Stable of arms gave Dover Post 8 unique advantage in American Legion Senior Tournament

NASHUA – There were pitchers who recorded more wins and threw more innings, but the Dover Post 8 baseball team had the deepest rotation and that’s what helped it win its first American Legion state title in 14 years.

A total of eight pitchers took the mound for Dover, and only three of them threw more than once. No pitcher worked more than nine innings, and that all came in Aaron Denis’ complete-game win in the championship game.

To think that Dover hadn’t needed Denis to pitch before that point, and that Post 8 could put him out there – and save him – for the biggest game of the tournament is remarkable and speaks to how deep the team’s pitching really was.

“We had to get here first, and I’m not the first guy who should be going,” Denis said after the championship game. “Our lefties are our more dominant pitchers. Our thought going in was to throw a fresh arm rather than a four-day rested arm or a three-day rested arm, and someone that no one has seen, too.”

The numbers are impressive – 47 innings, 21 walks, 29 strikeouts, 35 hits and 13 runs. That works out to a WHIP of 1.19 and and ERA of 2.11. It all meant that Dover could get away with scoring fewer runs (19) than Derry (30) and Sweeney (31), and even Hudson (20 ) and Rochester (21) and still win the title.

In its four wins, Dover got a quality start, getting at least six innings, and outside of Robby Sheldon’s six innings in the opener against Concord, every Post 8 win saw the starter go into the eighth inning.

Dover’s starters weren’t the only ones stepping up in the tournament, as the other final four teams had at least one guy take the ball and carry the team on his back.

For Hudson Post 48, that guys was Ryan Glendye, who made two starts, both against Sweeney Post 2. Glendye pitched a combined 15 innings against Post 2 and gave up 12 hits, two walks (one intentional) and struck out five.

But perhaps the most impressive stat was the zero runs he allowed. That means Sweeney scored its 31 runs in 30 innings against pitchers other than Glendye.

“Ryan (Glendye) gave us as much as he could,” Hudson coach Scott Szuksta said after Post 48 lost to Sweeney on Sunday. They scored 26 runs against other pitchers in 19 innings and he held them to nothing in 15. That shows how incredible he is.”

Sweeney got a stellar performance from Ryan Baldwin in that win over Hudson, as he went eight innings, but it was Nolan Flynn who led the way on the mound for Post 2.

In three appearances, including an inning of relief to get the save against Hudson, Flynn threw 15 2/3 innings and allowed six runs on 13 hits with eight strikeouts and four walks.

Derry’s Matt Tritto was a workhorse, making three appearances – two in relief – and getting a win in each one to post a 3-0 record in the tournament. The righty threw 13 1/3 innings, including eight innings against Sweeney on the final day of the tournament.

But it was Tritto’s teammate, Chace Spears, who led the Post 9 pitching staff. In two starts, Spears went into the ninth inning for a total of 17 1/3 innings, and he allowed just one unearned run on 12 hits, and two walks with eight strikeouts.

Top six pitchers

• Aaron Denis, Dover: 1-0, 1.00 ERA, 0.78 WHIP, 3 strikeouts.
• Chace Spears, Derry: 1-1, 0.00 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 8 strikeouts.
• Ryan Glendye, Hudson: 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 5 strikeouts.
• Casey Aubin, Dover: 1-0, save, 0.00 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 9 strikeouts.
• Nolan Flynn, Sweeney: 0-2, save, 3.46 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 8 strikeouts.
• Anthony Lupi, Dover: 0-0, 1.13 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3 strikeouts.