 15 walks) has been the main first baseman. McChesney, the team’s leading hitter at .425 with 16 runs and RBI apiece, also sees times at first, as well as in the outfield and at DH.
Trayton Witt is a two-year starter at second base and Edgar Portes has emerged as the starter at third. Both seniors have scored 14 runs on the season. Butler (.324 average, 15 runs) starts at shortstop, a position that Smart anticipates him holding down for years to come.
Outfield defense has been a strength for Kearny with Diaz in center field, Ben Wilkins in right, Ben Wilkinson in right and Ismael Diaz in left.
“The three of them cover a lot of ground,” said Smart. “They are three of the faster kids I’ve coached and they communicate so well together. They’re having a ball out there.”
Jayden Diaz, a junior, leads the team in runs (25), stolen bases (28) and walks (21). Wilkinson, a sophomore, has 21 runs, 13 RBI and 24 stolen bases, and defensively, shifts over to center with McChesney going to right when Diaz is on the mound.
Freshman Cayden Janeira has scored 10 runs as a courtesy runner as he and seniors Jean Paul Lena and De Jesus Melo serve as the top reserves off the bench.
Kearny has road games at Becton on May 6 and Newark East Side on the 8th leading up to the start of the Hudson County Tournament where the Kardinals made a surprise run to the quarterfinals last year. Both games will also be critical for power points where Kearny is currently sixth in North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 and in line for its first home state game since 2016.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, a place where he has served on and off since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on Facebook Live, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to West Hudson to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.