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LEASIDE LEAFS
2009 Ontario Silver Medalists and Three-Peat GTBL Champions
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Leaside Leafs' Season Sumary
September 15, 2009
The Leaside Leafs capped off a tremendous season with a sweep of the East York Bulldogs in the GTBL finals. The Leafs were semi-finalists in the Oshawa Royals' Invitational, as well as the Hap Walters Tournament in St. Catharines. They rode that success into the Eliminations, where they eventually lost twice to the Windsor Stars in the finals. Although they were very shorthanded in the playoffs, the Leafs still managed to come away with their third straight GTBL title, and fourth in the last five years.
In the Royals' Invitational, the Leafs went 2-1 in round robin play, making the semi-finals by virtue of the wild card berth. In bracket play, the Leafs beat East York 4-1 and Kendal 8-2. Their only loss was a 6-5 defeat at the hands of Etobicoke. Oshawa beat Leaside in the semi-finals, by a 2-1 score.
In St. Catharines, the Leafs went 2-1 in round robin play again. This time, the 2-1 record was good enough for the Leafs to win their division. They lost their first game to Erindale by a 9-4 count. Leaside then went on to beat Milton 9-3, and WAA 3-1. In the semi-finals, the Leafs were once again beaten by the host team in a close game. The Metros would edge the Leafs 5-4.
At the Eliminations, the Leafs reeled off six straight wins. The wins were against Oshawa, Martingrove, Glanbrook, host Lakeside, and Etobicoke twice. This set up a finals matchup with the juggernaut known as the Windsor Stars. The Stars had to beat the Leafs twice, and that is what they did. In the first game, the Stars won 1-0 and in the second, they beat the Leafs handedly, 6-1.
The Leafs came into the playoffs rather shorthanded; suffering from injuries sustained in the Eliminations. That didn't stop the Leafs from beating the Thornhill Reds 2-1 in the quarterfinals, the Newmarket Hawks 2-1 in the semi-finals, and then sweeping East York 2-0.
The Leafs lost a couple of key players from 2008. Ace Brook Coatsworth left the team to play in Europe. As of now, Coatsworth is expected to return to the Leafs next season, and make them that much more dangerous. Steady outfielder Aaron Pitts hung up the cleats for good, and catcher Jesse Harrison took the summer off.
The team made a couple of additions, the biggest one being adding shortstop Davey Wallace to soldify the infield and top of the lineup. Wallace was a force all year long, and was arguably the best player in the province from start to finish. He played great defensively all year, and stung the ball in virtually every game. Wallace hit .433, which was good for tops in the province. He stole 30 bases, which was second only to teammate Henry Yap. His 47 runs scored were good for first in the province. He also ranked 3rd in hits with 58, and first in on base percent. Aaron Collins returned after taking a couple of years off. "AC" served as the backup catcher, and played various positions all over the field. The Leafs also added pitchers Gurminder Singh and Paul Kandola, from the Burlington Brants. Singh and Kandola were both solid out of the bullpen for the Leafs. Singh pitched Leaside past Etobicoke in the semi-finals of the Eliminations, and Kandola registered a key save in the Eliminations, despite pitching with torn ligaments in his elbow all season.
Some players from the 2008 team really stepped up this season to vault the Leafs into premier status in Ontario. On the pitching side of things, Josh Howsam became one of the best in the province. His nine wins (and just two losses) were good for second in Ontario, next to only Dane Little of the Windsor Stars. He pitched 74.2 innings (fourth), struck out 66 (fourth), and compiled an ERA of 2.17 (sixth). Jorge Frugoni stepped up late in the year and became one of the better pitchers in the GTBL. Jorge finished the season with a remarkable 7-0 record, and had a 2.47 ERA in the process. He pitched 73 innings (fifth in the province and second on the team). Veteran Paul Nusca and righty Lee Maunu, who seem to be hired guns; pitched the Leafs to victories in the Eliminations. Both are expected to return in 2010. Desmond Sullivan, the hard throwing righty, struck out more than a hitter per inning pitched, and showed in the Eliminations that he can be a dominant pitcher for years to come. Veteran Garrett Gilroy had one of his best seasons, and provided the Leafs with a solid arm out of the bullpen all year long. He also made a couple of key starts for Leaside. Nick Bubela had a couple of rough outings that hurt his overall numbers, but more times than not he was very dependable. Bubela led the team in saves (2) and struck out more than a hitter per inning pitched. Andrew Morales only had a few appearances on the year due to school commitments, but showed that he also will be a big factor in the Leaside rotation next year.
