It’s a big week for North Schuylkill.
In more ways than one.
The Spartans have been the surprise team in the Schuylkill League Division I race so far, using impressive wins over Pine Grove, Tamaqua and Blue Mountain to go 5-0 in league play and stay tied with Pottsville atop the division standings.
North Schuylkill has done it a variety of ways, using the stellar pitching of Tevin Murray to blank Pine Grove, the strong pitching of Bobby Grigas and the hitting of C.J. Steinhilber and Chris Burke to beat Tamaqua, and a 10-run inning to sink Blue Mountain.
The result has been an 8-2 start that has North Schuylkill atop the District 11 Class AA point ratings and currently on a four-game win streak.
After losing to Minersville in the championship game of the Russ Rothermel Tournament last Sunday, the Spartans ripped off wins over Lehighton, Blue Mountain, Jim Thorpe and Holy Redeemer in a six-day span, outscoring those clubs 39-7.
This week, however, North Schuylkill visits Tamaqua today, travels to Pottsville for a 4:30 p.m. contest Wednesday and faces Pine Grove under the lights at Stump Stadium on Thursday night.
The Pottsville-NS matchup was originally scheduled for April 9,but was rained out and moved to Wednesday.
It’s a three-game gauntlet that will stretch North Schuylkill’s pitching rotation and could ultimately determine their Schuylkill League playoff hopes.
Making that stretch even tougher is the loss of junior left-hander Grigas, who underwent left elbow surgery this morning at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville to repair cartilage damage. According to North Schuylkill coach Nick Brayford, Grigas is probably lost for the season, depending on the procedure.
Brayford said Grigas’ injury is one he sustained as a youth and then re-aggravated over the winter. The injury didn’t affect him while pitching, and Grigas compiled a 4-0 pitching record with victories over Tamaqua, Mount Carmel, Lehighton and Holy Redeemer.
The injury did affect Grigas, however, when he was batting. At the plate, Grigas’ elbow would lock up, making it hard to swing.
Grigas and his parents decided to have the surgery now so he could be ready for football season in the fall. A standout quarterback, Grigas was the 2014 Republican-Herald Offensive Player of the Year in guiding North Schuylkill to a 10-0 regular-season record, the Anthracite Football League title and a trip to the District 11 Class AA championship game.
Obviously, Grigas’ loss puts a strain on North Schuylkill’s pitching staff. The Spartans have a solid group of arms in Murray, Steinhilber, Alek Hummel and Ryan Hillbish, but may need some more arms to step up down the stretch.
It may impact the Spartans more on defense, as the speedster covered a lot of ground in center field when he didn’t pitch, and on offense, where Grigas hit leadoff.
How North Schuylkill overcomes Grigas’ absence may decide the Spartans’ fortunes in May.
Halfway Point
Today officially marks the halfway point of the Schuylkill League schedule. And despite the horrendous weather to start the season, most of the area’s teams are in good shape schedule-wise moving forward.
In Division I, Blue Mountain (8-2), Jim Thorpe (3-7), Lehighton (3-7), North Schuylkill (8-2) and Pottsville (8-2) have played 10 games, while Pine Grove (5-4) has played nine and Tamaqua (4-4) has played eight.
The only two Division I games from the first half yet to be played are Wednesday’s North Schuylkill at Pottsville clash and the game between Jim Thorpe and Pine Grove that was moved to May 5.
In Division II, Minersville (8-2), Nativity (5-4), Schuylkill Haven (11-1), Tri-Valley (5-5) and Williams Valley (2-8) appear in good shape schedule-wise.
Division III, however, has several teams behind. Only Panther Valley (3-6) and Shenandoah Valley (4-5) have played more than seven games, and the Blue Devils had to play six straight days last week to catch up.
Upper Dauphin (8-3) and Hamburg (9-5) are in great shape as they look to clinch playoff spots in their respective league races.
Big Games
The Schuylkill League schedule is today and Thursday this week, but some rescheduled games have made some other days interesting, too.
Here’s a look at the key games this week:
Today — North Schuylkill at Tamaqua, Pine Grove at Pottsville, Tri-Valley at Shenandoah Valley
Wednesday — North Schuylkill at Pottsville
Thursday — North Schuylkill at Pine Grove, Panther Valley at Minersville
Friday — Marian at Nativity, Line Mountain at Upper Dauphin, Tri-Valley at Tamaqua
District 11 outlook
The District 11 point ratings through Sunday accompany this column, with North Schuylkill atop the Class AA bracket.
The only Schuylkill League team to officially clinch a berth is Schuylkill Haven (11-1), the defending Class A champion which moves up to Class AA this season.
We’ll keep an eye on these as the season progresses.
Odds and Ends
The Schuylkill League lost a pair of legends earlier this year with the passing of former Shenandoah Valley coach William “Babe” Conroy and former coach and umpire Mickey Little.
Conroy, who was 67, died Feb. 14 after a long bout with Parkinson’s. He coached the Blue Devils from 1984-99, compiling a 179-156 overall record that included three District 11 runner-up finishes (1988, ’89, ’99).
Little died April 1 at the age of 73. He was a teacher for 30 years at Minersville and coached baseball for both the Miners and Cardinal Brennan and the Frackville Teeners and Frackville Legion teams.
A standout catcher who reached the Triple-A level, Little was a longtime PIAA umpire. Most of the time, he threw the ball back to the pitcher faster than it came in.
• Schuylkill Haven’s Nick Behm has committed next year to play at Seton Hill, a NCAA Division II school located in Greensburg in western Pennsylvania.
Behm signed a letter of intent to play at Division I Marist, but that offer was pulled. Seton Hill, which competes in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, is 35-7 overall and tied for first in the PSAC West with Mercyhurst at 20-4.
(Boyer covers H.S. baseball for The Republican-Herald. Follow him on Twitter @pubsportsboss).
Baseball Power Poll
(Through Saturday’s games)
Team Rec Prv
1. Pottsville 8-2 2
2. Schuylkill Haven 11-1 4
3. North Schuylkill 8-2 5
4. Blue Mountain 8-2 3
5. Pine Grove 5-4 7
6. Marian 6-1 6
7. Minersville 8-2 9
8. Tamaqua 4-4 1
9. Hamburg 9-5 —
10. Upper Dauphin 8-3 8
— Compiled by Leroy Boyer