Salem CC baseball extends winning streak to 12, grateful Stracci returns to lineup after health scare
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
MEDIA, Pa. – The game was over. The players had gone through the handshake line and were making their way back to the collect their gear.
As the Salem Community College baseball players retreated towards the dugout one player turned back to the field, made his way back to his shortstop position, picked up a heaping handful of infield mix and rubbed it vigorously on his right pants leg. Chances are he won’t wash those trousers for a while because of what that dirt represents.
Six and a half weeks ago there were serious concerns if Preston Stracci would ever play baseball again. He collapsed after a running drill in practice and was later diagnosed with a heart murmur.
He only got cleared to play about an hour before the Mighty Oaks were schedule to play Delaware County CC Monday and he met the team at the field. The freshman from Bensalem, Pa., went into the game when Oaks coach John Holt cleared the bench in the fifth inning and even got his first college hit and RBI in the last of his three at bats in a wild 25-12 victory over the Phantoms.
“I missed almost two months and coming back it’s the greatest feeling in the world,” Stracci said. “I’m just so excited to be back with the boys.”
“It’s awesome,” Holt said. “It made the day for everybody.”
A day after the Oaks returned from an 11-1 loss to Northampton the players were doing some running in practice. Stracci leaned against the fence. Something just didn’t look or feel right. He went to the hospital and after undergoing a battery of tests it was determined he had a heart murmur. He was required to wear a heart monitor for the next month to make sure the condition wasn’t more serious.
Stracci came to Salem as a pitcher and utility infielder and was going to get a chance to show his stuff. Before his “episode” he made two appearances on the mound on the Oaks’ trip to Myrtle Beach, pitched two-thirds of an inning in that March 14 loss at Northampton and had five hitless at bats, but when the heart issue surfaced it shut him down completely.
“As soon as he told me that I was like, I’m going to get back on the field as soon as possible,” Stracci said. “But there were a lot of times where I went to bed thinking, oh my God, I might never pick up a baseball again, I might never run again, might never swing a bat again. When it started going in the right direction, I did everything I could to get healthy and it paid off.”
“It was scary,” Holt recalled. “I went to the hospital with them. His dad and I talked a lot. It’s just good to see him back on the field.”
When the cardiologist in Philadelphia told Stracci Monday morning he was good to go with no restrictions, a big smile crossed the player’s face and he immediately told the doctor “I’m going to go play.”
He didn’t know if he was going to get in the game. Holt considered pitching him, but put him in at short for Yen Rodriguez with the Oaks holding a 15-0 lead.
Between Rodriguez and Stracci, the leadoff spot batted seven times in seven innings. Stracci struck out his first time up. The next time he hit into a bang-bang double play that had everyone thinking the inning was over – it wasn’t, the Oaks went on to score five runs. His third time up was the charm. He shot a ball through through the hole at short that drove in the Oaks’ final run.
When he reached first base he clapped his hands enthusiastically and his teammates cheered from the dugout.
“I didn’t care about getting a hit,” he said. “Being in the game was enough. I struck out in my first at-bat. I was mad, but then I’m like, oh my God, wait, I’m back in the box.”
The win was the Oaks’ (23-20) 12th straight and moved them a step closer to Region XIX playoff qualification. They can clinch a spot with a doubleheader sweep at Anne Arundel (Md.) Tuesday — a twinbill in which Stracci might pitch.
If he does, it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s still wearing the same baseball pants.“I’m going to have these forever,” he said.
NOTES: The Mighty Oaks scored in every inning. The 25 runs were the second most they’ve scored in a game since restoring the program in 2020. They put 26 on the Phantoms in a 2021 win … The first four spots in the lineup all got seven plate appearances in seven innings … Angel Velez had two hits and two RBIs in his first two at bats. He’s 18-for-35 with 13 RBIs during the winning streak … Joe Fekete came off the bench and went 3-for-3 with two triples and five RBIs … Demetrius DeRamus hit a three-run inside-the-park home run in the sixth and reached base five times in the game … Lee Rodriguez took two more for the team. He’s now been hit 15 times this season. The Oaks were hit by eight pitches in the game … Oaks starter John McAllister faced the minimum through the first three innings. In three five-inning starts during the winning streak, he has allowed seven hits, six runs, walked four and struck out 28 … The Phantoms made it interesting with nine runs in the sixth inning that included several bunts and five Salem errors … Overall, the Oaks have won 15 of their last 16.
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