On the offensive side of things, the Leafs got a lot of key contributions from everyone. Catcher Bryan Rock really established himself as the best catcher in the province. He won the Top Catcher Award at the Eliminations. He threw out runners at an alarming rate, guided the young Leaside pitching staff, and hit with the best of them. He hit .370, with 3 HR, 29 RBI, 12 SB, and a .460 OBP. Second baseman Henry Yap was one of the best leadoff hitters in the province. He hit .309, drove in 34 runs from the leadoff spot, and stole the most bases in Ontario, with 31. He also banged out 11 doubles. Colin Cummins regained some of his old form this year and stepped up huge down the stretch. After a slow start, Cummins banged out 3 HR, drove in 22, and hit an impressive .333. Kyle Kristenbrun also had a monster year from the DH spot. "Dino" came on late, and finished the year hitting .312, with 2 HR and 21 RBI. James Rutherford hit .309 and drove in 22 runs. He was the team leader in RBI before going down with injury. Andrew Kirwin had a great weekend at the Eliminations and was arguably the team's best player in London. He finished the season with a .307 AVG, and 2 HR. Other players such as Brad Cormier, Matt Nailer, John Traiforos, Clarke Markle, Jeff Gruchy and Arthur Stoner, all played their roles to a tee.
The Leafs really gelled as a team on the field. They finished with a record of 27-16-2 (.628). The Leafs scored 292 runs (6.49 per game) and allowed 188 (4.17 per game). The Leafs put up double digit runs nine times, and allowed double digits three times. Leaside mercied their opponents eight times, and were mercied themselves three times. As a team, they hit .307 with a .413 OBP. The most impressive feat the team might have accomplished is one that is almost unheard of. The Leafs walked more than they struck out, as a team. They had 224 walks, compared to 215 strikeouts. All year long, the team remained cool under pressure. Most importantly (in their books), the Leafs really gelled off the field. All year long, the team played for the name on the front of the jersey ("Leaside", for those who are curious), and for eachother. If the Leafs can keep this team together, and hopefully add one or two key guys, they have a chance to be a force in Ontario for a while. Congratulations on the great season Leaside, and all the best next year.
TOP 10
Final results
1. Windsor Stars
2. Leaside Leafs
3. Erindale Cardinals
4. Oshawa Royals
5. Oakville A's
6. Newmarket Hawks
7. Markham Pioneers
8. Glanbrook Grizzlies
9. Milton Red Sox
10. East York Bulldogs
Hitting Leaders
AVG
Davey Wallace, Leaside .433
Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke .430
Jon Thiebaud, Whitby .410
Victor Speciale, Brampton .390
Derek Siddall, WAA .389
Steve Sadoff, Thornhill .388
Travis Skelton, Thornhill .381
Justin Czorny, St. Catharines .371
Bryan Rock, Leaside .370
Geoff Cullen, Erindale .368
Runs
Davey Wallace, Leaside 47
Kris Klassen, Windsor 46
Tom Grubb, Windsor 42
Anthony Dufour, Windsor 40
Henry Yap, Leaside 37
Frank Coccia, Erindale 37
Travis Skelton, Thornhill 35
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 35
Will Dubnyk, Erindale 34
John DeWolfe, Erindale 33
Hits
Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke 68
Anthony Dufour, Windsor 68
Davey Wallace, Leaside 58
Kris Klassen, Windsor 57
Steve Lauzon, Milton 57
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 57
Geoff Cullen, Erindale 53
Justin Butler, Erindale 51
