Philip Pfeifer, Nicky Delmonico hope to lead Farragut to record fourth straight Tennessee baseball title

Most high school student-athletes graduate having never won a state championship. Imagine winning four … and all in the same sport.

Farragut (Knoxville, Tenn.) seniors Philip Pfeifer and Nicky Delmonico hope to do just that. Both players have been integral in the school's three consecutive state baseball titles, and their statistics from last season alone are a career's worth.

Pfeifer finished his junior year at 16-0 with a 1.23 ERA in 96.1 innings pitched. The lefty struck out 165 and walked just 26 on the season, saving one of his best performances for last when he struck out 14 while pitching a one-hitter in the state title game.

As impressive as Pfeifer was on the mound last season, so was Delmonico at the plate. The left-handed hitting shortstop batted .485 with 75 RBIs and 18 homers, including a walk-off round-tripper to win the championship game for the Admirals.



"Phil and Nicky are the two most highly decorated players to ever play here, and we've had some good ones," said last year's Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association Coach of the Year Matt Buckner. "They've taken what was already an excellent program to an entirely different level."

The Knoxville school has become a national power. The Admirals have won six of the last eight AAA state championships and rank second in state history with seven overall state titles (Christian Brothers is first with 10). This season Farragut, which was ranked No. 19 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Baseball Rankings before dropping out last week, boasts an impressive 24-5 record.

Pfeifer and Delmonico are the backbone of a young squad playing without six starters from last year's championship team. And while many expected this to be a rare rebuilding year for Farragut, the two seniors have carried the team on their shoulders to put the Admirals in contention for another state title.

"We've been sporadic, but I've seen flashes of us being good," Buckner said of his team's chances. "We have to get healthy, and if we do, we've got the guys to make a run at it."

The coach's primary concern is the health of one particular left shoulder – Pfeifer's. Because of a second bout with tendinitis, Buckner said his ace is probably not going to play again until the playoffs.

"This is the first time I've ever had to miss games because of injury," Pfeifer said. "It's aggravating and hard not to just go out and play with it because you want to be there for the team."



Pfeifer's setback comes after he broke the Tennessee high school state record for wins by a pitcher. His one-hit, 2-0 victory against Columbia on March 25 earned him his 43rd career win, surpassing Brad Howard's mark of 42, set from 1992-96 while at Oakdale.

"It was a huge honor to break the record, but the most important game to me after any win is the next one," said Pfeifer, who is 3-1 with a 0.60 ERA this season and has lost just four games his entire career. "The biggest thing for me is to have my teammates' respect that they know I'm going to give it my all for a win. And I know without them, I wouldn't have the record."

Continue reading{PAGEBREAK}Pfeifer's new battery-mate, Delmonico, has baseball in his genes. His father Rod is the former University of Tennessee baseball coach and both brothers play at a higher level – Joey at the University of Georgia and Tony in the Dodgers' minor league system. Like his older siblings, Delmonico is now a catcher. But unlike his brothers, who didn't begin catching until after high school, Delmonico decided to make the position change for his senior year.

"Growing up I played all over the diamond," said the 6-foot-3, 215-pounder, who also has played third base and center field this season. "It's neat to play different positions and I take each seriously. You never know where they might need you to play."

Both Pfeifer and Delmonico spent the last three summers playing on Team USA and many scouts say they will be drafted this spring. However, both players say they plan to go to college regardless of the outcome of the draft.

Delmonico will join his brother and former Farragut teammate Curt Powell at the University of Georgia, where he says he'll probably play in the infield next year.



"One of the most fun times I had in my life was playing with my brother Joey and Curt my freshman year," said Delmonico, who is batting .400 with five home runs and 25 RBIs. "Ever since I was little I wanted to play for the national championship in Omaha. It's a blessing for me to have that chance at Georgia."

Pfeifer will take his talents to Vanderbilt where he hopes to jump right into the starting rotation.

"I don't throw it 98 mph, but I can strike a lot of people out and go deep into games, and the coaches liked that about me," he said. "My mother probably summed up best why I chose Vanderbilt. She said, ‘A lot of colleges will teach you to become the baseball player you want to be. The coaches at Vanderbilt will teach you to be the man you want to be.'"

Before Pfeifer and Delmonico head off to play at the next level they still have one goal left, and both agree neither has had trouble staying focused on trying to win the school's fourth consecutive state championship.

"The coaches have made it fun, which makes it easy to stay motivated," Delmonico said. "When you have a lot of guys who just love the game of baseball in your life it makes it a lot of fun to come to the field every day."

Pfeifer said his motivation dates back to his childhood: "When I was little I played for a team that won just one game. Ever since then I've really hated losing."



Buckner says the team doesn't talk about winning the state title, but instead they take a "pitch-by-pitch, out-by-out approach" before each game. But when asked, he did admit that it would be exciting if Farragut does become the first team in Tennessee to win four straight state baseball titles.

"It would put us in elite company," he said. "It would be pretty special."

Jon Buzby is the sports columnist for the Newark Post, a freelance writer, and on the broadcast team for the 1290AM The Ticket High School Football and Basketball Games of the Week. You can reach him at jonbuzby@hotmail.com.