By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Chris Finnochario, Jr. might not have had his full complement of pitches on Monday afternoon. It didn’t matter much for the Palmyra-Macedon ace.
Finnochario struck out the first 10 batters he faced, and the reigning Section V Class B1 champions picked up where they left off with a 13-0 victory over Aquinas.
“That’s what you want out of your number one,” Pal-Mac head coach Bryan Rodman said. “To come out here, compete and shove. That’s what he did.”
Finnochario needed 16 pitches to get through the first inning sending a pair of batters back to the dugout looking at his curveball.
“I feel like the last couple months I’ve been training really well, really getting my arm work,” the senior right-hander said. “Getting out there with my arm loose really helped but I got (Pal-Mac catcher) Nolan (Brooks) back there and he does a great job calling a game. I couldn’t do it without him.”
He needed 13 pitches to get through the second inning before using 16 more in the third. It wasn’t until the fourth when Finocchario allowed a ball in play. That was a weak a pop-up that barely cleared the infield.
Chris Finocchario, Jr. pulls the string to retire the side in the first. Right-hander fanned the side in order. @palmacsports 5 Aquinas 0 pic.twitter.com/RbvlUeno5M
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) April 4, 2022
“I used my changeup in live at-bats this off-season,” he said. “The changeup had been my pitch, but today I wasn’t feeling it. My curveball, fastball was working, so I stuck with that. It worked.”
At the plate, Finocchario highlighted a five-run first with a bases-clearing triple.
Brooks worked a base on balls to lead the game. Paul Goodness followed with a single through the left side of the infield before Alex Wootton loaded the sacks with the second walk of the inning.
Finocchario attacked the first pitch he saw.
“I watched the previous at-bats,” he explained. “He (Aquinas starter) was missing up and outside. I saw the first out and just took it the other way like I’ve been working in the off-season. It paid off.”
First-pitch swinging, Chris Finocchario, Jr. clears the bases with an oppo 3-bagger. Top first, no outs: @palmacsports 3 @AQIrishBaseball yet to bat. pic.twitter.com/B8WLqQ38xd
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) April 4, 2022
Ian Goodness singled and later scored the fifth run of the inning.
Pal-Mac scored two more runs in the second.
Brooks, Paul Goodness, Wootton and Finocchario each connected on two-out, run-scoring hits in a five-run third.
Full count: Noah Brooks brings home 2 with a two-out single. Paul Goodness follows with an RBI triple. @palmacsports 10-0, top 3rd. pic.twitter.com/irnigISste
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) April 4, 2022
“For them to come out for pretty much the first time on a field with live pitching, I didn’t know what to expect but the bats definitely showed up,” Rodman said. “Hopefully, they can continue throughout the season.”
Lucas Leone connected for the lone Aquinas hit, a two-out single through the box in the fourth. Finocchario retired the next batter on a comebacker.
“He’s been working hard since he was 12,” Rodman said of his starter. “He locates. He goes out there and competes, gives it his all every time. That’s what you want.”
Tyler Wolcott worked a scoreless fifth to end the game. The right-hander retired three of the four batters he faced.
Brooks reached base three times with a pair of singles, two RBI and two runs scored. Paul Goodness went 2-for-3 with three runs scored and an RBI. Wootton was 2-for-2 with a walk, three runs scored and two RBI. Finocchario ended with five RBI.
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