Little League opponents became high school teammates, and at both levels, we crafted lifetime memories.
I grew up in Hackensack, New Jersey, a suburb of New York City. I played organized baseball in Hackensack from the age of seven until I graduated from high school in 1971. I played in the Pee Wee League (ages 7-8), Little League (ages 8-10), Babe Ruth League (ages 13-15), Connie Mack, and American Legion ball (ages 16-18), and I also played high school varsity baseball.
When you are playing Little League baseball, you don’t imagine that the kids you are playing with will grow into teenagers with whom you will share more baseball experiences. But that’s precisely what happened.
Photo courtesy Dreamstime
I was a pitcher and shortstop in Little League, and by my last year, I had developed into a pretty good pitcher. My record was 7-2 for 7-Up, a team sponsored by (you guessed it) the local soda factory. As good as I was, Rich Toscano of the Optimists and Mitch Harley of the Vitamins were two left-handed players I could never seem to get out. I tried to pitch Rich outside, but he would reach his bat across the plate and plunk a hit over the shortstop’s head into left field. Mitch, on the other hand, hit for power, so I was just glad if I could keep his hits from going over the fence.
The Vitamins were the strongest team in the league. In one game, I was pitching in the last inning, holding onto a one-run lead. With two outs, Mitch singled and Kenny MacDonald, another good hitter, stroked a double to put men on second and third. We were playing on Field #2 in Foschini Park, which had a short distance between home plate and the backstop, and I knew if a pitch got by our catcher, Bruce Chase, Mitch would try to score.
Sure enough, a pitch scooted by Bruce (it could have been a wild pitch or passed ball, I don’t remember). I ran toward home as Bruce turned to retrieve the ball. I yelled for him to toss it to me. Sure enough, Mitch, barreling down on me, and just as I received the ball, he ran me over and knocked me down. But I held onto it, he was called out, and we had beaten the Vitamins!
Mitch, who later became my high school baseball teammate, was also a bruising running back for the high school football team. Knocking people over was in his athletic DNA!
In Babe Ruth League, ages 13-15, Mitch and I were again on different teams, and in addition to his hitting prowess, he also had blazing speed. On this play, I was at shortstop with Mitch on second base. Our pitcher uncorked a wild pitch, Mitch lit out for third base, and I went over to back up third base in case the catcher’s throw got past the third baseman. Sure enough, it did. As I went to retrieve the ball, I saw Mitch look back at me. Surely he wouldn’t try to run home? But there he went, and, even though I had a pretty good arm, he outran my throw home and scored!
Courtesy WAZE
Another great hitter in Little League was Artie Sarro, a catcher who played for the Elks. Artie was also my neighbor; Artie lived on Thompson Street, and I lived on Essex Street, one block over. We used to play stickball in his backyard, and when Artie got hold of one in stickball, the ball traveled high and far … really far! He was the premier power hitter in our National League in Little League.
Fast forward to our 1971 Hackensack High School baseball team, and Mitch, Rich, Artie, and I are all senior teammates. In an important early-season league game, we trailed Garfield High by a run on our home field in our last at-bat. Simon Parker got a hit, bringing Mitch to the plate. Then Mitch–as I had seen him do so often in Babe Ruth League–blasted a shot way over the right fielder’s head. It rolled to our clubhouse, by which time Mitch had easily circled the bases for a game-winning home run!
The title came down to the last league game against our rival, Wayne Valley. Wayne had a record of 14-3, while we had a record of 15-2. If we lost, we would have to settle for a tie for the crown.
Matt Sieger is congratulated by his teammates, including Rich Toscano to his immediate right, after his home run, which came directly after a homer by Art Sarro, to help Hackensack High defeat Wayne Valley to win the league title. (personal photo)
Wayne had a speedy leadoff hitter. When he reached base, we all knew he would try to steal second. I was the second baseman, and Artie was the catcher. The runner lit out for second as I ran over to cover the bag. Artie unleashed a perfect throw, right to my glove inches above the ground, and I applied the tag. Out!
In the second inning, with the score 0-0, Artie, who batted sixth, hit a monster drive over the left fielder’s head for a home run, and we led 1-0. I batted next. I jumped on a low fastball and drilled it into left-center field, where it rolled for another round-tripper. Back-to-back home runs!
We went on to win 4-1 to claim the title.
That summer, Rich, Artie, and I played for the Hackensack Connie Mack League team. We won our league title, state title, and the North Atlantic Regional tournament, qualifying us to travel to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for the Connie Mack World Series.
In our first game, we faced the host team, Farmington, New Mexico. By the luck of the draw, we were the home team, so we batted last. Trailing 7-2 going into the last inning, we rallied. I had one of the hits, and we tied the game at 7-7. Up came Rich. He reached across the plate for an outside pitch–just as he had all those years before against me in Little League–and poked it into left field to score the winning run!
Although we lost the next two games in the double-elimination tournament, it was a great experience. I was happy to share it with my Little League opponents, who had now become my teammates.
