COBA 2016 preview, Andrews Division
RHP Billy Hurley (Mississauga, Ont) of the Mississauga Southwest Twins earned COBA Major pitcher of the year honors last year.
April 26th, 2016
2016 Andrews Division Season Preview
By Dan Estey
Andrews Division Preview
The Andrews Division is shaping up to be another tight battle this season as the Mississauga Southwest Twins will look to remain atop the division in 2016 after a strong regular season campaign in 2015. The Etobicoke Rangers, after winning the Andrews in 2013 and 2014, will look to reassert themselves this season after finishing second last season. The Brampton Royals (third) and the newly retooled Erindale Cardinals (fourth) will also look to slide up the standings this season. The following is an in-depth look at the four teams in the Andrews Division for 2016:
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Team Name: Mississauga SW Twins
*2015 Overall Record: 31-13
*2015 COBA Major League Record: 21-7 (1st Place – Andrews Division)
*2015 Tournament Record: 10-6
- Semi-Finalist Hap Walters Tournament
- Finalist Senior Elimination Tournament
*2015 COBA Major Playoff Record: 0-2 (Eliminated – 1st Weekend)
*2016 Key Returning Players: RHP Billy Hurley, RHP Jordan Petruska, 1B/OF Jerome Smith, SS Jamie Smith, 2B Brendan Emmett
*Key Pitchers
Billy Hurley: 5-0, 2.36 ERA, 49 2/3 Inn, 40 H 18 R, 13 ER, 10 BB, 53 K
Jordan Petruska: 7-0, 2.43 ERA, 41 1/3 Inn, 25 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 5 BB, 35 K
*Key Players
Jerome Smith: .420 BA, .568 OBP, .642 SLG%, 81 AB, 18 R, 34 H, 6 2B, 3 HR, 23 RBI, 20 BB, 12 K
Brendan Emmett: .423 BA, .492 OBP, .538 SLG%, 55 AB, 18 R, 22 H, 6 2B, 6 RBI, 7 BB, 2 K
*Award Winners:
- Anson Buck Trophy – 1st Overall in COBA Major League Regular Season (21-7)
- Jerome Smith: 2nd Place – League Batting Champion (.420)
- Mike Smith: COBA Major Executive of the Year
- Billy Hurley: Pitcher of the Year Recipient
- Jerome Smith: COBA League MVP Recipient
*League All-Stars
- John Broll – C
- Jerome Smith – 1B
- Jamie Smith – SS
- Sean Bignall – OF
- Billy Hurley RHP
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*Team Name: Etobicoke Rangers
*2015 Overall Team Record: 30-21-3
*2015 COBA Major Record: 16-11-1 (2nd Place – Andrews Division)
*2015 Tournament Record: 12-8-2
- Finalist at Vaughan Vikings Tournament
- Semi-Finalist London/Lakeside Tournament
- Quarter-Finalist Hap Walters Tournament
- Semi-Finalists Senior Elimination Tournament
*2015 COBA Major Playoff Record: 2-3 (Finished 4th Overall)
*2016 Key Returning Players: 2B Mark Capone, 3B Ryan Panas, OF Daniel Murphy, RHP Andrew Hyde, RHP Kyle Breitner, RHP Adam McBride, RP Bryan Vardzel
*Key Pitchers
Adam McBride: 5-3 (and a tie), 1 Sv, 2.70 ERA, 66 2/3 Inn, 67 H, 31 R, 20 ER, 11 BB, 51 K
Bryan Vardzel: 4-2, 7 Sv, 3.74 ERA, 45 2/3 Inn, 57 H, 22 R, 19 ER, 12 BB, 21 K
INF Mark Capone hit .357 with 22 RBIs for the Etobicoke Rangers last year.