Travis Skelton, Thornhill 51
Bryan Rock, Leaside 50
2B
Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke 16
Jon Roth, Milton 13
Will Dubnyk, Erindale 13
Kevin Greer, Milton 13
Steve Wilson, Thornhill 12
Rob Mancini, Windsor 12
Henry Yap, Leaside 11
Carlos D'Costa, Milton 11
Justin Butler, Erindale 11
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 11
HR
Geoff Cullen, Erindale 11
Tom Grubb, Windsor 11
Justin Pennell, Thornhill 9
Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke 8
Dan Romanycia, Tecumseh 8
Justin Butler, Erindale 8
Jason Marentette, Tecumseh 7
Rob Patterson, Whitby 6
Steve Anderson, Markham 5
Steve Baldinelli, St. Catharines 5
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 5
RBI
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 44
Tom Grubb, Windsor 42
Geoff Cullen, Erindale 41
Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke 40
Henry Yap, Leaside 34
Justin Pennell, Thornhill 34
Justin Czorny, St. Catharines 34
Anthony Dufour, Windsor 34
Rob Mancini, Windsor 32
Andrew Sorochan, St. Catharines 32
Rob Patterson, Whitby 32
BB
Davey Wallace, Leaside 34
Rocco Spano, St. Catharines 30
Henry Yap, Leaside 28
Tom Grubb, Windsor 28
Dan Hansen, Windsor 27
Joe Roach, St. Catharines 27
Bryan Rock, Leaside 25
Jeff Fox, Markham 25
James Rutherford, Leaside 24
Frank Coccia, Erindale 24
SO
Kurt Mitchell, Milton 40
Tom Grubb, Windsor 36
Joe Roach, St. Catharines 36
Kevin Treichel, Erindale 36
Kevin Cooper, Milton 33
Carlos D’Costa, Milton 29
Kyle Trudell, Tecumseh 28
Nathan Kerr, Erindale 28
Manny Espinoza, Etobicoke 27
Bryan Dufour, Windsor 27
Rocco Spano, St. Catharines 27
SB
Henry Yap, Leaside 31
Davey Wallace, Leaside 30
Andre Steer, Whitby 28
Kris Klassen, Windsor 25
Kevin Holloway, Newmarket 21
Travis Skelton, Thornhill 20
Taylor Lawton, Milton 17
Ryan Knight, Brampton 17
Steve Baldinelli, St. Catharines 16
Anthony Dufour, Windsor 14
Jeff Fox, Markham 14
Pitching Leaders
ERA
Andrew Masojc, Tecumseh 1.33
Dane Little, Windsor 1.34
Brad Boussey, Windsor 1.60
Ian Bala, Erindale 2.03
Josh Howsam, Leaside 2.17
Ian Horner, St. Catharines 2.30
John DeWolfe, Erindale 2.39
Steve Gallant, Erindale 2.35
Adam Ahearn, Milton 2.43
Jorge Frugoni, Leaside 2.47
IP
Adam Scheerer, Milton 90.0
Chris Currie, Erindale 82.1
John DeWolfe, Erindale 75.1
Josh Howsam, Leaside 74.2
Dane Little, Windsor 73.2
Jorge Frugoni, Leaside 73.0
Jeremiah Groulx, Thornhill 66.1
Mike Arsenault, Whitby 66.1
Kevin Breitner, Etobicoke 65.1
Kyle Trudell, Tecumseh 63.1
GP
Mike Grabauskas, Milton 22
Dane Little, Windsor 17
Jeff Felker, Milton 17
Ian Horner, St. Catharines 17
Adam Scheerer, Milton 17
Dan Estey, St. Catharines 16
Chris Currie, Erindale 15
Andrew Mullin, Erindale 14
Jorge Frugoni, Leaside 13
BB
Shawn Silk, Etobicoke 61
Adam Scheerer, Milton 47
Kevin Breitner, Etobicoke 43
Andrew Pierce, Tecumseh 35
Desmond Sullivan, Leaside 35
Chris Currie, Erindale 35
Mike Arsenault, Whitby 30
Chris McCanna, Brampton 30
Josh Howsam, Leaside 30
Rob Blunck, Tecumseh 29
Steve Hough, Brampton 28
K
Dustin Turner, St. Catharines 84
Dane Little, Windsor 82
John Picco, Windsor 68
Josh Howsam, Leaside 66
Adam Scheerer, Milton 66
Shawn Silk, Etobicoke 63
Chris Currie, Erindale 62
Mike Arsenault, Whitby 59
Desmond Sullivan, Leaside 51
Adam Ahearn, Milton 50
Wins
Dane Little, Windsor 10-1
Josh Howsam, Leaside 9-2
Steve Carter, Windsor 8-0
Chris Currie, Erindale 8-4
Adam Scheerer, Milton 8-5
Jorge Frugoni, Leaside 7-0
Brad Boussey, Windsor 7-2
