Mavericks have won four straight state championships in Florida and have eight starters returning, including three starting pitchers.
Archbishop McCarthy is primed to make a run at a fifth-straight state championship with eight returning starters this season.
Photo by Stuart Browning
When a team achieves something that's never been done in the history of Florida baseball, and then is favored to add to that already impressive feat, it's hard not to rank that team No. 1 in the country.
Such is the case for the Archbishop McCarthy Mavericks, who ended the 2013 with their fourth straight state championship - something that had not happened in 96 years of Florida high school baseball history, according to Mavericks coach Rich Bielski.
A fifth-straight state title, however, is a distinct possibility considering that Bielski has eight returning starters, including three pitchers who could be taken in the Major League Baseball Draft in June.
Therefore, the Mavericks begin the season ranked No. 1 in the MaxPreps 2014 Xcellent 25 Preseason National Baseball Rankings.
See the Top 10 teams landing page here
"All starting pitchers and our closer are returning," said Bielski when describing his 2014 squad. "Our starting infield and two outfielders return and they all play great defense."
Catcher Ryan Sinzenich
Photo by Stuart Browning
The strength of the Maverick team is undoubtedly its pitching staff, which includes Brian Gonzalez, Andres Nunez and Aaron Soto. All three earned All-County honors by the Miami Herald last year, all three have committed to a Division I college and all three could be drafted. Gonzalez leads the way with an 11-0 mark from last year while Nunez was 7-2 and Soto was 4-0. All three had ERAs of less than 2.00.
Archbishop McCarthy will need a strong performance from its pitching staff all season long as it drops down to a very competitive Class 5A this season. This means that the Mavericks will face American Heritage, a 5A powerhouse, at least twice this season and will likely have to get past the likes of the Patriots or talented teams from Mosley and Jesuit (Tampa).
Gonzalez plays at first base when not pitching while Soto plays in the outfield. Both showed power at the plate last season, hitting four home runs apiece. Other infielders include Eddie Silva at shortstop, Blade Bielski at second base and Alex Rodriguez at third base.
Joining Soto in the outfield is Michael Giggliotti while newcomer Dylan Bautista will likely fill the open spot.
Like the pitching trio, Giggliotti, Silva and catcher Ryan Sinzenich have all committed to Division I schools. Gonzalez has committed to Miami while Nunez and Silva are headed to Florida International. Soto has committed to Tennessee while Giggliotti will play for Lipscomb and Sinzenich will go to Florida Tech.
The Mavericks are off to a strong start this season, posting four straight shutouts to open the year before losing to Coral Gables 8-3 last week.
Head coach Rich Bielski (kneeling) has compiled a 353-108-5 record in his 15 years of coaching, which includes the past five seasons at Archbishop McCarthy.
Photo by Stuart Browning
Florida Class 5A
Enrollment: 1,359
2013 finish: 27-5, Florida Class 6A state champion
Head coach: Rich Bielski
Career record: 353-108-5
Years at school: Sixth year at school (16 years coaching)
Notable MLB players:Alex Avila (2006-2013)
Nick Castellanos (2010-2013)
Danny Farquhar (2006-2013)
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Shortstop Eddie Silva
Photo by Stuart Browning
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Top losses:
Pitcher Andres Nunez
Photo by Stuart Browning
Michael Hernandez, C
Johnathan Quintana, 3B
Key returners:Brian Gonzalez, LHP/1B, 11-0, 1.04 ERA, Senior, committed to Miami
Andres Nunez, RHP, Senior, 7-2, 1.64 ERA, committed to Florida International
Aaron Soto, LHP/OF, Senior, 4-0, 1.49 ERA committed to University of Tennessee
Eddie Silva, SS, Senior, committed to Florida International
Michael Gigliotti, CF, Senior, committed to Lipscomb
Ryan Sinzenich, C, Senior, committed to Florida Tech
Blade Bielski, 2B, Senior
Alex Rodriguez, 3B, Senior
Key newcomers:Dylan Bautista, OF, Junior
Alex Toral, 1B/LHP, Freshman
Pitcher Aaron Soto
Photo by Stuart Browning
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Second baseman Blake Bielski
Photo by Stuart Browning
: There will be plenty of tough games this year for the Mavericks, who move down to Class 5A this season. Chief among those will be American Heritage, which captured the state championship two seasons ago. Like Archbishop McCarthy, American Heritage is a perennial state championship contender and has won several mythical national championships over the past 10 years. The teams play on March 7 and March 21.
Local outlook: Broward County is one of the toughest areas in the country to play. Flanagan and Douglas join American Heritage and Archbishop McCarthy to give the county some of the top baseball talent in the country.
Overall outlook: If Archbishop McCarthy can complete a fifth-straight state championship season, in a division that is arguably one of the toughest playoff brackets in the nation, the Mavericks could claim the national No. 1 ranking. The Mavericks already have one loss on the season, however, so minimizing losses the rest of the way will be key.
Coach quote: "We are experienced. We have an extremely offensive lineup with players who have already experienced and captured at least two state championships."
- Rich Bielski
