If Ben Crockett is getting the ball, then the 62-year-old Lyle will flat out tell you the Masconomet and Harvard product from Topsfield will be the least of his worries.
The right-handed power pitcher "is as good as any pitcher in the Atlantic League," Lyle said.
Crockett's 4-4 record is an indication that baseball statistics don't always tell the truth.
"Ben has been a model of consistency. He's been throwing real well, working both sides of the plate. He should have more wins than he does and fewer losses," Lyle asserted. "We haven't scored many runs. We were hitting around .208 in his first two or three starts. That's been a problem."
The true yardstick of any pitcher is his ERA. The 25-year-old Crockett can take a bow for a 2.32 earned run average. It not only leads the Patriot' staff, but is No. 3 overall in the whole league.
"Ben is our No. 1," Lyle said. "I thought Ben would be the first guy to go up (sign with an MLB club). Instead, Jason Shiells (of the 2003 Red Sox) was. No, it wasn't because Shields has a major league background (20 games). He throws a little harder than Crockett. He hadn't pitched in two years but made big strides. Shiells had the edge in velocity."
Crockett has been the workhorse of the staff, logging 722/3 innings, has yielded only 19 earned runs, leads the Patriots in wins, total innings, is third in strikeouts and stands .254 in opponents' batting average.
The one-time Colorado Rockies' third round daft choice has authored the club's only complete game and shutout. He also has a pretty decent strikeout-walk ratio, 42-16.
Striking out people was not an issue when Crockett toiled in the Rockies' system. After getting released late in spring training, Crockett felt the Atlantic League was the best place to prove himself worthy of hooking on with another affiliated team. So far, it appears he's inching closer all the time.
Shiells, however, was throwing 91-92 on the radar gun and Crockett was around 88 when the Atlanta Braves tapped Shiells on the shoulder and assigned him to Triple A Richmond.
Crockett figures to be a cinch for the upcoming Atlantic League All-Star Game slated for Bridgeport, Conn.
"I would hope he'd be an all-star. The only thing is he doesn't have a better record. He's had some tough losses," Lyle, who lived in Danvers while a Red Sox reliever en route to more stardom with the Yankees, said. "I really expected him to be gone by now. What often happens is that a club will wait until the all-star break to sign someone. If a prospect is not signed by then, he's liable to finish up in the league, then sign and go to Winter Ball.
"My personal thought on Ben is that he'll be signed and won't have to wait for the offseason," Lyle said. "I definitely feel he'll sign. I think he just has to get his velocity up. You know how the big leagues are now. He has to hit 90-91 (for consideration). Scouts have talked to me about him. They ask what he tops out at, and I tell 'em 88. They ask if he's hit 90-91, and I tell 'em not yet.
"But Ben does have a great curve ball and does throw hard," Lyle said. "He also has great location. He goes deep into a game. He keeps us in the game all the time. We've never been out of it in any game that he's pitched. I really like this kid. He's already been successful here. I also like his makeup. His character. He sure is good in the clubhouse. He adds a lot. That's another reason I OK'd him for our team. He has a great reputation. You want people like that around."
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You had to believe the cream would surface sooner or later in the case of Matt Antonelli. The San Diego Padres' No. 1 draft pick struggled when he joined the Eugene (Ore.) Emeralds of the all-rookie Northwest League. But if you can go from .182 in a week to .326 in a single week, then you can land up as the Northwest's Player of the Week. That announcement came across yesterday.
The 21-year-old pitcher-third baseman from West Peabody, St. John's Prep and Wake Forest hit .476 for the week, scored eight runs, knocked in three runs, walked three times, stole a base and had a .524 slugging average.
In midweek Antonelli reached on all five of his plate appearances and scored four times in a game. He followed that up with a three hit, three RBI performance.
Reports from Eugene hinted that Antonelli had tweaked his shoulder when he took batting practices with the Padres in San Diego, and suffered at the plate until recently. Overall, he's 6 for 6 in steal attempts, has struck out only four times, co-sharing that distinction, and leads the Emeralds in walks with 13. He's also doing the job at third base. Only one error.
No doubt Antonelli got a boost over the holiday weekend when his parents, Jack and Chris, visited.
Elsewhere on the minor league trail, Prep and BC alum Jeff Mackor is having a solid season at the plate for the Salem Avalanche of the Carolina League. The veteran catcher is batting .278 with 20 RBI in 33 games. He's 4-1-2 in extra base hits, has made only one error and looms as the third leading batter. He also has eight walks. He's always been more than adequate defensively, which is why he was called to catch Roger Clemens in Lexington, KY.
Salem's Ryan Leahy, a shortstop for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes of the California League, has hit .240 in 37 games with seven doubles and 21 RBI. He's also a Prep-BC guy who once said, "I'd sign for a bag of chips."
Steve Lomasney of Peabody has appeared in just three games (10 at bats) for the Rochester Red Wings of the International League. His job is grooming a catching prospect. Lomasney will make a great coach, and that's his ambition when he retires as an active coach.
Mark Shorey, another Peabodyite, an outfielder for the all-rookie Appalachian League's Johnson City Cardinals, is holding at .250, 6 for 24, in eight games. He has hit his first pro homer and has four RBIs.
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Swampscott football coach Steve Dembowski can relax on a Martha's Vineyard vacation despite not having a contract to lead the Big Blue in the fall.
The old administration never required Dembowski to sign a contract. The arrival of Matt Malone as the school superintendent introduced Dembowski to a contract situation.
"I haven't received one. It's probably because Martha Kelleher just recently was named the athletic director," the coach said.
Kelleher was one of three finalists. One was an outsider and third was Dave Legere, an industrial arts teacher in Swampscott who has coached Powder Puff football for two decades. Kelleher was said to be a central figure in dealing baseball coach emeritus Frank DeFelice the ace of spades.
Bill Kipouras is a staff writer at the Salem News. He can reached at 978-338-2615 or by e-mail: bkipouras@ecnnews.com.