John Picco, Windsor 7-3
John DeWolfe, Erindale 7-3
Curtis Saunders, Etobicoke 6-4
Ian Bala, Erindale 5-0
Losses
Jared Hurst, WAA 2-7
Dave McElroy, Whitby 0-6
Andrew Pierce, Tecumseh 2-6
Desmond Sullivan, Leaside 3-6
Ian Zettle, Milton 3-6
Kevin Breitner, Etobicoke 4-6
Barry Keith, WAA 3-5
Dustin Turner, St. Catharines 3-5
Bobby Gilligan, WAA 4-5
Adam Scheerer, Milton 8-5
SV
Alex Bruce, Markham 6
Jesse Edmunds, Brampton 5
Eric DeBoer, St. Catharines 5
Mike Grabauskas, Milton 4
Andrew Masojc, Tecumseh 3
Adam Forsey, Erindale 3
Justin Czorny, St. Catharines 3
Nick Bubela, Leaside 2
Andrew Mullin, Erindale 2
Dan Estey, St. Catharines 2
Mark Eccleton, Etobicoke 2
Jason Graham, Markham 2
Harman Brar, Thornhill 2
Kent Howe, Whitby 2
WHIP
Brad Boussey, Windsor 0.78
Chris Magarian, St. Catharines 0.86
Andrew Masojc, Tecumseh 0.89
Dane Little, Windsor 0.91
Mark Cheeseman, Markham 0.93
Ian Bala, Erindale 1.00
Brian Essery, St. Catharines 1.01
Adam Ahearn, Milton 1.04
Lee Maunu, Leaside 1.06
Mitch Kramer, WAA 1.06
AWARDS
All Ontario First Team
C Bryan Rock, Leaside (.370, 3 HR, 29 RBI, 12 SB, .460 OBP)
1B Geoff Cullen, Erindale (.368, 11 HR, 41 RBI)
2B Henry Yap, Leaside (.309, 11 2B, 34 RBI, 24 SB, .437 OBP)
3B Steve Lauzon, Milton (.341, 26 RBI, 57 H, 30 R)
SS Davey Wallace, Leaside (.433, 1 HR, 28 RBI, 30 SB, .543 OBP)
OF Tom Grubb, Windsor (.313, 11 HR, 42 RBI, 10 SB)
OF Jeff Jarockis, Oakville
OF Justin Pennell, Thornhill (.333, 9 HR, 34 RBI, 9 2B)
DH Steve Baldinelli, St. Catharines (.343, 5 HR, 27 RBI, 16 SB)
RHP Josh Howsam, Leaside (9-2, 2.17 ERA, 74.2 IP, 66 K)
LHP Dane Little, Windsor (10-1, 1.34 ERA, 73.2 IP, 82 K)
RP Andrew Masojc, Tecumseh (9 GP, 3-0, 3 SV, 1.33 ERA, 27 IP)
All Ontario Second Team
C Jason Marentette, Tecumseh (.290, 7 HR, 25 RBI)
1B Anthony Iafrate, Etobicoke (.430, 8 HR, 40 RBI, 16 2B)
2B Frank Coccia, Erindale (.314, 17 RBI, 24 BB, 49 H)
3B Matt Stezycki, Tecumseh (.338, 4 HR, 16 RBI)
SS Anthony Dufour, Windsor (.364, 34 RBI, 14 SB, .488 OBP)
OF Justin Butler, Erindale (.309, 8 HR, 31 RBI, 11 2B)
OF Kris Klassen, Windsor (.343, 2 HR, 18 RBI, 25 SB, .487 OBP)
OF Kevin Treichel, Erindale (.308, 5 HR, 44 RBI, 11 2B)
DH Kenny Rogers, Oshawa
RHP Brad Boussey, Windsor (7-2, 1.60 ERA, 56.1 IP, 39 K)
LHP John Picco, Windsor (7-3, 3.18 ERA, 59.2 IP, 68 K)
RP Alex Bruce, Markham (13 GP, 2-0, 6 SV, 2.08 ERA, 21.2 IP)
All Ontario Third Team
C Nick Mazzoroto, Milton (.298, 4 HR, 25 RBI)
1B Dan Romanycia, Tecumseh (.321, 8 HR, 25 RBI)
2B Mark Capone, Etobicoke (.333, 14 RBI, 20 BB, .436 OBP)
3B Steve Sadoff, Thornhill (.388 AVG, 98 AB)
SS Steve Anderson, Markham (.273, 33 AB, 5 HR)
OF James Rutherford, Leaside (.309, 22 RBI, 11 SB, .450 OBP)
OF Justin Czorny, St. Catharines (.371, 3 HR, 34 RBI)
OF Travis Skelton, Thornhill (.381, 20 SB, 35 R, 9 2B)
DH Barry Keith, WAA (.396, 2 HR, 17 RBI)
RHP Dustin Turner, St. Catharines (3-5, 2.75 ERA, 59 IP, 84 K)
LHP Julian Richards, Oakville
RP Mark Taplin, Erindale (13 GP, 1 SV, 1.93 ERA, 23.1 IP, 14 K)
MVP - Geoff Cullen, Erindale (.368, 11 HR, 41 RBI)
CY YOUNG - Dane Little, Windsor (10-1, 1.34 ERA, 73.2 IP, 82 K)
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR - Davey Wallace, Leaside (.433, 1 HR, 28 RBI, 30 SB)
MOST IMPROVED - Justin Czorny, St. Catharines (hit .100 points higher this year)
COACH OF THE YEAR - Greg Brandes, Leaside (Elimination Finalists; Oshawa Semi-Finalists; St. Catharines Semi-Finalists; GTBL Champions)
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