�Tribute to the�1980 Summer Rockets Team
September 18, 2021
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1981’s success began with a phenomenal Summer Rockets season
Hard-throwing lefty,
EJ Stanton, struck out 19 in 13.2 innings with a 0.51 ERA in Regular Season.
Then 1-0 with 2 Saves and 0.00 ERA in playoffs
4 wins in a row! John Franzosa was a terrific player who batted .450, but not an RMHS guy!
Bill- take a photo of that rare headline!
Bob MacKay and Kevin Grundy combined for a 2-0 shutout
Photos of �Bill Tompkins and� Larry Berg �each hitting triples. Caption says Bill is “hitting a cool .533”. Bill went on to lead the team in triples (3) while batting .353 and playing a great 1st base
Bob Macaluso on the mound with furry friend. Caption says Wakefield forfeited because they only had 8 players. They should have recruited the dog.
Maco was a great player - .349 with 14 Runs and 15 Hits. Also 3-0, 0.54 ERA
Joe Picano slashing a base hit vs. Winchester
Joe led the team in Hits, RBI, On Base Average, and Batting Average (.457)
Winchester lost 9-0, made 7 errors, had just 2 hits, and struck out 13 times. Yet their coach said, “They are really not that much better than us.”
EJ and Lennie DeAngelo were two of eight pitchers who recorded wins.
.
Mike Mosc had a system where he would use two pitchers per game; 4 inn/3 inn. Worked out well!
Pete Michelini had a great summer, leading the team in Runs, Walks, RBI, Stolen Bases.��The Winchester coach also said, after the 9-0 loss, “They all know it will be different Monday night [the two teams play]”�He was right: 10-2 this time!
Kevin Grundy pitched 4 innings of 2-hit ball and Bob MacKay pitched 3 scoreless. Tompkins (triple, single) and Picano (double) led the offense vs archrival Burlington.��Kevin went 3-0 with 2 Saves and 1.11 ERA on the season
Macaluso, Michelini, Picano each had two hits. DeAngelo and MacKay scored 2 each.� EJ and Lennie combined �for a 3-hitter
Bob MacKay was spectacular!
3-0 with 2 Saves and 0.41 ERA
He batted .382 in the Regular Season and .385 in the playoffs
11 in a row!�Greg Johnson’s first appearance. �Greg had a 1-0 record and stellar 0.78 ERA
Reading (now 13-0) topped Chelmsford (who was 11-0) by a 6-2 score. Dave Powers had a 2-run triple and. Note that this team could play defense, too!
This was the end of the Michelini to Berg to Franzosa to Powers play at the plate vs. Chelmsford
DeAngelo (W) and MacKay lead win over Lowell.�Jon Drew, DeAngelo, Macaluso, Berg, and Michelini led the offense.��This was the team’s 5th win in a 5-day stretch!
Reading pounds Everett, 16-5, thanks to an 11-run 3rd inning.��
Impressive box score; many guys had big offensive games.
Jon Drew was impressive:�3-0 on the mound and also batted .333 as an outfielder.��Dave Powers batted a big .417 and was tough as nails behind the plate.
3-0 win vs. Everett completes a perfect 16-0 regular season
Nice article about Mike Mosc; �20-yr old coach who deserves great credit for team’s success
EJ and Lennie combine for a 6-0 shutout over Wilmington in playoff opener.�Bill Tompkins returns from broken wrist with 2 hits and a run
Nice accolades for
Bill, Dave, Joe
Maco and Drew pitched team into finals, 9-1 over Wilmington. �Maco and Larry Berg led the offense as each tripled.
On
On to the finals with a perfect 18-0 record!
Lennie –
3-0 on the mound; also batted .310 including playoffs
Team drops finals opener to Chelmsford;
now need to beat Chelmsford two times in a row
Headline says it all!
Lennie and EJ throw a clutch 2-hit shutout. Dave Powers’ single drives in both runs.��Mike Mosc commends the intensity and enthusiasm of young bench players.
Reporter Fred Conover makes nice mention of Paul Ruff’s unselfish team-first attitude
Summer Rockets win Championship, completing brilliant� 20-1 season.��MacKay gets win in relief with EJ Stanton earning a 2-batter save.��MacKay and DeAngelo combined for 3 RBI
Larry’s greatest was always evident – at bat, on the bases, in the field.
He hit .375 with 18 Runs, 18 Hits, 12 RBI, 6/6 Stolen Bases in 15 Games
���Bobby Angelo�Larry Berg�Greg Bernard�JP Cormier�Lennie DeAngelo�Jon Drew�John Franzosa�Kevin Grundy�Joe Hagan�Greg Johnson�John LaLiberte�Bob Macaluso�Bob MacKay��
Sean McKinley
Pete Michelini�Joe Picano�Dave Powers�Tom Powers�Paul Ruff�Ted Shediac�Mike Spurr�EJ Stanton�Bill Tompkins�Westwater�Coach Mike Moscariello
Here is entire Roster:
Article about the success of 1980 Reading Baseball Teams: �RMHS,� Summer Rockets, Legion
This shows a 17-1 overall regular season record. But team was 16-0 in league play;
Two non-league games vs. Wilmington did not count