Sports Snippets: July 20, 2023

Oneonta Native Selected in Last Week’s MLB Draft

ONEONTA—Oneonta High School graduate and former Green Wave player Teddy McGraw was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the third round of the MLB draft on Monday, July 10. The 92nd draft pick overall, he is the eighth OHS alumnus to be selected in the draft, and the first since 2008.

McGraw recently completed his junior year at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was one of nine Demon Deacons selected in the draft. In the 2022 season, McGraw posted the team’s lowest opponent batting average of .203 in 15 appearances. He was one of the best Saturday starters in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and capped his performance with 7.1 shutout innings on the road against formidable rival NC State in the season finale. He ended his short college career with a record of 5-2, 90 strikeouts in 89.2 innings and a 4.22 ERA. Away from Wake Forest, McGraw won the 2021 Cape Cod League title.

McGraw missed the entire 2023 season due to an elbow injury requiring Tommy John surgery just before the first game. It was his second elbow reconstruction, and required an internal brace; he missed his senior season of high school after his first time under the knife. McGraw was ranked 84th in the draft prospects this year, with MLB personnel saying he might have been a first-round pick if he had been healthy. As it was, McGraw earned a strong 55 grade on each of his three pitches, boasting a 95 mph sinking fastball, a mid-80s slider with lots of movement and an upper-80s changeup.

“When healthy, he’s got some of the best stuff in the draft, that ranks with probably anything in the top 10 to 15 picks in this country,” said Mariners Director of Amateur Scouting Scott Hunter. “So, with our development program and all the guys that we’ve put through our pitching program, we believe we can get him healthy, get him back on the mound and really have a steal of the draft.”

According to a release from the Oneonta Green Wave, of the American Legion District 6 U19 baseball league, McGraw was one of the most talented players in program history. He holds the fourth-lowest season ERA in District 6 history. On the offensive side, he has the ninth-highest single-season stolen base count and the seventh-highest number of runs in a season.

“The entire Green Wave family past, present and future wish Teddy congratulations on his tremendous accomplishment and look forward to following Seattle Mariners baseball for many years,” the release concluded.

Hillcrest Forfeits to Oneonta Green Wave

ONEONTA—The Oneonta Green Wave was awarded a 2-0 forfeit win over Hillcrest for a game that was scheduled to be played on Thursday, July 6. Oneonta moved to 6-8-1 for the season and 5-2-1 in District 6 league play before opening their 24th annual Green Wave Classic in Oneonta on July 7 through 9.

Retrievers Fall to Johnson City in Six Innings

JOHNSON CITY—The Otego Retrievers fell 9-6 to Johnson City in a game that was called due to darkness after six innings on Thursday, July 6. JJ Benjamin scored twice and batted in a run. He also pitched four innings and struck out two batters. Braeden Johnson and Xander Johnson each hit a double, and Shea Barber hit a triple. Xander Johnson, Benjamin, Garrett Backus and Julian Pruskowski each stole a base.

Oneonta Green Wave Goes 2-1 in 24th Classic

ONEONTA—The Oneonta Green Wave of the American Legion District 6 baseball league hosted the 24th annual Green Wave Classic on Friday, July 7 and Saturday, July 8. Oneonta opened on Friday night with a 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Knights in a game that was called after five innings due to thunderstorms. Asa Dugan pitched the entire game, allowing only two hits and two walks. He struck out one batter. The Green Wave made no headway against a strong left-handed Ottawa pitcher until the bottom of the fourth inning, when Adam Champlin and Britten Zeh led off with back-to-back singles. Grayson Brockington and Cam Sitts followed with RBI singles to take the lead. Oneonta took the field against the Brockville (Ontario) Bunnies at 9 a.m. on Saturday. The Green Wave rallied from an early 7-5 deficit and scored five times in the top of the sixth inning on their way to a 10-7 victory. Brady Carr hit a sacrifice fly, followed by RBI hits from Brockington and Champlin. Owen Burnsworth capped off the scoring for the morning with an RBI single. Champlin led the offense with two hits, two RBI and three runs, and pitched a scoreless sixth inning in relief. The Schenectady County Indians shut out the Green Wave 6-0 in their final game of the tournament on Saturday night. Oneonta finished the weekend 2-1, as all tournament play on Sunday was canceled due to weather. The Green Wave also picked up a 2-0 forfeit win from earlier in the season, as the Vestal team was disqualified because of improper paperwork. Oneonta moved to 9-9-1 for the season and 6-2-1 in league play.

Outlaws Fall on the Road to Saugerties Stallions

SAUGERTIES—The Oneonta Outlaws dropped a road league game against the Saugerties Stallions 7-5 on Friday, July 7. Oneonta led 5-2 going into the bottom of the fifth inning, but the Stallions scored four times on two doubles, two singles, and several wild pitches and passed balls. Christopher Baillargeon, Jarod Wade, Jack Hopko and Anthony Barone each made two hits for the Outlaws. Logan Waldschmidt hit a double. Feliz Larose and Christopher Ubner, of Fly Creek, each stole a base. Anthony Aleman was saddled with the loss after giving up four runs in one third of an inning.

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