*Key Players
Mark Capone: .357 BA, .474 OB%, .427 SLG%, 171 AB, 37 R, 61 H, 22 RBI, 32 BB, 10 K
Ryan Panas: .353 BA, .419 OB%, .505 SLG%, 190 AB, 40 R, 67 H, 44 RBI, 23 BB, 13 K
*Award Winners:
- 2nd Place: Anson Buck Trophy (16-11-1)
- Mark Capone: 3rd Place – League Batting Champ (.417)
- Daniel Murphy: Comeback Player of the Year Recipient
- Julian Johnson: 3rd Place – Rookie of the Year
- Kevin Breitner: Hall of Fame Inductee
- AJ Iafrate: Hall of Fame Inductee
*League All-Stars
-Mark Capone – 2B
-Ryan Panas – 3B
-Daniel Murphy – OF
-Bryan Vardzel – RP
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*Team Name: Brampton Royals
*2015 Overall Record: 22-21-2
*2015 COBA Major League Record: 13-14-1 (3rd Place – Andrews Division)
*2015 Tournament Record: 6-5-1
*2015 COBA Major Playoff Record: 3-2 (Finished 3rd Overall)
*2016 Key Returning Players: 1B Vic Speciale, RHP/DH Joe Ferreira, C/1B Marco DiRoma, LHP Mike Burke, RHP Steve Hough, RHP RJ Page
*Key Pitchers
Mike Burke: 6-2, 3.05 ERA, 76 2/3 Inn, 62 H, 29 R, 26 ER, 20 BB, 34 K
Joe Ferreira: 3-5, 1 Sv, 4.08 ERA, 57 1/3 Inn, 54 H, 37 R, 26 ER, 19 BB, 54 K
Victor Speciale hit .360 for the Brampton Royals with 54 hits, 10 doubles, a triple, three homers and 43 RBIs. BA, .
*Key Players
Joe Ferreira: .398 BA, .454 OBP, .686 SLG%, 118 AB, 20 R, 47 H, 7 2B, 9 HR, 38 RBI, 4 BB, 19 K
Victor Speciale: .360 BA, .444 OBP, .500 SLG%, 150 AB, 29 R, 54 H, 10 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 43 RBI, 20 BB, 7 K
*Award Winners:
- Joe Ferreira: 2nd Place – League Home Run Champion (7)
- Victor Speciale: 3rd Place – Sportsman of the Year Award
- Joe Ferreira: 3rd Place – League MVP Award
*League All-Stars
- Andrew Thomson – OF
-Mike Burke – LHP
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*Team Name: Erindale Cardinals
*2015 Overall Record: 17-27
*2015 COBA Major League Record: 10-18 (4th Place – Andrews Division)
*2015 Tournament Record: 6-7
*2015 COBA Major Playoff Record: 1-2 (Eliminated 1st Weekend)
*2016 Key Returning Players: 1B/DH Geoff Cullen, 2B Frank Coccia, OF Aaron Palmer, 1B/DH Chris Novia, RHP/OF John DeWolfe, RHP Mike Morely, RHP Brendan Fox, LHP Andrew Mullin
*Key Pitchers
Mike Morely: 4-3, 5.14 ERA, 68 1/3 Inn, 79 H, 51 R, 39 ER, 30 BB, 34 K
Ian Bala: 3-1, 2.39 ERA, 37 2/3 Inn, 41 H, 17 R, 10 ER, 13 BB, 22 K
Brendan Fox: 2-9, 4.88 ERA, 62 2/3 Inn, 62 H, 51 R, 34 ER, 21 BB, 31 K
*Key Players
Chris Novia: .297 BA, .406 OBP, .568 SLG%, 111 AB, 19 R, 33 H, 6 2B, 8 HR, 22 RBI, 20 BB, 31 K
Frank Coccia: .280 BA, .399 OBP, .314 SLG%, 118 AB, 17 R, 33 H, 5 2B, 5 RBI, 20 BB, 7 K
Geoff Cullen: .288 BA, .352 OBP, .450 SLG%, 80 AB, 9 R, 23 H, 4 2B, 3 HR, 15 RBI, 6 BB, 5 K
Chris Novia (Mississagua, Ont.), who finished third in the 2015 COBA home run race.
*Award Winners:
- Chris Novia: 3rd Place – League Home Run Champion (6)
- Dan Estey: 2nd Place – Sportsman of the Year Award
- Tim Gasparotto: Hall of Fame Inductee
*League All-Stars
- Chris Novia – DH
In 2015, Erindale said goodbye to some player mainstays over the past few years but coming into the 2016 season they continue to add youth and retool for the future. They have added 3B/OF Jake Gerovac who currently plays in the OUA loop for the University of Guelph Gryphons and OF Sharan Rasan who is currently attending Culver-Stockton College in the US. These two Ontario Terriers grads along with recent pick-ups C Chris Willins, Morely, Fox, OF Aaron Palmer, RHP Kevin Lucas and UTIL Jake Eves have started to add more youth going into the future for the Cardinals.