Blue Storm teammates John Parker, Ryan Rodriguez, Hugo Scully, Stefano Weber and J.J. Jimenez (left to right) are pictured on the field before a recent game. Photos courtesy of Melissa Palazzotto

By Matt DiGrigoli and Melissa Palazzotto

The Brooklyn Blue Storm 8U Lightning squad continued its magical season by going 3-0 this past week, with victories over the Bonnie Tigers (17-0 and 15-0) as well as Our Lady of Grace (12-2) to improve to 30-0 on the season.
Incredibly, the Blue Storm pitched two combined no-hitters against the Bonnies!
In the first game, pitchers Jonathan Larrea and Michael Sirota combined for the “no-no” in the 17-0 win, while Daniel Corona and Jakob Anderson provided the offense. Antonio DiGrigoli starred behind the plate, throwing out three runners. read more »

Ricardo Ducasse, J.J. Jimenez and Thomas Palazzotto (left to right) show which team is number one! Photo courtesy of Melissa Palazzotto

By Matt DiGrigoli and Melissa Palazzotto

The Blue Storm Elite 10U squad split a doubleheader against the SFX Huskies on Saturday, June 9.
The Blue Storm suffered a devastating 13-0 loss in the first game, committing eight errors and giving up six hits to spoil a solid pitching performance by J.J. Jimenez.
The Brooklyn bats were quiet and could only muster one hit against the Huskies. However, SFX pitchers only recorded one strikeout, indicating that the hitters were not overmatched, but largely unlucky. Several balls were hit extremely hard, but right at defenders, who made plays in the field when they had to.
The second game was a different story, as the Blue Storm locked up a 7-3 behind a sparkling pitching performance by hard-throwing lefty Tommy Palazzotto. The fireballer echoed Yankees great Andy Pettitte, notching 12 strikeouts while only facing 24 batters. read more »

Slugger Stefano Weber gets support from his biggest fan — his sister Sofia! Photos courtesy of Melissa Palazzotto

By Matt DiGrigoli and Melissa Palazzotto

In addition to their impressive run at the Bergen County Charity Classic Memorial Day Tournament, members of the Brooklyn Blue Storm participated in a charity relay race and home run derby.
The 8U Boys and 10U Boys competed in both events, which raised thousands of dollars for various charities and scholarship programs.
The 8U participants came in first in their division for the relay race with a time of 14.5 seconds. Running for the 8U squad were Antonio DiGrigoli, Antonio Morin, Michael Sirota and Jacob Alers. The 9- and 10-year-olds who ran in the 11U Division came in third with a time of 13.4 seconds. The runners in the 11U division were Chris Papadopoulos, Justin and Allison Moreno and Thomas Palazzotto. read more »

Members of the Brooklyn Blue Storm celebrate their success in the Memorial Day Tournament.

By Matt DiGrigoli and Melissa Palazzotto

The Brooklyn Blue Storm’s 8U Elite Lightning team stayed perfect on season, going 5-0 to win the BCCC Memorial Day tournament. This group of 8-year-olds improved to 15-0 overall this spring.
In the first game of the tournament, the Blue Storm faced a tough opponent in the PBI Eagles, an organization that is run by Professional Baseball Instructors (PBI) based out of North Jersey. The Blue Storm was led by the starting pitching of Jonathan Larrea, who went 4 2/3 innings, striking out seven, before handing the ball to Daniel Corona, who eventually picked up the win when the Blue Storm got a big hit by Jakob Anderson in the bottom of the sixth for a 1-0 victory.
The game was full of drama as it remained scoreless through five innings.
The Blue Storm won the second game by a final of 15-0 over Teaneck Southern. Anderson and Antonio DiGrigoli led the way with strong pitching performances. Offensively, Michael Sirota started the attack with a leadoff home run over the center field fence. read more »

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By Matt DiGrigoli and Melissa Palazzotto

Brooklyn Blue Storm coaches and officials pride themselves on being able to develop and teach proper mechanics to young pitchers throughout the winter, which has created great pitching depth at every age level entering the season.

Blue Storm pitchers are only allowed to throw fastballs and changeups in order to protect their young, developing arms.

Coaches believe in strength and agility programs, long-tossing, building strong legs and having a “bulldog” mentality when pitching. This all helps to instill in the players a strong work ethic and mental toughness that can help them for years to come, officials said.

The 6-7-year-old Blue Storm Blizzards are the youngest players in the organization and play in the 8-U New York Travel League. read more »