By PAUL GOTHAM
A pair of Major League Baseball draft picks and a state championship team will be among the inductees as Section V Baseball honors its 2026 Hall of Fame class this Sunday (June 21st) at ESL Ballpark.
Christopher Bostick (Aquinas), Dusty Odenbach (McQuaid), Dudley “Skip” Bailey (Greece Olympia), Justin D’Amato (Canandaigua), Tim Fennell (Fairport), Johnny Ricotta (Greece Athena), Mike Zaccardo (Irondequoit) and the 2017 Livonia Bulldogs will be inducted during a ceremony prior to the Rochester Red Wings’ game against Toledo.
Then a sophomore, Bostick helped the 2009 Li’l Irish team to the NYS Class A title. Two years later, the Oakland Athletics selected him in the MLB draft. Bostick went on to play nine years of affiliated ball including parts of two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Miami Marlins.
A 2012 New York-Penn League All-Star pick with the Vermont Lake Monsters and an organizational All-Star for the A’s in the 2013 and Pirates in 2017, Bostick appeared in two International League All-Star games as a member of the Indianapolis Indians. He was also named to the Section V Baseball All-Decade Team.
Odenbach, a two-time City-Catholic Player of the Year, logged a 22-5 record over four years with the Jesuit Knights. He finished with a career ERA of 0.95 and 270 strikeouts hurling one perfect game and two no-hitters.
A two-time All-State selection, Odenbach went on to play at UConn where he fanned 118 batters over 133 innings and had an ERA of 4.92. The Kansas City Royals selected him in the 8th round of the 2009 draft. Odenbach pitched for three years in the Royals’ system finishing with 15 wins and a career ERA of 3.98 over 82 appearances on the mound.
Bailey was a First Team All-County selection for Greece Olympia in 1974 and continued his career at Monroe Community College where he was part of the Tribunes’ first World Series squad in 1976. He went on to the University of Colorado where he earned All-Big Eight Conference and Big Eight Academic All-Conference honors.
Bailey returned to MCC and served as an assistant under Hall-of-Fame coach Dave Chamberlain before taking the reins in 1996. Bailey’s teams won six Region III championships and advanced to the NJCAA Division II World Series in 2007. Bailey is also a member of the MCC Sports Hall of Fame and the NJCAA Baseball Hall of Fame.
A four-year starter at Athena, Ricotta was a three-time First Team All-County selection and a Player of the Year in 2015 when he was Second Team All State. He went on to play at MCC where he set program records for home runs in a season (15), extra-base hits (36), career home runs (20), career RBI (126), career total bases (217) and was a First Team All-American selection in 2017.
Ricotta continued his career at Ball State University. He earned Second Team All-MAC and First Team All-Defense in 2019 when hit .318 with 10 home runs and 48 RBI without committing any errors in conference play. Ricotta was named to the All-Decade Teams for Section V Baseball and Monroe Community College Baseball.
Zaccardo was a three-year starter at Irondequoit and part of the 2000 Class A championship team. He was a Monroe County Player of the Year and garnered Second Team All State in 2003 when he set the Section V single-season home run record with 11.
Zaccardo continued his career at MCC where he earned All-Region III honors in 2004 before moving on to SUNY Cortland. In 2007, he was named the SUNYAC Player of the Year, First Team All-Region, Third Team ABCA All-American and earned the National Rawlings Gold Glove award. He signed a free agent deal with the Philadelphia Phillies and played with Williamsport of the New York-Penn League.
A three-year starter at Canandaigua, D’Amato set the single-season program mark with a .596 batting average along with career marks in doubles (28) and ERA (1.52). He was a Fourth Team All-State selection in 2010 when he was also named Daily Messenger Player of the Year and First Team All-Greater Rochester.
D’Amato went on to St. John Fisher (now University) where he was four-time Rawlings All-American, All-Empire 8 and All-Region choice. He logged a 36-5 record on the mound and twice was named the Empire 8 Pitcher of the Year. He is the program’s all-time leader in wins, ERA, innings, strikeouts and starts. D’Amato was named to the D3Baseball All-Decade team and he is a 2022 St. John Fisher Hall of Fame inductee.
Fennell struck out 16 over nine innings in the 1976 Class AAA championship game to lead Fairport to its first sectional title in program history. He was a three-year starter with the Red Raiders and a two-time All-County selection compiling a 17-5 career record. He was the Monroe County American Legion Most Valuable Player in 1977.
Fennell continued his career at LeMoyne College where he registered a career 17-4 mark on the mound. He is among the program’s top-ten all-time in single season ERA (1.69) and career ERA (2.70).
Livonia posted a record of 23-2 in taking the 2017 NYS Class B title. With a team batting average of .345 and ERA of 1.62, the Bulldogs outscored opponents, 215-55. Scott Gilman’s aquad finished with 249 hits on the season including 31 doubles. The pitching staff struck out 250 batters over 173 innings while issuing 49 walks and holding opposing hitters to a .155 batting average. Reid VanScoter, a fifth-round selection of the Seattle Mariners, was the ace of the Livonia staff. VanScoter currently pitches with the Arkansas Travelers of the Double-A Texas League.
Sunday’s Hall of Fame ceremony is scheduled for an 11:00 a.m. start in the Nest at ESL Ballpark. Inductees will also be introduced on the field prior to the start of Sunday’s game. A 1 p.m. first pitch is slated.
Tickets for the event are $60 and include admission to the game, ceremony and buffet. Contact Billy Bowe at coachbowe@rochester.rr.com for more information.
Complete Section V Baseball Hall of Fame can be viewed here.
To nominate someone for the Section V Baseball Hall of Fame click here.
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