John I. Leonard Hopes To Ride Solid Pitching And Defense

John I. Leonard players are using some of their time this fall on conditioning.

Most of John I. Leonard’s games last year were decided by a few runs or less. The reasons for the losses were clear: some poor defense here, not getting the timely hit there.

After losing half a dozen seniors from last year’s team the Lancers are decidedly younger this year, but manager Roger Vasquez feels good about his team’s chances.

Yes, Leonard lost some key arms in Jared Johnson and Noel Canete, among others. But Vasquez has confidence in his core group of four pitchers whom he’ll be relying on this year.

“I believe pitching will keep us in the game,” Vasquez said.

He concedes it won’t be easy, however, as the Lancers’ new district lineup of foes — Boca Raton, Spanish River, Santaluces and Park Vista — all have pitching as a strength, he believes.

Moises Caracus, a sophomore playing his first year on varsity, will be among the top pitchers in the rotation. He said he’s “just looking to pitch and play third as best as I can to help the team win.”

Vasquez was quick to point out Caracus’ high points.

“He’s got tremendous mound presence,” Vasquez said. “He knows how to pitch. He knows how to keep the guys close. He’ll come through with an off-speed pitch if he has to and spot his fastball. He’s going to be one of our good, top pitchers.”

Kyle Lamb, like Caracus, also is a sophomore coming up from the junior varsity team. He’s also going to play center field in addition to taking on closer duties. Vasquez said he’s speedy and carries a strong bat.

Lamb said he already has a plan in place to make this a better year for himself and help the team in the process.

“I want to work harder,” he said. “Last year, I didn’t work as hard as I could to be as good as I could become. I’m just trying to work out as much as I can, practice as much as I can.”

Moises Caracus will be among the team’s top pitchers this year.

Senior Chris Perez is going to have a dual role as catcher and pitcher, and Vasquez notes Perez has good velocity as a pitcher in addition to a good arm as a catcher.

“Chris Monteaguto is a closer and middle infielder who has a good bat,” Vasquez said. Monteaguto, a senior, “will come through in the clutch”, according to Vasquez.

The pitching staff also will include seniors Jimmy Pittman, Joey Carlton and Jorge Diaz.

To complement the solid pitching, the Lancers are expecting their defense to also be a hallmark this season, and be improved over last year. Defensive failures last year were coupled with failures on offense that cost the team games. Small-ball execution was something the team struggled with, Vasquez said.

“You have got to give yourself up, and that’s what we didn’t do,” he said. “A lot of our guys didn’t want to give themselves up. So if I needed a bunt down, their bunt wasn’t good enough to get that bunt down and move the guy over. If I needed a guy to hit behind the runner and move the guy over to second base, or if he’s on second base, hit behind him and move him to third, now we’re playing small ball. Fly ball, you tag up and score, or a wild pitch. That’s the mentality I’ve got to get into these guys.”

The Lancers have to play small because they lack the power hitters. Even the middle of the lineup isn’t going to be consistently bringing in runs through big hits. It was the same story last year. The pitching was there, at times defense, too, but the lack of hitting made the difference negatively.

Two newcomers who will help offensively this year are infielders Jose Garcia, a sophomore, and Victor Suero, a junior. Another key bat this year will come from Dylan Santalo, a sophomore whom Vasquez expects to hit leadoff. He’s speedy — runs a 6.7/6.8 in the 60 — and already has gotten some interest from Florida Atlantic University. Those three will figure in the team’s plan to focus on small ball.

Lancers players wind down practice with some running.

“So we have to get the mentality that we’re going to move guys over, put the ball down, let the next guy do a hit-and-run and make something happen with small ball. Those close games that we lost, we’re going to win them because our defense is better this year,” Vasquez said. “I think our defense is going to be better this year than it was last year. We’re a younger team, but I think we’re going to be a better defensive team.”

So while the team gets its new pitching staff in order and focuses on improving its offense, one area that players acknowledge is doing fine is the togetherness among their teammates. That piece of the puzzle is in place.

“We’re working together really well and we all get along,” Caracus said. “There’s no arguments. We all come together as a team. There’s better chemistry this year, more communication. We’re pushing each other to do our best.”

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